Loading ...
![[Valid RSS]](valid-rss.png "Validate my RSS feed")
« Flyer shock Habs at home 4-2 | Main | Last Poll Results »
Penguins take both at home
By TonyH | April 27, 2008
Penguins drop Rangers 2-0
Fleury gets shutout in second win over Rangers. Penguins lead series 2-0
One year ago, the Rangers found themselves in a 2-0 hole to start an Eastern Conference Semifinals series against Buffalo, but used their outstanding play at Madison Square Garden as the springboard to what became a very close, six-game series that easily could have gone their way.
They will need to work that formula again on Tuesday and Thursday at MSG after slipping into the same 2-0 deficit on Sunday afternoon in Pittsburgh, where the Penguins got a second-period power-play goal from Jordan Staal and an empty-netter from Adam Hall to take their 2-0 lead with a 2-0 win.
Once again, there was a bit of controversy near the end of the game, and once again Martin Straka was at the center of it. Straka, who took a much-disputed penalty that led to Evgeni Malkin’s game-winning goal in Game 1 on Friday night, appeared to have tied the game with 4:13 remaining in the third period. His apparent goal was overruled, however, because officials had already blown the whistle upon losing sight of the puck under Penguins goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury’s pads.
Fleury, who had blanked the Rangers 1-0 early in the 2007-08 regular season, was outstanding — making 26 saves for the shutout, but his teammates also played very well in front of him, repeatedly frustrating the Rangers and limiting the quality of their shots. Meanwhile, the Pens pumped 31 shots at Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist, who allowed only Staal’s goal late in a Pittsburgh man-advantage.
The Rangers got a couple of late power play chances, including one which led to the quick whistle on the apparent Straka goal. A second opportunity came with 2:22 remaining, when Pens defenseman Hal Gill cross-checked Scott Gomez as the Rangers center got open outside the crease to Fleury’s right.
With 1:15 remaining in that final power play, Rangers head coach Tom Renney pulled Lundqvist for an extra attacker. The Rangers were controlling the puck in the zone right until Hall’s long clearing attempt from rifled off the glass on the right side of the neutral zone and found the Rangers net in seeing-eye fashion at 19:43.
Power plays proved the difference in a tight defensive game that looked almost nothing like the Pens’ 5-4 win in Game 1. Pittsburgh went 1-for-5 with the man-advantage, while the Rangers were 0-for-6. Each team had two power plays in the final period.
While the first and third period were wide open at times, the tighter second period actually produced the game’s first goal. It came on the Penguins’ lone power play opportunity in that period after the Rangers had dodged several bullets from the hungry Pittsburgh attackers.
The breakthrough goal was scored by Staal, but the play that led to it was made by Rangers nemesis Evgeni Malkin, who put a perfect centering pass from the base of the left circle onto Staal’s stick. Staal then patiently waited for Lundqvist to commit before flipping the puck up over the Rangers goaltender with 6:05 remaining in the second.
Staal scored with Chris Drury in the penalty box for a hooking call against Petr Sykora at 12:22. Only 17 seconds remained in that penalty, but the first 1:43 of the power-play had also featured plenty of chances. The Penguins applied relentless pressure on Lundqvist, forcing him to make two tough saves. He also caught a break when Pittsburgh’s Ryan Malone missed an open net at 13:17 after the puck landed on the doorstep and Malone seemed to delay his shot purely from the shock of such a golden opportunity.
Leading 1-0, Pittsburgh got an early power play at the 1:11 mark of the third when Rangers defenseman Dan Girardi accidentally fired the puck over the glass in his own zone, prompting a delay of game call. Lundqvist was immediately tested by Marian Hossa, who ripped a one-timer from the high slot just inside the right faceoff circle that Lundqvist stopped with his left pad. That would prove to be the toughest save during the Pittsburgh power play, as the Rangers did a strong job of shutting down the Pens.
