Staal vs Staal. It was all about Jordan Staal and his older brother, Eric, on Saturday night. With no Crosby, who is now definitely missing the All-Star Game on the 29th due to a concussion, and no Malkin, who is out with a sore knee and sinus infection, the weight of the team fell onto the shoulders of Jordan Staal, who had to fill in as No. 1 Centre - not that he had any problems with the against his brother.
Although he didn't score, Jordan Staal managed to achieve his fourth assist of the season and attained the second star. Of course, not even the brilliance of Jordan Staal, or the Staal vs Staal rivalry, can take the first star away from Marc-Andre Fleury. Saving 24 shots out of 26, the Flower was on fire between the pipes. We couldn't have asked for a better tender; no wonder he is going to the All-Star Game!
Now, don't hate me for this next comment; it's a good job Geno Malkin isn't fit enough to play at the moment. If he was, then Bylsma wouldn't have called Dustin Jeffrey back up from the minors, and he wouldn't have scored! After a scoreless first period, Jeffrey opened the scoring at 17.14 in the second, with the help of Brooks Orpik. Without Crosby, it was tough; Sid the Kid is definitely one of the guys that makes this team. But we have learnt to function without him. Then, Malkin is out. For the second time since Malkin joined the franchise - the first being against the Devils on Thursday - the Pens have been without both of their world-class forwards. And we didn't do so well without them against the Devils; but we're learning... quickly.
The second period ended 1-0 Pens; question is, can we keep the lead? Of course we can.... was there ever any doubt? 2.22 into the third period, Mark Lestestu doubled the Penguins lead with his tenth of the season. No. 10 gets ten!!! Cause for celebration if ever they were! Can you imagine if someone like Wayne Gretzky scored as many goals as the number on the back of his jersey, in one season? That would be a lot of goals... But anyway, Lestestu managed to get us our first powerplay goal in four games, with the help of Kunitz and Letang. It was about time we were due one.
With the momentum rolling, Pittsburgh wouldn't give up a chance to add another to their running total of the night. So, when the puck presented itself to Pascal Dupuis, 5.06 after Letestu doubled the lead, he wasn't really going to miss,was he? Getting assistance from No. 1 centre Jordan Staal and Defenseman Paul Martin (who now has fourteen assists), Dupuis was cementing our win.
That is until it all went downhill. At the beginning of the third, Fleury was all set up for a shutout. He has yet to get one against the 'Canes this season, although Brent Johnson manage to attain one when he met with Carolina back in October. Even after Letestu scored, Marc-Andre was still solid in between the pipes. With No. 9 making it 3-0 Penguins, you could practically smell the shutout in the air.
But then it happened. Or rather, Sergei Samsonov happened. At 15.35 in the third, the Flower faltered for a single second; but that was just enough time for Samsonov to slip the puck past him. So, now it was 3-1. Not that bad, right? Still got a two goal lead? Not for long.
It seems like the Carolina players have got confident. It took a couple more minutes, but in the last minute of play, the 'Canes Captain-and Jordan's brother-Eric Staal, managed to slip one past, making the 3-2. Although [Eric] Staal did diminish his goal, when he received a 10 minutes misconduct penalty, dead on 20.00. He just managed to worm his way out of that one... unfortunately.
So with a win under our belts, Penguins remain in 2nd in the Atlantic division, with 64 points; Flyers' are just ahead in 1st, with 69 points. And for anyone who is excited for the All-Star Game, they have announced the Alternate Captains; for Team Lidstrom: Chicago's Patrick Kane and the fabulous Martin St. Louis. For Team [Eric] Staal: Ryan Kesler, the American who should be Canadian, and the Caps' Mike Green, who we all hate to love. Anyone else rooting for Team Staal? Just me? Okay then...
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