As the Pittsburgh Penguins prepare for the first of two straight road contests in Montreal against the Canadiens starting in game 3 of their Eastern Conference Seminfinal tonight @ The Bell Centre (7:00 PM, FSN PITTSBURGH), several things are clear at this point of the series -- currently tied 1-1.
For one, the Penguins need more production from Evgeni Malkin, and better goaltending from Marc-Andre Fleury.
For another, the Canadiens can be an effective club when they play within their limitations -- blocking a lot of shots, relying on strong netminding, and being opportunitstic on offense.
But perhaps the clearest thing after the 2 games between these teams thusfar, at least in this writer's opinion, is that the Penguins have the most room to improve in this series.
Montreal coach Jacques Martin is getting the max out of his lineup on most nights right now and, after benching Andrei Kostitsyn and rolling only three lines in just about all of game 2, he's doing it with a generally small group. Almost everyone that needs to produce offense for his team has given him something, and his guys in general are doing everything they possibly can to give themselves a chance. With a 1-1 series thusfar, that has worked to some degree.
And that's largely because the Penguins still can improve their game a great deal.
I suppose one could say that I'm taking something away from the Canadiens by saying that, but I don't believe that to be the case. Montreal is playing fairly well this post-season, but what I'm pointing out is that they've been mostly in peak form in just getting to this point.
The Penguins, on the other hand, have not played their best hockey thusfar.
They can be sharper in their own zone.
They are capable of generating even more offense -- especially around the net.
They are capable of causing more havoc on the power play, as everyone saw in game 1.
And there are several individuals on the team who can improve their games to a meaningful degree, including -- but not solely limited to -- the two key guys mentioned above.
In short, there's more of a ceiling for Pittsburgh to reach, and if the Pens start to climb up to that level, I would expect the Canadiens to have a hard time keeping up -- even in their building, a place that is sure to be off-the-charts loud tonight, but probably not intimidating to a defending Stanley Cup Champion who has not only a good road record in Montreal the last several seasons, but has played in environments just as hostile the last few years with more at stake.
We'll see how the next two contests play out. I'm anxious to see, in particular, how focused the Pens' Captain is in his native country. He's been quiet the last few games and is due to break out.
Recap tomorrow.
Let's Go Pens!
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Hey Mario, I am not that concerned with Fleury. He'll come up with the big saves when we need him to. I do agree however, that Malkin needs to find that scoring edge. We need him to get out of his slump, especially in a series such as this. They need to be more aware when they are coming out of their own zone, and not try all the cross ice passing in the neutral zone. Get the biscuit dumped in the corners, the forwards need to get physical with their defensemen, and get someone as a permanent fixture in front of Halak. He is super tough down low, but he isn't Superman, just look at the evidence in game one. For as loud as it may be in Montreal, the Pens are just as good on the road. Sid, Geno, & Co. steal the show tonight! Get well soon Staal!
Go Pens!
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