Game 13 Preview: Penguins At Islanders

Matt Bodenschatz | Pittsburgh Penguins

Nov 3, 10:19 AM | Hype this story!
Introduction
High and low.  Hot and cold.  Good and bad.  These are just some of the many contradicting adjectives that describe the Pittsburgh Penguins as of late.  Tonight, the up and down team from the Steel City will travel to Long Island to play the New York Islanders.

Remember, Mike Adams’ Grade ‘A’ Reviews will be unavailable tonight, but will return for the Penguins’ next game, against the Minnesota Wild Tuesday.
 
The Matchup
Teams Pittsburgh Penguins vs. New York Islanders
Location Nassau Coliseum: Uniondale, NY
Time 7:00 pm EST
Television Fox Sports Pittsburgh
Goalies Probable Goaltenders
Post-Game
 
Grade ‘A’ Reviews
 
Inside The Game
The overacheiving New York Islanders have once again found their groove under coach Ted Nolan despite boasting few, if any, star players.  Averaging three goals per game and boasting a 26.1 percent powerplay conversion rate, the Islanders will make for a difficult opponent for the Pittsburgh Penguins tonight.

Unlike the Islanders, the Penguins have yet to find their stride, playing excellent hockey one game and average hockey the next.  The one positive the Penguins have is that forwards Sidney Crosby, riding a 12-game point streak, and Evgeni Malkin, seven points in three games, have put together a very solid stretch of games — though their line is the only one putting the puck in the net.
 
Prediction
Coming off of a disappointing loss to the Colorado Avalanche Thursday night, the Penguins should come out strong with a drive to win.  Divisional games always have an added intensity, and with the Islanders’ chippy style of play, this could make for a very fun game to watch.

Look for Ryan Malone, notorious for his solid play against the Islanders, to pot a few goals in a lopsided Penguins victory

Final score: 6-2, Penguins win.
 
Team Stats
  GP W L OT Pts GF GA PP% PK% Home/Road
Pittsburgh 12 6 5 1 13 36 38 23.8 83.9 3-2-0, R
New York
 
10
 
6
 
4
 
0
 
12
 
30
 
33
 
26.1
 
87.0
 
4-2-0, H
 
Team Leaders
  Stat Pittsburgh   Stat New York
Goals 7 Crosby Goals 5 Comrie/Guerin
Assists 12 Crosby/Malkin Assists 8 Comrie
Points 19 Crosby Points 13 Comrie
PIMs 18 Gonchar PIMs 16 Comrie
Wins
 
4
 
Fleury
 
Wins
 
6
 
DiPietro
 
Note: Stats and standings updated as of 11:05 am, Saturday, November 3, 2007.

Comments

  1. Ben

    Nov 3, 12:34 PM

    I hate to nitpick, but I’m pretty sure that Kostopolous, Komisarek and Huet don’t play for the Islanders, and yet you have them listed for the team leads in PIMs and Wins…

  2. Matt Bodenschatz

    Nov 3, 03:52 PM

    No nitpicking…dumb error on my part. I use a template and fill in the gaps — I got sidetracked and neglected to update the PIM’s and Wins. Thanks, Ben.

Commenting is closed for this article.