Welcome to the latest edition of Big Dave's Pens Pregame. Tonight, the Penguins will host one of the NHL's surprise teams in the Vancouver Canucks. Without further adieu, let's talk Pens/Canucks!
Tonight's gameday song is a solid song. One that I get pumped for when it comes on the old iPod. The song "45" by the New Jersey band The Gaslight Anthem. Enjoy it yall!
The State of the Penguins
Despite the physical problems, the Penguins are rolling! They won 10 games in November and have won their last two. They are being led by their big stars as well. Sidney Crosby leads the league in points with 33. Evgeni Malkin put up 17 points in the month of November, just one behind league leader for the month, Sidney Crosby. Marc-Andre Fleury, who was signed to a contract extension at the beginning of November, has put up 5 shutouts over the last month and has been the rock this team has needed. Christian Ehrhoff is finding form and the Pens have gotten solid play from the likes of Blake Comeau and Jayson Megna. The Pens may be hampered by injuries, but they are playing good hockey in spite of them.
Tonight, the Pens welcome in Ryan Miller, the Sedins and the Vancouver Canucks. Let's take a look at them coming into this game.
THe Capable Canucks
The Canucks have been a major surprise this season. New coach Willie Desjardins has gotten his team playing great hockey to start the season. They are led by Ryan Miller, the former Buffalo and Team USA netminder, who has rejuvenated his career after a couple down years. The Sedin twins, Daniel and Henrik, have been playing good hockey with the likes of Radim Vrbata on their line. And 2013 1st rounder Bo Horvat has made an impact that will keep him in the lineup for the foreseeable future. What was supposed to be a down year, has turned into a surprise. The question now is, can the Canucks sustain this pace into a playoff berth? Only time will tell.
Here is what you need to know about the Canucks:
- The Canucks are 17-7-1 on the season, good for 35 points and tops in the Pacific Division.
- In their last 10 games, the Canucks have gone 7-2-1 and are currently 10-4-0 on the road this season.
- They have a +10 goal differential on the year.
- This is the first of two games between the Pens and Canucks this season. The Pens will travel to Vancouver on February 7th.
- The Pens took both games from the Canucks last season.
- Canucks have lost 4 straight games to the Penguins.
The Canucks Leading Scorers:
- C Henrik Sedin - 24pts (6G-18A)
- LW Daniel Sedin - 24pts (6G-18A)
- RW Radim Vrbata - 20pts (11G-9A)
- C Nick Bonino - 19pts (7G-12A)
- LW Chris Higgins - 15pts (5G-10A)
Offseason Acquisitions: C Nick Bonino, LW Derek Dorsett, C Dustin Jeffrey, G Ryan Miller, D Luca Sbisa, RW Radim Vrbata, RW Linden Vey
Offseason Subtractions: C Ryan Kesler, D Jason Garrison, C Mike Santorelli, C Jordan Schroeder
Canucks Injury Report:
- RW Zach Kassian (finger) will be OUT tonight. He is currently on IR with a finger issue.
- D Dan Hamhuis (lower-body) did not travel with the team and is OUT tonight.
Projected Canucks Lines:
- Daniel Sedin - Henrik Sedin - Radim Vrbata
- Chris Higgins - Nick Bonino - Alex Burrows
- Shawn Matthias - Brad Richardson - Linden Vey
- Derek Dorsett - Bo Horvat - Jannik Hansen
Projected D-Pairs:
- Alex Edler - Chris Tanev
- Luca Sbisa - Kevin Bieksa
- Ryan Stanton - Yannick Weber
Eddie Lack will get the start in net tonight.
News & Notes From Around the Pens
Marcel Goc will be a game time decision tonight. He skated on Wednesday and this morning. He told reporters he hopes to play. If there is no call-up from WBS this afternoon, assume he is in. I know I will.
Chris Kunitz will be out 2-3 weeks with a broken bone in his foot. It would explain why Kunitz has been kind of lackluster the last few games. It's unfortunate, but better now than later in the year.
