Ann 22009 NHL Playoffs – Round 2: Penguins Tie Series With 5-3 Win Against Capitals
May 10th 2009 02:32
For the second consecutive game, the Washington Capitals got a quick goal which gave them an early lead over their opponent. But this time around, the Penguins seized full control of the game to put the series at 2-2 after being down 0-2.
The Capitals' Nicklas Backstrom was the first player to reach the back of the net 35 seconds into the game. However, all the momentum carried by that goal was broken with a boneheaded play from captain Chris Clark who cross-checked Crosby from behind right at the blue line. The Penguins tied the game on the ensuing powerplay, and then scored two more before the end of the period to put the score at 3-1.
Chris Clark redeemed himself later on by scoring his team's second goal in an otherwise uneventful second period. To show how boring those twenty minutes were: neither team got more than five shots on net despite five powerplays (three for Pittsburgh and two for Washington).
Sidney Crosby restored the Penguins' two-goal lead with his ninth goal of the post-season. Two minutes later, Milan Jurcina made it 4-3 with a shorthanded goal which deflated the Mellon Arena for awhile. You could tell that the Penguins were getting nervous with only a one-goal lead against a team that doesn't quit. Their fears were even more exacerbated by the fact that they had lost Sergei Gonchar in the second period after an accidental knee-on-knee collision with Ovechkin, and the defenseman wasn't coming back. Fortunately for them, Simeon Varlamov wasn't at his best last night, and the Russian netminder fell for a fifth time when Maxime Talbot buried a rebound past him with six minutes left on the clock.
In the end, Varlamov had his first poor showing of the playoffs and the Penguins capitalized on their chances – that's all there is to it. Now, both teams go back to Washington tied at 2-2 for what is shaping to be an epic end to a long-awaited series.
My 3 Stars (in no particular order this time around):
3. Maxime Talbot
2. Ruslan Fedotenko
1. Sidney Crosby
The Capitals' Nicklas Backstrom was the first player to reach the back of the net 35 seconds into the game. However, all the momentum carried by that goal was broken with a boneheaded play from captain Chris Clark who cross-checked Crosby from behind right at the blue line. The Penguins tied the game on the ensuing powerplay, and then scored two more before the end of the period to put the score at 3-1.
Chris Clark redeemed himself later on by scoring his team's second goal in an otherwise uneventful second period. To show how boring those twenty minutes were: neither team got more than five shots on net despite five powerplays (three for Pittsburgh and two for Washington).
Sidney Crosby restored the Penguins' two-goal lead with his ninth goal of the post-season. Two minutes later, Milan Jurcina made it 4-3 with a shorthanded goal which deflated the Mellon Arena for awhile. You could tell that the Penguins were getting nervous with only a one-goal lead against a team that doesn't quit. Their fears were even more exacerbated by the fact that they had lost Sergei Gonchar in the second period after an accidental knee-on-knee collision with Ovechkin, and the defenseman wasn't coming back. Fortunately for them, Simeon Varlamov wasn't at his best last night, and the Russian netminder fell for a fifth time when Maxime Talbot buried a rebound past him with six minutes left on the clock.
In the end, Varlamov had his first poor showing of the playoffs and the Penguins capitalized on their chances – that's all there is to it. Now, both teams go back to Washington tied at 2-2 for what is shaping to be an epic end to a long-awaited series.
My 3 Stars (in no particular order this time around):
3. Maxime Talbot
2. Ruslan Fedotenko
1. Sidney Crosby
| 61 |
| Vote |
Add To: 
subscribe to this blog
