James Neal (3, 4) scored two goals, one with time running down in he third to tie the game, but in the end the Penguins lost last nights match against the Washington Capitals 3-2 in overtime.  Neal has been proving that last year’s poor numbers after being obtained by the Penguins in a trade were perhaps just a fluke.  Neal had been a 20 goal scorer for Dallas but put up only 2 goal in over 20 games for the Penguins last year.  He has four goals in five games to start the 2011-12 campaign.

The Penguins avoided taking a penalty that lead to a Capital’s power play until the overtime frame.  At that time it was Jordan Staal who got caught for tripping which lead to the winning goal for Washington.  The Penguins with 41 shots on net for the game could not get any more than two pucks behind Vokoun.  Then Penguins held the Capitals to just 19 shots and Brent Johnson made 16 saves.

The OT loss pushes the Penguins to 3-0-2 on the season headed into Saturday’s matchup with Buffalo.

It is taking the Pittsburgh Penguins a lot of minutes to win games lately. But the good news is that they are winning. In back to back games against the Flyers and the Devils, as well on Monday night versus the Detroit Red Wings, the Penguins needed overtime to win. The Penguins needed not only overtime, but the shootout to beat each of those teams and keep up a pace that no one thought possible when both Sid and Geno went down with injuries.

Beating the Red Wings 5-4, the Flyers 2-1 and the Devils 1-0 is going a long way to keeping the Penguins not only in fourth place in the East, but in the hunt, barely, for the top slot in the Atlantic. While Brent Johnson and the Pens blew a 4-0 lead in Detroit requiring the win in the shoot out, it was Marc-Andre Fleury that kept the Penguins in the Flyers and Devils games. Fleury made 19 saves on a paltry 20 shots against Philly and 21 saves plus three more in the shoot out against New Jersey who, after a hot streak to try and make the playoffs, seem to be fading fast.

The problem though is that while the Penguins are winning, they are putting a lot of extra minutes on their bodies. Especially when you consider that these latest three overtime games are part of a disturbing trend where the Penguins just cannot seem to win in regulation. Face it, there are no shootouts in the playoffs and overtimes will go on as long as it takes to get a winner. The Penguins will not be able to rely on shutting down opponents and holding on and waiting for a chance to win it one on one in the shootout once the drive for Lord Stanley’s Cup begins in earnest in a couple weeks.

On the flip side however, the Penguins are proving that they can play with, and win, even the elite teams in the league while their own stars are hurt. That makes the Penguins dangerous as is. Perhaps the most dangerous team in the East and a team that only gets more dangerous when Sidney Crosby, now skating and practicing without ill effects, returns to the line-up. The Penguins are playing playoff hockey already and they are winning doing it.

The only real concern is how much the extra miles on their legs will catch up with them come the official start of the playoffs.

There are a lot of idiots out there who think they know things about hockey. A lot of them came out of the woodwork after the Penguins and Islanders last met in what was a disgusting display of thuggery endorsed, clearly, by the Islanders organization. During that game everyone expected the “code” to be upheld and someone had to fight to avenge what Johnson did to DiPietro in the previous matchup (breaking his face in a fight and all). No one expected the debacle that occurred though.

Mario Lemieux, normally withdrawn from league matters, had some harsh words for the league after the league pathetically suspended Islander goon Trevor Gillies for a mere nine games after he deliberately hunted down Eric Tangradi, knocked him silly and then pounded on him while he was on the ice.

Here is a video of all all the “action” that night on the Island in case you forgot. At about 6:10 is where you see Gillies skate all the way across the ice to hunt down Tangradi:

During this scrum, the Islanders’ Haley then skates down the ice to confront Penguin’s goalie Brent Johnson to which Eric Goddard reacts by jumping off the bench to defend his netminder. Out of this entire incident THIS is what Islanders fans emailed me the most about and griped over; about how Goddard is such a “goon” that he came off the bench to defend his goalie against a player that skated all the way down the ice to seek him out.

Of course the fighting was not over. But it was enough for anyone that knows anything about hockey, which I will not accuse your typical Islanders fan of being such a person, that the behavior of the team from New York was pathetic.

Goddard, for jumping off the bench and defending his goalie got an automatic ten games suspension. The league decided that Gillies only warranted a nine game suspension for his actions. Islanders fans justified this whole sham of a game as revenge for what Johnson did to DiPietro, a man who as of right now gets hurt just looking at a hockey rink it seems.

Well then what is the excuse for Gillies last night then? Yes, fresh off his suspension for beating Tangradi in the back of the head, Gillies was back to head hunting against Minnesota’s Cal Clutterbuck? There wasn’t a Penguin to be found anywhere near the rink. Matt Cooke wasn’t even in the same state. But here is Gillies acting like a thug again.

What’s the excuse this time I ask again? Did Clutterbuck lace his skates in a way that drove Gillies into a fit of rage?