Scott Wilson made his NHL debut against the Devils on Tuesday, but only lasted 30 minutes into the game before leaving with an injury. The lower-body injury will keep him out "2-plus" weeks according to Mike Johnston. I thought he played very well while on the ice and could turn into a solid 3rd line winger in the future.
It's another home game for the Pens, and that is good for current 2nd line winger Blake Comeau. in 12 home games this season, Comeau has 8 goals and 11 points. On the road, he only has 4 assists. Comeau has performed admirably on the second line and in a top six role. HIs 700k salary hit is the deal of the summer thus far.
Projected LInes & Pairs
- Nick Spaling - Sidney Crosby - Patric Hornqvist
- Jayson Megna - Evgeni Malkin - Blake Comeau
- Andrew Ebbett - Brandon Sutter - Steve Downie
- Zach Sill - Marcel Goc - Craig Adams
The Pens will be without the services of Robert Bortuzzo, but this will give Dumoulin a chance to play in the NHL again. I expect the following pairs tonight:
- Olli Maatta - Christian Ehrhoff
- Brian Dumoulin - Paul Martin
- Rob Scuderi - Simon Despres
Thomas Greiss was first goalie off the ice and will start in net. This will be his first home start for the Penguins.
My Keys to the game
Power Play: The Pens power play has not been very good the last few weeks. They are without Kunitz and Letang, but they still have good personnel to succeed. Get it going, the power play is important regardless the time of year.
Young Guys: The Pens are needing young guys to play solid in these games. Wilson played well before leaving with injury. Megna played his best game of the season Tuesday night. Despres and Bortuzzo has played solid. Tonight, the Pens will get more youngsters in the lineup. It is important they take advantage of the situation and show what they got. It will help them greatly in the near future.
My 3 Players to Watch
2. Jayson Megna: He may be a "vanilla midget" as Mark Madden dubs the young WBS kids, but this one has game. He has performed admirably so far in his NHL career and plays very good alongside Evgeni Malkin. We saw that game elevation on Tuesday night. He may not be Chris Kunitz or James Neal, but Megna is more capable in the top six than Nick Spaling, and Malkin seems to make it work better with 59 on his line.
3. Olli Maatta: I love the way Maatta has been playing this year. He doesn't put up a ton of numbers, but he is really developing into a solid, two-way defenseman that can be counted on in all situations. With Letang out, more of the burden falls on the 20 year old cancer survivor, and that's just how he wants it. Maatta is become a key cog in the Penguins machine.
What YOu need To Know if You're Attending or Watching
- Puck drop is at 7:00pm
- Doors open at 5:30pm and those arriving between 5:30 and 6 will receive a voucher for 50% off concessions.
- The Pens will wear their traditional home black jerseys.
- The Pens Gear Game Day Special is all CURRENT player t-shirts are only $19.99 tonight.
- All fans attending the game will receive a Penguins Car Charger courtesy of Verizon.
- The 2015 "Pens & Paws" calendars will be available at the arena tonight. Be sure to get a hold of one of those if you are an animal lover who also loves the Pens.
For those WATCHING the game from home or elsewhere, here is the gist:
- ROOT Sports has the television coverage starting at 6:30 with Penguins Pregame
- Paul Steigerwald and Bob Errey will have the game action starting at 7:00pm with Dan Potash handling the interviews.
- Penguins Post Game will follow the action.
- Pens Radio Net and 105.9 The X will have the radio call tonight. Coverage begins with Penguins Pregame hosted by Bob Grove.
- Hall-of-Famer Mike Lange and the Ol Two-Niner, Phil Bourque, will have the game call there.
- Bob Grove will return post game with Penguins Hot Line.
There are an abundance of Pens Points available tonight. Here is how to earn them:
- 50pts - Attending the Game
- 10pts - Concession Purchase
- 10pts - Merchandise Purchase
- 5pts - ROOT Sports Pregame Keyword
- 5pts - ROOT Sports Post Game Keyword
- 5pts - Pens Radio Net Keyword
- 25pts - Miller Lite Night at "Rock A Fella's" in Sarver
- 25pts - Miller Lite Night at William Penn Tavern