Before Pens fans could settle down and get comfortable, Cookie Monster snaps one past Toskala. WOO! But then Whitters makes up for it by getting called for tripping. Billy Thomas and JStaal are just fantastic on the PK. That’s when my cable went out. Grr. I fixed my TV just in time to see Orpik called for interference. Billy Thomas and JStaal come out on the PK again. BT goes quick and hard down the right side and slaps one in on a feed from Staalsy. Easy as pie. Shorthanded Goal=Money in the bank. Sid waltzes into the Leafs zone and whirls around, splitting the defense. It looks like he’s going to get a scoring chance but a Leaf grabs it off his stick. Maxie and Dominic Moore exchange blows. Then Gods grabs Jonas Frogren and pushes him around a bit, but Frogren’s not dropping the gloves. Both get 2 for roughing. Flower makes great save. He’s been solid this whole period. Everybody is shooting. What a crazy game. Sarge takes his first shot of the game but it was saved by Toskala’s glove. Whitters records his best scoring chance in weeks: the goalie actually had to make a save. Brad May roughs up on Cookie so Geno goes after him; then Cookie and Whitters. After all that, May is the only one in the sin bin with 2 minutes for roughing. Pens on the PP. Kubina pushes Staalsy into the net to dislodge it since he knew Sid was baring down on the net. No goal but, boy, was that a show. Then, at the other end of the pond, MAF passed his audition for Barnum & Bailey’s with flying colors, making a series of phenomenal saves. As the buzzer sounds, Flower pumps his fist in celebration and Pens fans everywhere let out a “WOOHOO!”
Sid has a good chance early and Steiggy and Errey talk about Fedo’s broken hand for a ridiculous amount of time. It’s okay, though, because nothing exciting is happening except that Mark Eaton is blocking shots like nobody’s business. Gonch is in so close to Flower that I start to feel uncomfortable…well, it is Valentine’s Day. Then MAF makes a beautiful diving save. The Leafs come into the zone, four of them, but Sarge gets there to whack the puck off a Leaf’s stick. TK is back-checking “like a dog”, according to Steiggy. Pens are playing that 1-2-2, trying to get turnovers in the neutral zone. Flower jumps across the blue paint to make another save. Cookie feeds the puck to Sykie but he just can’t get to it. Flower is in top form and standing tall as he makes another save, this time on rookie defenseman Luke Schenn. Fedo feeds one to TK who slaps one towards Toskala. Billy Thomas has mounds of confidence tonight as he shoots it towards the net. Staalsy retaliates after a Leaf elbowed him in the face and Staalsy takes the retaliatory roughing penalty. The Pens are on the PK with a great PKer in the box. But Billy Thomas kills about 15 seconds by going shorthanded and wasting time in the Leafs zone. White takes a shot but hits the side of the cage. Just after the penalty expires, Nik Antropov taps one in past Flower who was tied up by the Leaf’s shield. Sid goes in 1-on-2 and takes a shot that is easily saved by Toskala. The Leafs clear it but then Sid and TK rush back in to shoot again. Antropov, who was set up from behind the net, shoots one at Fleury who makes a great save. Duper fans on a slapper. Billy Thomas took a late hit from Antropov, but no penalty is called. Toskala makes a save on Sid. A close-range Antropov shot saved by Flower as time runs out.
Sid gets a good chance early and then Fedo tries to tip in a Whitter shot but fails. Jason Blake becomes the first Leaf with 20 goals on the season as he catches Flower out of position. Just then, you think FSN is showing a replay of that last goal, but then you realize that Jason Blake just got another goal. You look around for the trashcan to puke your guts out. Disgusting. Gonch shoots a nice wrister towards the net but Toskala decided to show up this period. Scudsie holds off the Leafs offense nicely and gets control of the puck just before Flower makes another save on Nik Antropov. Pens fans everwhere ask where their fore-check is…Duper tries again, but no dice. Tanger and Geno are skating really well, but then Mikhail Grabovski grabs it and heads towards MAF who is all alone. Mark Eaton trips him on the way and luckily the officials call a minor penalty instead of a penalty shot. Maxie and Geno are great on the PK, but Mitchell snaps one over Flower’s shoulder. MAF is angry that he let that one in, but his defensemen (aka Whitney) were behind the net. Flower makes up for it via an incredible glove save on White who was looking for the hat trick. Geno and Sid, who have been basically hiding this game, need to come out hard in the last 12 minutes. Gonchar took another great shot, but Toskala makes a pesky toe save. John Mitchell is called for hi-sticking. Pens on the PP. Sykie plants himself in front of the net; Sarge takes shot after shot. The Pens PP has gone missing once again. Schenn wrists one at the net but Flower is there. Geno gets a good chance with Sid but Sid couldn’t get to Geno’s pass. Pens finally get the puck and cycle it well, but Scudsie shoots a muffin. This game is over…with 6 minutes left: Ponikarovsky pokes one past Flower. Orpik goes down trying to block a shot and skates slowly to the bench. &#%@! Just what the Pens need: another injury. Can the whole team be healthy at once?! Not to worry: Orpik returns on his next shift. Stajan grabs Toronto’s sixth goal on the night. Flower has lost the confidence he had in the first 2 periods. This is just ridiculous. Fedo launches one at the net but Toskala is there. TK steals the puck and goes hard down the right side but the Leaf’s defense isn’t letting anything through.
THOUGHTS:
--Sid playing with the flu = bad idea
--Toskala decides to show up for one period. Way to choke, Penguins
--Gonchar and Fedotenko both played well, Sarge ridiculously so
--Flower made great saves and played really well tonight but he has major confidence issues
--VALENTINE’S DAY MASSACRE
--Trades, anyone?
Islanders on Monday.
If the Pens lose that game:
Do it.
LET'S GO PENS!
1 comment:
Well, this is a joke of a team.
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