Hello Penguins nation and welcome to the latest edition of Big Dave's Pens Pregame.
Tonight, the Penguins invade the Pacific Northwest and head to the city where our Captain reeked havoc in the 2010 Winter Olympics. That's right, we're in Vancover tonight to take on Brandon Sutter and the Vancouver Canucks.
Puck drop is at 10:00pm eastern time, but the Pregame begins right now!
Today's "Big Dave's Gameday Jam" goes back to my youth and comes off a former edition of EA's NHL franchise. The song comes from mid-2000s alt-rock band Brand New, off their "Deja Entendu" album. The song is none other than "The Quiet Things That Nobody Ever Knows." Enjoy!
The State of the Penguins
The Pittsburgh visit to the Air Canada Centre last Saturday may well have been the Penguins best game on the month old 2015-16 season. The Penguins entered the game winning six of seven games, including three in a row. The left winners of four straight and seven of eight.
But enough about the numbers, let's get down to brass tax, the Penguins finally showed up on Saturday for an entire 60 minute game where they dictated the events of the evening.
Ladies and Gentlemen, that is what you should see every single night.
Now, I know what you're thinking. "They played Toronto and they suck. I'll be impressed when they do it against a better team."
That's fair. Toronto is far from an elite team and I'll believe it more when they play that way against a good team too.
That being said, we have to give the Penguins credit in that win. They dominated the game, from puck drop to final horn, and it was a total team effort. Every aspect of the Penguins was good in this game.
Let's start with the forwards. Sidney Crosby did not score or produce a point. That makes it nine of eleven games without a point. Of course, that isn't good, but Sid and his line did produce a goal and have over the last few games. Patric Hornqvist got another goal and he is certainly hot at the moment. Pascal Dupuis seems to have shaken off the rust. Chris Kunitz, relegated to the third line, has played well and scored twice since his move there. Matt Cullen got his first goal of the season v. Toronto and has been great all year, as has Nick Bonino. Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel have generated a lot of chemistry and have eight points in four games on the same line. Finally, let's not overlook the addition of Eric Fehr. Fehr made his debut Saturday night, scored a shorthanded goal and added an assist too. Fehr will be a huge member of this team going forward, mark my words.
Then there is the Penguins defense that currently sits tied for the NHL lead for fewest goals allowed on the season. Remember just a month ago when we were terrified of what could come from this group? That worry seems to be a thing of the past. The defense has been outstanding. The best pairing has been the veteran Ben Lovejoy and rookie Brian Dumoulin. Dumoulin had an assist in the win over Toronto and Ben Lovejoy polished off another outstanding game on the week. Olli Maatta and Rob Scuderi have played well. I still expect more from Maatta down the road, but the two have built a solid third pair to start the year. Then there is the "top" pair of Kris Letang and Ian Cole. This duo has struggled of late, particularly Letang. However, they continue to do the little things that are making this defense succeed.
Finally, and most importantly, we cannot forget to mention Marc-Andre Fleury. The Flower posted his second shutout of the season v. Toronto and his sixth win of the season. All that aside, the Penguins would not sit at 7-4-0 and just two points back of the top spot in the Metro had Fleury struggled like the offense had early. Fleury has been the Penguins player of the month in my eyes, and a lot would need to happen for him to be supplanted from the team's season most valuable player going down the road.
Tonight, the Penguins hope to put this all together again. It will be a good litmus test for whether this will continue as they enter Vancouver to play the Pacific Division leading Canucks....
Go Ole Canuckin: The Vancouver Canucks
The Canucks were a perennial playoff team before the hiring of John Torterella in 2013-14. The Canucks were a hot mess that season, and their standing in the West reflected it. That offseason, former Texas Stars coach Willie Desjardins, who was up for the Penguins head coaching vacancy, was brought in to right the ship in the Pacific Northwest.
Desjardins did it.
The Canucks returned to the playoffs in 2014-15 even with a relatively "light" team. The Sedins returned to their high level of play, Ryan Miller turned in a solid season in net and rookie Bo Horvat had a solid rookie season. Vancouver finished second to the Ducks in the Pacific but were bounced by high-flying Flames in the first round of the season.
The Canucks entered the offseason looking to shake things up a little, but also looking to their youth to take them to the next level. The offseason saw several veterans leave, such as defenseman Kevin Bieksa, goalie Eddie Lack and forwards Zack Kassian and Nick Bonino. The offseason also saw the development and acquisitions of several solid forwards. The Canucks brought in former Penguin Brandon Sutter via trade that sent Nick Bonino to Pittsburgh. They went ahead and extended Sutter for five more years at a clip of 4-plus million annually. They acquired Brandon Prust from Montreal in return for Zack Kassian. Perhaps the best move was the development of two young forwards drafted in 2014 that have paid dividends so far this season. Jake Virtanen and Jared McCann, both taken in the first round in 2014, will follow in Bo Horvat's footsteps by staying past the 9-game mark. The Canucks added Pittsburgh native Matt Bartkowski on defense and Richard Bachman in net too.