Fifty games. That was Gillies deserves. We’re not talking about a “repeat offender” here who plays on the edge and throws a questionable hit every 15 or 20 games. We are talking about a goon who, fresh off a nine game suspension for gooning it up on the ice, rushes back out on to the ice in his first game back to do it all over again. And while we’re at it, maybe the league should fine Garth Snow a cool million too since it is clear he is the mastermind behind this latest pathetic performance on Long Island.

How do you like your new team New York?

I have now watched the events that transpired during Friday night’s game between the Islanders and the Penguins three times.  I had to rewatch it because after seeing it the first time I just could not believe what I saw and needed to make sure I really did in fact see what I saw.

After the previous game between the two clubs, which ended with Rick DiPietro acting like an ass, trying to trip Matt Cooke in the waning moments, and then getting a one punch beat down from Penguins backup goalie Brent Johnson, everyone expected the pathetic, next to last place in the Eastern Conference, laughing stocks of the league that are the New York Islanders to exact their pound of flesh like a child having a temper tantrum.  What ensued however can only be best described as an institutional decision to make a mockery of the game.  Furthermore it was a decision that most likely emanating from the offices of General Manager Garth Snow.

Yes, that is right I said it.  It is obvious to me that that Garth Snow (career record of 135-147-44) who made a career out of being a loser has imparted his loser mentality on the New York Islanders.   It is clear that he and his folks sitting up away from the ice (and not having to worry about getting their own asses kicked) sent a message that to the Islanders players that they were to brawl up a storm on Friday night because the fisticuffs never stopped.  Had these actions not been condoned by management it would have been stopped long before it got out of hand by order of Mr. Snow or others.  On Sunday, after his team instigated nearly every on ice incident, Garth Snow actually opined that he could not imagine why the Penguins were not fined $100,000 like his team of miscreants was.

In a night filled with fights the lowlights culminated with Trevor Gillies going after the head of Eric Tangradi and then continuing to beat on his injured body like a spastic child and Michael Haley trying to take on goalie Brant Johnson, a move which prompted, rightfully, Eric Godard leaping from the bench to intervene and protect his net minder.

Gillies got a pathetically laughable 9 games for his assault.  Godard got an automatic 10 game suspension for coming to the defense of his teammate.  That is the rule when it comes to Godard’s actions however it is sad that the league even considers this somehow adequate punishment for Gillies based on his actions.  10 games for defending someone but just 9 games for Gillies’ obvious attempt to maliciously injure?  HA!

Lemieux said of the incident the following:

“Hockey is a tough, physical game, and it always should be. But what happened Friday night on Long Island wasn’t hockey. It was a travesty. It was painful to watch the game I love turn into a sideshow like that.

“The NHL had a chance to send a clear and strong message that those kinds of actions are unacceptable and embarrassing to the sport. It failed.

“We, as a league, must do a better job of protecting the integrity of the game and the safety of our players.  We must make it clear that those kinds of actions will not be tolerated and will be met with meaningful disciplinary action.

“If the events relating to Friday night reflect the state of the league, I need to re-think whether I want to be a part of it.”

That response was panned, humorously, by league officials, Islanders fans (who wouldn’t know a hockey puck from a hamburger) and so-called hockey experts who swoon any time Wayne Gretzky speaks but have rarely had anything nice to say about a player as great or greater in Mr. Lemieux.  And everyone here knows that I have not kind things to say about Mario at times, particularly when he threatened to move the Penguins to Kansas City or elsewhere.  But he is right on the mark.

Yeah, I know what you ill informed and hockey illiterate types out there have moaned and even have had echoed by certain media outlets with their noses so far up the league’s posterior that you certainly do not want to get too close to them.  ”But the Penguins have Matt Cooke!”  Yeah, Matt Cooke who has become known in recent years as a vicious “head hunter” and a “dirty player”.  Ok, first of all let’s get this straight.  Every team has a “dirty player” by some definition or another.  The only difference is whether or not that player plays for the team you root for as to how “dirty” you think they are.

Matt Cooke plays hockey hard.  He also does not pull punches or checks.  He looks for people to hit.  Yep.  He does all that.  He even raises an elbow every now and again as do all players in the league from Alex Ovechkin to Sidney Crosby on down the line.  Cooke rarely pulls up.  If a player goes after a puck along the boards and turns his back while Cooke is in flight for a check he still hits them.  He also gets penalized a lot for that.  And the truth is that a lot of players purposefully turn their backs when they know players like Cooke are coming at them to try and draw penalties.  Fact is that Matt Cooke is no dirtier than the player on your particular team of choice that you root for who does the same thing.

But here is something else that Matt Cooke does.  He plays offense.  He plays hockey with the puck as well.  Matt Cooke this season has 10 goals and 13 assists and is a plus 9.  He is not a goon no matter how badly you want him to be one.  Last year he scored 15 goals and 15 assists and was a plus 17.  In 2008-09 he had 13 goals and 18 assists and was  even one the score sheet.  He is also one of the league’s premier penalty killers and has 2 short handed goals this season.  He is not, by any stretch of the imagination, some no talent hack like so many of those employed by other teams for the same purposes.

