The Good Out-Weighed The Bad For The Penguins Today

Matt Bodenschatz | Pittsburgh Penguins

Feb 22, 12:06 AM | Hype this story!

Today had the potential to be great or horrible for the Pittsburgh Penguins, who kicked off the day’s NHL festivities with a matchup against the cross-state rival Philadelphia Flyers.

The good news

  • The Penguins tallied their second consecutive win with a 5-4 defeat of their cross-state rivals, the Philadelphia Flyers.
  • The Buffalo Sabres beat the New York Rangers in regulation. With both the Sabres and Rangers positioned directly ahead of the Penguins in the standings, the winner wasn’t as important as the game being decided without overtime.
  • But possibly the best news of the day came with Buffalo’s loss of starting goalie Ryan Miller to a high ankle sprain. With Patrick Lalime as the new starter for what looks to be a significant amount of time, the Sabres — already without leading scorer Thomas Vanek — could have a rough road ahead.

The bad news

So what does this mean for the suddenly surging Penguins?

Well, to put it simply, they have to find a way to win tomorrow in Washington.

The Penguins gained ground on the Rangers and the idle Carolina Hurricanes today, and tomorrow, the Penguins will be in action along with the the Hurricanes (vs. the Colorado Avalanche) and the Rangers (vs. the Toronto Maple Leafs).

The bad news is that, of these three games, the Penguins play the most difficult team, by far.

Quite simply, a Penguins win and losses by the Hurricanes and Rangers will go a long way to proving the Penguins are still a team to be reckoned with.

And, on that note, here is a quick look at the standings...

5. Canadiens — 60 GP, 69 Pts
6. Panthers — 59 GP, 68 Pts
7. Sabres — 60 GP, 68 Pts
8. Rangers — 60 GP, 68 Pts
9. Hurricanes — 60 GP, 65 Pts
10. Penguins — 60 GP, 64 Pts

Comments

  1. TIM

    Feb 22, 09:20 AM

    I watched the Bruins/Panthers game (I live in Boston), and I was really impressed with Florida. They took it to the B’s the whole game, and deserved to win. The Bruins looked flat for the most part. Florida is a team to look out for.

  2. Matt Bodenschatz

    Feb 22, 10:32 AM

    @Tim, some readers of LetsGoPens.com were discussing some comments made during the Bruins intermission last night. From what I understand, the discussion revolved around who the Bruins would least want to play of the potential eighth seeds. Obviously, the answer was the Penguins, but can you shed light on what was said?

  3. TIM

    Feb 22, 10:41 AM

    Sorry Matt I was doing homework as well, so I missed it. I only saw some text in a box saying they voted the Pens the worst team for them to play. I will say that since after the all-star game analyst Mike Milbury has said the Pens are the most dangerous second half team, because of all the talent. He understands how important Gonch, and Whitney are to the blue line. Once they got them back he expected them to turn it around. Now that they are playing much better hockey the B’s want no part of the Pens.

  4. bag o' pucks

    Feb 22, 03:53 PM

    Well, the Pens collected four out of the six points available in the three-in-four. They sure seemed to run out of gas after the first period against the Caps today. Bylsma’s going to do a few things just so he can find out for himself. Fleury going three-in-four doesn’t yield good results, for example. The team has got to learn his aggressive style in the d-zone, also. They sure haven’t been stout. Sitting Whitney and getting Letang back in the lineup would be good, but I just don’t see that happening. Oh, well, still 20+ games left. They better collect the two against the Isles Wednesday before a tough game in Chi-town Friday night.

  5. RELENTLESSFORECHECK

    Feb 22, 05:14 PM

    Not so concerned about the loss today as I am about the Pens lost it: this team is simply playing too aggressive. For the third straight game, we’ve seen players trying to hard to make the big hit or the big play and getting way out of position. As a result, our defensive zone coverage is abysmal. Furthermore, guys without the speed to get back (Gill, Orpik, Eaton, Scuderi) should not be given the green light to pinch deep. Getting into a run-and-gun with every opponent is only going to expose the Pens lack of depth. There’s nothing wrong with an uptempo game plan, but it can’t just be organized chaos. Play aggressively, but keep it under control.

    Like it or not, Fleury is not Dominik Hasek. He doesn’t thrive on having to rely on acrobatics every night to get the job done; Fleury is best when he can concentrate on the fundamentals and not have to play on a survival instinct. End-to-end rushes, odd-man situations, poor coverage in the slot, way too many chances against… it’s all wearing MAF out.

