Pens: Flat Start to Playoff Push
The Pittsburgh Penguins needed a victory Wednesday to stay in the hunt for postseason play. This game was especially important with the upcoming five-game road trip. The Penguins needed to get a big win at home against a struggling New York Islanders team, that had just beaten them last Thursday, and they did without Sidney Crosby and Ryan Whitney.
The game was scattered with missed opportunities for both teams. The Pens played well and looked sharp, but for the longest time could not find the net to save their lives. The Netminders were very impressive, Yann Danis stopped 27 shots for the Islanders and Marc-Andre Fleury had 21 saves in his shutout performance. It was Petr Sykora who snapped the scoreless tie with 2:28 remaining in the third period, lifting the Penguins to the 1-0 triumph over the Islanders.
The goal may have been Pittsburgh’s biggest score of the season because it keeps them right in the hunt. A loss or overtime loss to the Islanders would have been a crushing defeat. To a team struggeling to find its identity this late in the season.
The Penguins did climb a little higher in the standings with the win but there is no time to stop and rest. Now the Penguins will embark on an 11-day road trip through Chicago, Dallas, Tampay Bay, Florida and Washington. This will be a critical week in the Penguins season and the playoffs are on the line.
A Roadtrip like this is what will make or break the Pens this season. Even though only 5 points seperate them from the 5th place Monreal Canadiens, they seem far removed from the Easten Conference Champions of last year.
Author Bio
Well Growing up in Central PA, I do have a love for Pittsburg Sports and My Nittany Lions. I attended Penn State Univesity and I now work as a Marketing Consultant. My love for sports has been the driving force for me to chase my dream of spots writing. I offer an outside perspective, even to my beloved teams, and a unique sence of the magnitude of sports in our time.
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