The Penguins just couldn't get it going tonight. Horrible turnovers in their own zone and just no motivation to move it up ice. In the event they even got it into the Leafs' zone, a lack of forechecking resulted in easy clears for Toronto.
Not gonna lie on this one; it hurts to see them team out there without Gonch and Talbot. Gonchar's absence is the obvious one, as the blueline tonight lacked that one-two combo from Whitney to Gonchar. Although Letang is a formidable defenseman, I feel he has a better place on the second line. However, in instances like this, it's good just to have him up there.
Or is it? Letang made a few mistakes in the Pens' zone. I can't tell if the Leafs were just putting on a lot of pressure, or if he did in fact seem like he was running scared in the zone. Either way, his inability to move forward with the puck gave the Toronto the advantage on the offensive.
Dany Sabourin was solid in net tonight. One glance at the number of shots he faced and you'd expect a higher scoring game. Stopping 37 of 40 is a good game in my book.
But where were the Penguins with their shots? The team mustered only nine shots in the first period, mostly attributed to the eight minutes of penalties they had to kill. Thanks Gary Roberts - you can't just take the two and keep your mouth shut. Instead, you call the ref, if my lip-reading is accurate "A F****** C****" and get yourself two more for misconduct. Lucky for you the PK was working hard out there. Otherwise I'd say it was your fault the team lost.
I reserve that statement to Malkin. Yes, I'm blaming the all-holy, sacred-star Evgeni Malkin. The same Malkin who thought it to be a good idea to wistfully dish a no-look pass to the point while the Leafs were in what appeared to be the heat of a line change. Not only did you miss your pass by a mile, but you also handed the puck right to Wellwood. From there, Wellwood and Blake charged down on Sabourin, who at this point was already weighed down by the amount of crap he dropped in his own drawers when he saw the incompetence of his team in the offensive zone. Pass, shoot, score. Even if Sabourin were to block the first shot, there were more Leafs on him than Pens to pick up the rebound.
Not happy with tonight's game. Too many mistakes. When the team finally tried to make up for it, it was too little too late.
I suggest Kennedy stays up when Talbot gets back. I don't know who'd be better off sent down, but I would really like to see a Talbot-Kennedy-Laraque line. Talbot's already shown his scoring ability this year, and Kennedy is really starting to pick up the slack around him. I just hope he hasn't gotten too comfortable with Roberts and Staal to a point where he can't play well with others.
Pens take on the Coyotes on Monday. Preview to come soon.