    And one more thing: for the love of the McKenzie Brothers sit Eaton and put Letang back in the lineup.

  6. DaBich

    Feb 22, 06:53 PM

    Relentlessforecheck…You’ve added your voice to the clamor to bring Letang back…thanks! He’s perfectly suited to the type of game Bylsma is having the team play now. Having him sit makes no sense at all to me.
    The loss to Washington was based on two main things: MAF is in over his head with the style of play, plus he is exhausted. And our power play simply cannot go 1 for 8 and this team expect to win. Hopefully, Dan and company can come up with something to fix the PP. MAF needs a night off now and then as well, and playing him against Philly, then Washington back to back was definitely poor judgment.
    A couple day’s rest to regroup and work on some things will help this team. A win against the Isles be great, then let’s see what happens Friday against the Blackhawks.

  7. Matt Bodenschatz

    Feb 22, 07:52 PM

    Something tells me Blysma isn’t risking his future as an NHL head coach because of a personal feud.

    We all agree Letang should be in the lineup. Let’s pick a new topic, eh?

  8. bag o' pucks

    Feb 22, 08:42 PM

    Pepperoni pizza is better than sausage pizza. Discuss.

  9. swiss cheese

    Feb 22, 08:57 PM

    Since we all agree, Whitney out – Letang in, here is another reason why Bylsma has the dreaded “interim” in his title. You have a back-up goalie for a reason, and back-to-back road games fits that description. If Fluery was seeing beachballs that’s one thing, however that has certainly not been the case. You play the hunch and start Garon, if for nothing else than to give MAF a breather and let him know that he is needed for the stretch.

    I have to get this out as well…Whitney gives up a shorty AND STAYS ON THE ICE! Bylsma go back to writing children’s stories. ACCOUNTABILITY? WHERE? If management is forcing Whitney to be out there then Shero is making a costly mistake – every single time 19 steps on the ice he lowers his trade value.

  10. bag o' pucks

    Feb 22, 11:05 PM

    I don’t think that’s happening, Cheese. GMs manage, coaches coach. If Shero wanted to determine who got ice time he wouldn’t have promoted Bylsma, he would have gotten behind the bench himself. A GM might fire a coach who isn’t doing things the way the GM wants them (just ask Michel), but a GM who meddles too much with the coaching staff will find himself without one pretty quickly.

    Honestly, if you were a coach and the GM came to the morning skate one day and said, “I want you to play this guy and sit that guy.” What would you say? I’d say, “Then do that yourself, because I quit.” Not to mention there’s no quicker way to neuter your coach with his team than to demonstrate he doesn’t even have the power to put them in the press box for a night. Of course, if the GM says, “We can’t play this guy because he may not be our asset in two hours,” that’s another story.

    Right or wrong, it’s Bylsma’s decision to sit Letang, just like it was his decision to play Fleury. He’s the one who has to live with these decisions. After all, these decisions will determine where he’s working next fall.

  11. DaBich

    Feb 23, 05:12 AM

    I happen to be a fan of pepperoni pizza :)

  12. Bobby

    Feb 23, 09:16 AM

    Here’s the real question, do said pepperoni and sausage pizzas have only those ingredients? For instance, the introduction of green peppers would drastically change my answer, which, by the way, at face value, is pepperoni. I would, however consider a trade for two slices of sausage and a conditional condiment on March 4th.

  13. swiss cheese

    Feb 23, 08:03 PM

    Bag O’, I am not so sure that we aren’t seeing management override coaching here. Upon further review, did Shero use this as an opportunity to rid himself of the coach that was not “his guy”, stick with the players that he signed long-term (Whitney, Staal, Fluery) and take over control – win, lose or draw? Just something to ponder. It sounds frightening after the success of last season but what if the consensus was to write-off this campaign and try again over the summer to fill in the gaps. Financially they are fine, and sending a harsh message might be the medicine management is prescribing.

    Either way let’s hope for the best.

    Bobby brings in an interesting point, is it based only on those two toppings, or are we talking other possibilities. Pepperoni is the reliable stay-at-home defenseman, but you might consider the trade if sausage was in the deal with mushrooms, banana peppers, onions and a beverage to be named later.

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