Pens vs. Rangers: 23 October 2007
I'll keep this one short, because a few themes persisted throughout the game:
- Ryan Malone was flying all night.
- Brooks Orpik was meaner than he's been the past few nights.
- Marc-Andre Fleury was sharp.
- The posts behind Marc-Andre Fleury were sharp.
- The Pens were making too many passes.
- The Rangers did a better job of controlling the puck.
- Scott Gomez and Chris Drury still don't fit in.
- Constantly mixing lines leads to too-many-men penalties. The Pens got another one tonight.
This was one of those nights where throwing the kitchen sink at a goaltender just builds his confidence. The Rangers out-shot the Penguins 36-22, and Fleury just got stronger as the game went on. Meanwhile, the combination of Malone, Staal, Jarkko Ruutu, and Adam Hall kept Jaromir Jagr frustrated all night. By the third period, Jagr was hanging his head at the end of every shift.
Final Score: Penguins 1, Rangers 0, Jagr boos per period: 12.
Three Stars:
- Marc-Andre Fleury (36-save shutout)
- Evgeni Malkin (GWG)
- Brooks Orpik (Hits galore)