Game 15 Preview: Penguins Visit Red Wings

Matt Bodenschatz | Pittsburgh Penguins

Nov 11, 03:16 PM | Hype this story!
Series – 0 GP
W L OTL Pts.
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7:00 at Joe Louis Arena
TV: Versus
Radio: WXDX Radio, FM 105.9
Probable Goalies: Fleury (Pit), Osgood (Det)

 
Inside The Game

Unfortunately, due to work obligations, the game preview for tomorrow’s Stanley Cup Finals rematch must come tonight.  As a result, some of the information (starting goalies, injuries, standings information, etc) may not be 100 percent accurate by game time.  But please bear with me.

So, tomorrow, the Pittsburgh Penguins will travel north to play the Detroit Red Wings for the first time since June and for the first time since Marian Hossa jumped ship.

But, even without Hossa and a slew of other departed players, the Penguins are off to their best start since 1995-96, while the Red Wings are off to a slow start (by their own standards).

Hossa has taken the bull by the horns while wearing the red and white, leading his team in goals, points and plus/minus, and anchoring the team’s highly effective power play, which is clicking at nearly 31 percent.  His replacement in Pittsburgh, though, hasn’t done too shabby.  Miroslav Satan may not have the assists or plus/minus that Hossa boasts, but his goals are right there, and he seems to be getting better with each passing game.

What seems strikingly different about the Red Wings compared to years past is their inability to keep the puck out of the net.  In one fewer game played, the Wings have allowed four more goals than the Penguins, and their penalty killing is sitting at "just" 81 percent.

If a win is in store for the Penguins, they must take advantage of such defensive woes with a high-tempo, quick transition game that includes plenty of shots on goal.  Additionally, with Detroit’s success on the power play, the Penguins must stay out of the penalty box, even though they have one of the league’s top penalty killing units.

Pick an angle — Stanley Cup rematch, Hossa’s return, a Stanley Cup preview, etc — if you like, but the bottom line is that this is a matchup of two of the NHL’s premier teams, even if they aren’t (yet) at the top of their respective conferences.  This one should be fun to watch, to say the least.

Penguins lineup (updated 11/11)

Talbot-Crosby-Satan
Fedotenko-Malkin-Sykora
Kennedy-Staal-Cooke
Dupuis-Zigomanis-Godard

Orpik-Letang
Scuderi-Gill
Sydor-Goligoski

Fleury
 
Standings
  GP W L OTL Pts Division Conference League
Penguins 14 8 4 2 18 2, Atlantic 6, Eastern 8, NHL
Red Wings 13 9 2 2 20 1, Central 2, Western 3, NHL
                 
Team Statistics
  GF GA PP% PK% Home Away L 10 Streak
Penguins 41 36 19.0 88.5 4-2-1 4-2-1 6-3-1 3 wins
Red Wings 47 40 30.9 81.0 3-1-1 6-1-1 7-1-2 2 wins
                 
Team Leaders
  Stat Penguins   Stat Red Wings
Goals 8 Satan Goals 8 Hossa
Assists 18 Malkin Assists 10 Rafalski
Points 22 Malkin Points 17 Hossa
+/- +4 Malkin, Sydor +/- +9 Hossa
PIMs 44 Godard PIMs 18 Kronwall
Wins 6 Fleury Wins 6 Osgood
GAA 1.90 Sabourin GAA 2.97 Osgood
Sv% .935 Sabourin Sv% .897 Conklin
 
Injuries
Penguins Injury Status
Gonchar, IR
Whitney, IR		 Shoulder Surgery
Foot Surgery		 Out until late March
Out until December
Red Wings Injury Status
Cleary, DTD
Chelios, IR
Franzen, DTD		 Eye Infection
Leg
Knee		 Out indefinitely (updated 11/11)
Out until mid-November
Probable (updated 11/11)
 
Note: Info up-to-date as of 6:54 pm, Monday, November 10, 2008.

Comments

  1. TIM

    Nov 11, 01:37 AM

    Should be a great hockey game. The whole Hossa thing still bums me out. I have no issue at all with Satan and how he has played since his arrival, but Hossa is a great player.

  2. DaBich

    Nov 11, 06:22 AM

    I’m looking forward to watching tonight. I hope our boys don’t disappoint. We don’t want to look bad, playing against Hossa and company.

  3. teri

    Nov 11, 10:41 AM

    And I get to see it live! Ice level seats, no less. What a great birthday gift!!

    Go Pens!!!

    teri

  4. Matt Bodenschatz

    Nov 11, 11:50 AM

    Have fun at the game, Teri. We expect a report tomorrow!

  5. Doc Nagel

    Nov 11, 05:55 PM

    Is there much to choose from between Sydor and Eaton lately? I haven’t particularly noticed either of them looking remarkably good or bad, but it makes me wonder why Eaton seems to be getting less opportunity lately. Was there something in the Phoenix game that I didn’t notice?

  6. Bag O' Pucks

    Nov 11, 09:05 PM

    Uh-oh. After that McCarty goal the Pens got that deer-in-the-headlights look they had in games one and two of the finals. Instead of playing their game, which they started nicely, they went to just watching. Unfortunate.

    What, are there 2,000 people in that arena? Hockeytown, indeed.

  7. bag o' pucks

    Nov 11, 10:26 PM

    Doesn’t everyone, yes, but the Red Wings have particular trouble with teams that effectively blend skill and physicality. The Pens are all skill and butter soft. Before this game, Orpik led the league with 52 hits, I think the rest of the Pens total about four or five hits on the season. So many times Pittsburgh curls away from hits it’s sickening.

    And Fleury’s been so putrid they can smell the stink back in Pittsburgh.

  8. Ashley Gallant

    Nov 11, 10:57 PM

    I just caught the recap on SportsCentre…I don’t know how the game was, and the final score is a little ugly, but I’m happy that Staal really lit it up tonight. Maybe that will be a little confidence booster.

  9. bag o' pucks

    Nov 11, 11:07 PM

    What a finish…

  10. TIM

    Nov 11, 11:30 PM

    Staal seems to be playing well. It is nice to see them compete with the best team in the league.

  11. DaBich

    Nov 12, 06:13 AM

    putrid?
    I think not.

  12. Matt Bodenschatz

    Nov 12, 11:51 AM

    Yeah, I agree with Dabich. Fleury hasn’t been as sharp in the last few games, but putrid he is not. There were really only one or two goals against last night that were truly his fault — the rest were all a result of defensive breakdowns or excellent play by the Red Wings.

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