Yeah he plays on the edge.  Lots of players do.  And sometimes he goes over that edge. This year he has 106 penalty minutes as punishment for that.

But there is no way on this or any other planet that you can compare him to Trevor Gillies; a man who in 32 games this year has just 1 goal, no assists is a minus 2 and has 109 penalty minutes.  Mind you that is 109 penalty minutes in just 32 games.  Again, Matt Cooke has 106, but in 54 games.  Gillies is a man that is out there to do exactly what he did on Friday night.  Even the Penguins, who employ pugilist Eric Godard, use him sparingly and dress him when the other team dresses their big fighters.  Godard has played in only 17 games this season.  In 2009-10 when Godard played in 45 games even he only racked up 76 penalty minutes all year.  In 2008-09 in 71 games Godard had 171 penalty minutes.  If Gillies played that many games this year, which he won’t because he has about half as much tallent, he would be on pace for 241 total penalty minutes.

So spare me the excuses about who the Penguins employ to play on their team as justification for Friday night’s atrocity.  Doing so only shows you as what you are; a die hard ignorant Islander’s apologist, a league official trying desperately to cover your ass or a know-nothing hack who is in over your head trying to curry favor with league officials who probably don’t even know you exist.

The Penguins and the Islanders meet once more this season, in New York, on April 8^th.  It is the next to last game before the playoffs start and the Islanders start making plans for tee times at the golf course (and tea times with their wives too) because that is how badly they suck.  Part of me wants to see a Penguins team with their lineup (minus Malkin) back intact go in there and beat them on the score sheet so badly that in the final minutes, with nothing left to prove, Eric Godard can jump over the boards, hunt down and grab a cowering Trevor Gillies who has just wet himself by the scruff of his yellow neck, beat his ass senseless on the ice, drag him through the door to the player’s bench and down the runway to the visiting team’s locker room and slam his head against the wall repeatedly while beating him to a bloody pulp then leaving him on the floor to think about what he has done.  After all, Godard isn’t going to play in the playoffs anyway so what would another suspension mean to him at that point?

Hey, I am not a rich man, but if you are listening Mr. Godard, I have got a $1,000 for your favorite charity if you make Gillies your bitch on April 8^th and make him rue the day he ever even so much as thought about becoming the pathetic little goon he is.  I would offer the same deal to Matt Cooke, but Mr. Cooke, even despite his reputation, is needed for the playoffs.

To paraphrase the Rock, Mr. Goddard, know your role and shut Trevor Gillies’ hole!

On Wednesday night, after putting away the New York Islanders, Rick DiPietro engaged in some funny business around his own net with 16.5 seconds remaining in the game.  That resulted in a dog pile in the corner and Brent Johnson leaving his own crease and darting down the ice to confront his counterpart.

DiPietro both removed their gloves and helmets as they squared off.  The New York netminder looked to be in such shock that there was actually going to be a goalie fight that he was smiling!  He wasn’t smiling at the end of it all however which wasn’t very long.  One left from Johnson and DiPiertro was down with Johnson hovering over him with his fist cocked for another blow in case he wanted more.

DiPietro, who the Islanders singed to a long term contract worth big bucks but who has also been unable to remain healthy, is once again sidelined for four to six weeks following the fight with facial fractures.  Wow.  Talk about bad luck.

It was just before the 06-07 season that DiPietro signed a 15 year $67.5 million contract.  However since the start of the 08-09 season he has played in just 34 games and 21 of those games have been this year.

Bad luck and bad signing all the way around.  Maybe Rick DiPietro needs to become a bubble boy because he is getting hurt almost just looking at the ice it seems.

The Pittsburgh Penguins were not weighed down by too much turkey on Thansksgiving as on Friday night they won a hard fought game against the Ottawa Senators 2-1 and on Saturday they breezed past the Calgary Flames 4-1. The Senators, now 9th in the East, have struggled.

Through Saturday the Senators had scored 14 less goals than they have allowed and are 4-6-0 in their last ten. Despite jumping out to a 1-0 lead against the Pens, Evgeni Malkin (8 – PPG) and Alex Goligoski (5) provided all the offense needed in front of Marc-Andre Fleuy’s 43 save performance. Despite 21 shot in the first period, Ottawa just could not find the net.

Calgary has been on of the worst teams in the Western Conference this year. After loosing to the Penguins their record stood at just 9-12-2 but with a goal differential of just -5 on the year they are capable of staying in games. But the Penguins jumped on them early in the second with a goal by Arron Asham (3) and a hat trick by Sidney Crosby (16, 17 & 18) thanks to the empty net to make the game never in doubt. Brent Johnson spelled Fleury who has been red hot lately and made 30 saves as the Penguins shot the puck 43 times.

The win against the Flames was the Penguins sixth in a row and they have points in their last 9 going 8-0-1 in that time. Over their last ten games the Penguins are 8-1-1.

Next up for the 15-8-2 Penguins are the 14-10-1 Rangers on Monday night. Last time these two teams met the Penguins scored two late goals to take a 2-1 lead only to see the Rangers score late to tie the game and then finish the Pens off in overtime.