Penguins Finally Be-Devil New Jersey, Brodeur With First Win Of Season

So eveything is not quite like last year after all.

Behind a strong performance from backup goaltender Brent Johnson, the Pittsburgh Penguins got their first win of the 2010/2011 season yesterday, beating an undermanned New Jersey Devils squad, 3-1, that they failed to defeat a single time all of last year.

Even though the Devils were forced to play with only 17 players because of injuries and salary cap issues, they tested Johnson.  But he stopped 30 of 31 shots, looked solid throughout, and gave the Penguins a boost when they needed it the most.

Defenseman Alex Goligoski got the Penguins off and running just before the end of the first frame when he rewarded his team for their edge in shots (15-8) and overall play up to that point in the contest by lasering one from the left circle past Devils' netminder Martin Brodeur.

The play was made possible by LW Eric Tangradi who smeared Devils' star winger Ilya Kovalchuk off the puck in the neutral zone, letting GoGo grab the biscuit and steam into New Jersey's zone with full speed before unleashing his howitzer of a shot.  

That helper, by the way, was Tangradi's first NHL point.

Mark Letestu got credit for his 2nd goal of the season when a Kris Letang shot during a second period power play went off him and past Brodeur for a 2-0 lead.

While Patrick Elias lasered one past Johnson with about 12 minutes left in the third right off a face-off the Devils won thanks to Letestu's stick breaking on the draw, the Penguins held the fort -- unlike what happened on Saturday night against the Canadiens -- until former Devil Paul Martin scored an empty net goal with 10 seconds left to seal the 3-1 victory.

Interestingly, the win was the 2nd time in 3 games this season that Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin failed to score a point.

They certainly aren't off to the fastest starts this season.

Neither is defenseman Brooks Orpik, who missed yesterday's game with a continued right  groin problem that has bothered him since training camp and reportedly flared up again in practice on Sunday.

Orpik is day-to-day, and hopefully the same thing can be said of fellow blueliner Zybnek Michalek, who left yesterday's game in the 2nd period after sustaining what appears to be a right upper arm/shoulder injury, and did not return.

Michalek -- and Orpik, for that matter, will be re-evaluated back in Pittsburgh today, where the Penguins get ready for the unbeaten Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday night, and the New York Islanders on Friday, before taking off to visit the Flyers in Philadlephia on Saturday night.

More soon.