HABS-PENS

[whitmer_87]

Irritatingly odd game. Seemed like they were doing everything right most of the time and every slip up led to something for Montreal. Opik played pretty poorly and I'd seriously considering yanking Fedontenko again and playing Conner or even someone like Letestu. Feds has been brutal out there.

Ponikarovsky and Fedotenko have looked terrible IMO. Wouldn't mind seeing them both as healthy scratches tonight. Don't see it happening though, maybe Feds get a scratch tonight, but not both.

Bottom line is we have to get better scoring opportunities and put the fucking puck in the net. This series could get ugly if we're only scoring 1 or 2 a game.

[Merman1983]

Marc-Andre motherfucking Fluery.

[pensodyssey]

Marc-Andre motherfucking Fluery.

Yep.  Although it seemed to me we got an awful lot of good bounces in the first.  But such is playoff hockey.

Dupuis was sensational all night on the forecheck, thoroughly deserved the enetter.

Goligoski has a tendency to panic with puck in his own end.

Edit:  And when Guerin is ready to comeback, he should be a power-play only guy.  Letestu, even on the fourth line, just has better legs.

[JackSplat]

Just what the Doctor ordered for the Newwwww Two Niner!  Perfect starting point for lock down goal tending for the rest of the bill.

Agree on Dupuis and also thought Ponikarovsky kicked some major ass on the forecheck 3rd period, especially the last 5 minutes.

Fuck them lame ass Habs and their rope a dope style of hockey.  Get up by even just one goal in the latter parts of any game and they have no idea how to turn up the volume.  the pens can turn on the light switch fo sho, the habs...ummm not so much.

[Preacherman0]

Pens win 2-0 to go up 2-1 in the series.

Red Wings melt down in the 3rd and OT to go down 0-3.

That, my friends, is a good night.

The one thing that just keeps scaring me about Montreal is the whole "hot goalie" thing.  Pens are clearly the better team IMHHO (in my humble hockey opinion), but Halak is pretty darn awesome in there.  It's causing me horrible flashbacks to Vanbiesbrook in '96.

[Merman1983]

The one thing that just keeps scaring me about Montreal is the whole "hot goalie" thing.  

The good news there is all season long Halak has either been red hot or ice cold. He was I think 4th in the league in save % this season so all the games that he has stolen should not come as a surprise. However, he was yanked 10-15 times over the course of the season (twice in the wash series), so he definitely has it in him to go out and lay an egg. Hopefully that happens in either game 4 or 5.



Also loving the Detroit chokejob, but if anyone can blow a 3-0 series lead...

[Merman1983]

Also, this just in from the holy shit department:

http://penguins.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=528179&navid=DL|PIT|home

Penguins center Jordan Staal practiced with his teammates for the first time since suffering an injury in Game 1 of the conference semifinals against the Montreal Canadiens.

Staal, who missed his first two games due to injury in his four-year career, suffered a laceration on his foot that required a surgical procedure and is listed as day-to-day. He took part in all the drills at the Bell Centre and appeared strong on his skates, no small feat considering he had surgery four days ago.



Jordan Staal is made of adamantium?

[Captain Chaos]

Also, this just in from the holy shit department:

http://penguins.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=528179&navid=DL|PIT|home

Penguins center Jordan Staal practiced with his teammates for the first time since suffering an injury in Game 1 of the conference semifinals against the Montreal Canadiens.

Staal, who missed his first two games due to injury in his four-year career, suffered a laceration on his foot that required a surgical procedure and is listed as day-to-day. He took part in all the drills at the Bell Centre and appeared strong on his skates, no small feat considering he had surgery four days ago.

Gonna have to change his nickname from Gronk to Wolverine. 

Jordan Staal is made of adamantium?

[Preacherman0]

Jordan Staal is made of adamantium?

He's a hockey player.  Dudes are tough as nails.

As opposed to this:

http://philadelphia.phillies.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20100307&content_id=8705974&vkey=news_atl&fext=.jsp&c_id=atl

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Fearing that he could aggravated his bruised right thumb, Chipper Jones opted to remove himself from Sunday afternoon's lineup. But the Braves' third baseman plans to return to action on Tuesday night to face Phillies ace Roy Halladay in a 7:05 ET game that will air live on MLB.TV.

"I will be chomping at the bit," Jones said. "I want to see him. I faced Roy when he first got called up in the '90s, and I faced him in an All-Star Game a couple of years ago. Any look you can get at him, you want to get in there and get a look at him."

[whitmer_87]

Jordan Staal is a fucking badass!