Pittsburgh went right back on the power play at 5:57 when Blair Betts was whistled for slashing Tyler Kennedy to break up Kennedy’s scoring chance. The Pens applied one stretch of pressure during the power play, highlighted by a Sidney Crosby spin-o-rama move that nearly led to a goal.
With 6:06 remaining, the Rangers got a chance to go on the power play when Sykora went off for high-sticking. During that man-advantage, Straka appeared to score at the 15:47 mark, when he chopped a loose puck under Fleury’s pads. The officials, however, had lost sight of the puck as it went under the goaltender and blew the whistle before Straka’s shot could trickle into the net.
The Rangers outshot the Pens 8-7 in the final 20 minutes – the fewest combined shots of any period. Shots were even at 9-9 in the middle period, but the Rangers didn’t get their first shot of the second period until Fredrik Sjostrom threw one at Fleury over four minutes into the period. Play tightened up over the opening minutes and it wasn’t until the Rangers’ second line of Scott Gomez, Brendan Shanahan and Sean Avery got to work at the seven-minute mark that the Blueshirts managed any sustained pressure.
As the period opened up, the Pens came right back at Lundqvist, who was forced to come out of his crease to cut down the angle on a tough shot by Jordan Staal at 8:05. Jagr then got a chance going in the other direction on a 3-on-2, forcing Fleury to make a tough save at 8:32.
After giving up the game’s first goal, the Rangers got their only second-period chance to work on the power play when Hossa was whistled for holding Drury at 15:54. Both Blueshirts man-advantage units performed well during the stretch, putting a combined four shots on net, but Fleury and the Pittsburgh penalty killers were up to the task and refused to allow any great scoring chances.
The first period featured plenty of offense, but even better goaltending. Lundqvist came up with 14 saves in the opening 20 minutes, while Fleury had 10 against the Rangers. Power plays had a big impact on the shot totals, as the Rangers had three man-advantage opportunities, and the Penguins had two, including a 4-on-3 for 1:40.
The Rangers got the first chance to work on the power play when Nigel Dawes was knocked down in the crease by Ryan Whitney, prompting an interference call at 2:57.
That power play was negated, however, when Gomez went off for holding at 4:25. Given the opportunity to work with their own man-advantage, the Pens forced Lundqvist to make his first big save of the afternoon on a Marian Hossa breakaway from the blueline at 5:22. He then made another stop on Hossa’s turnaround shot from the right circle at 5:43 as Pittsburgh applied heavy pressure during its power play and fired five shots on goal in the 1:28 stretch after Whitney came out of the penalty box.
Fleury made his first tough save at the 8:11 mark, denying Drury from just outside the crease to his right after Drury received a perfect cross-ice pass from Ryan Callahan out of the right corner.
For their second power-play chance, the Rangers drew a hooking penalty against Jarkko Ruutu at the 10:41 mark. They kept the puck in the Pittsburgh zone and created traffic in front of the net for much of the power play, but could not solve Fleury, who was forced to make only one save on a long shot by Dan Girardi.
With Paul Mara and Kris Letang off for roughing at 13:34, the Rangers soon found themselves facing a 4-on-3 Pittsburgh advantage after Fedor Tyutin was called for holding Crosby behind the net at 13:54.
Pittsburgh’s best chance during that 100 seconds of power-play time came on a deflection in front by Marian Hossa. Lundqvist made the stop and was able to fall on the rebound. He also got outstanding penalty-killing help from Chris Drury, who broke up one play by clearing a pass out of the zone and then stopped another opportunity directly in front of Lundqvist by pouncing on a loose puck and flipping it down the ice to safety.
At the 16:38 mark, the Rangers got a chance to capitalize on a power play opportunity of their own. Again it was Ruttu going to the penalty box – this time for high sticking. Midway through the man-advantage, Fleury came up with a big save on a long, open shot from Michal Rozsival. On the ensuing faceoff, he gloved a Fedor Tyutin drive from just inside the blue line. He later stopped a Shanahan bid from in front after the Rangers winger took a pass from behind the net at 18:22.
Source: Rangers Official Website
Topics: 08 Playoffs, Rangers |