The new season has gotten off to a solid start for the Vancouver Canucks. Vancouver currently sits atop the Pacific Division with a 6-2-4 record. Goaltender Ryan Miller has been on the winning end of five starts and has earned points in nine of eleven this season. Daniel Sedin and his brother Henrik have gotten off to solid starts on the Canucks top line, Daniel leading the team with 9 points and Henrik currently sitting at seven. Former Penguin Brandon Sutter has, sit down for this one Pens fans, scored frequently to start the year. He has three goals and seven points in twelve games. And as mentioned before, rookies Jared McCann and Jake Virtanen have gotten off to great starts. McCann has five goals in 10 games and Virtanen has three points in nine.
Tonight, they look to continue their solid play against the Penguins.
What You Need to Know About the Canucks:
- 6-2-4 on the season.
- Currently first in the Pacific Division.
- Vancouver has won two straight entering tonight.
- The Canucks are 2-2-3 on the season at the Rogers Arena.
- Vancover has a plus-10 goal differential entering tonight's game
Leading Scorers:
- LW Daniel Sedin - 9pts (3G-6A)
- RW Alex Burrows - 8pts (3G-5A)
- C Henrik Sedin - 7pts (2G-5A)
- C Brandon Sutter - 7pts (3G-4A)
- RW Radim Vrbata - 6pts (3G-3A)
Injury Report:
- D Luca Sbisa (lower-body) will be OUT tonight. Sbisa, who was placed on IR with an "undisclosed injury" on Monday, was seen walking in a boot over the weekend.
- LW Brandon Prust (lower-body) will be OUT tonight. Prust, a noted enforcer and thorn in the Penguins side, will miss the next 4-6 weeks after suffering an ankle injury.
- G Jacob Markstrom (lower-body) will be OUT tonight. The netminder returned to the ice yesterday but will not be activated in time for tonight's game.
- LW Chris Higgins (lower-body) will be OUT tonight. The winger has missed the majority of the season with a foot injury. He has returned to skating on his own, but will not likely return for another week or so.
Vancouver Lines:
- Daniel Sedin - Henrik Sedin - Radim Vrbata
- Sven Baertschi - Brandon Sutter - Jake Virtanen
- Alex Burrows - Bo Horvat - Jannik Hansen
- Adam Cracknell - Jared McCann - Derek Dorsett
Canucks Pairs:
- Alexander Edler - Chris Tanev
- Dan Hamhuis - Yannick Weber
- Ben Hutton - Matt Bartkowski
Ryan Miller is expected to start in net tonight for the Canucks.
News & Notes From the Penguins
- LW Chris Kunitz has missed practice the last two days leading up to this game. Mike Johnston said he will be a game-time decision tonight.
Penguins/Canucks Matchup:
- The Canucks not only won both games last year v. Pittsburgh, but shut the Pens out in both.
- Marc-Andre Fleury did not play in either of those Penguin losses last year. Thomas Greiss went 0-2-0 in those games.
- Alex Burrows and Radim Vrbata are the leading returning scorers for the Canucks v. Pittsburgh. Each had two points last year.
Miscellaneous Notes:
- Marc-Andre Fleury earned his 40th career shutout Saturday v. the Leafs.
- Mike Johnston won his 50th game as an NHL Head Coach v. the Leafs.
- Pittsburgh's 1.82 goals against average is tied for the best in the NHL with division foe New York (Rangers).
- The Penguins PK has been outstanding. It's 88.6% kill rate currently sits fifth in the NHL and they have killed 13 straight.
- The Penguins mixed up their first power play in practice the last few days. The players remained the same, however, the Penguins have been testing their 1-2-2 system. Letang working the points, Kessel/Malkin working the half-walls, Hornqvist in the net front and Crosby on the goal line.
- D Adam Clendening saw extended action in a pairing with Olli Maatta in practice yesterday. It is very possible we will see him play his old team tonight. Remember, Clendening joined Nick Bonino in the Brandon Sutter trade.
- No official decision has been made on rookie forward Daniel Sprong yet. He was a scratch v. Toronto and if he plays tonight it will be his 9th game. I'd expect an announcement in the next few days on his status.
Projected Penguins Lines & Pairs
- Pascal Dupuis - Sidney Crosby - Patric Hornqvist
- David Perron - Evgeni Malkin - Phil Kessel
- Chris Kunitz - Nick Bonino - Beau Bennett
- Sergei Plotnikov - Matt Cullen - Eric Fehr
Defensive Pairs:
- Ben Lovejoy - Brian Dumoulin
- Kris Letang - Ian Cole
- Olli Maatta - Adam Clendening
Marc-Andre Fleury is expected to start in net tonight.
My 3 Keys to the Game
2. Shutdown Pair: The pairing of Ben Lovejoy and Brian Dumoulin has been the Penguins best this season. I want to see their outstanding play of late continue tonight. They likely will be deployed against the Sedins as often as possible and it will be a tough test to shut them down.
3. Special Teams: The Penalty Kill has been outstanding and only getting better with the returns of Pascal Dupuis and Eric Fehr. I see them continuing their good play in that area. The Power Play on the other hand is still not great. They got a goal from the second unit v. Toronto, but the top unit needs to get going. The shake-up to a 1-2-2 system should help, but only if Sidney Crosby stays on the goal line where he belongs and not in the right half-wall. I'm calling Crosby out, he needs to put his "preferences" aside and play where he's had the most success. If he does that, he should get his points rolling again.
My 3 Penguins to Watch
2. Sidney Crosby: We have been talking for a weeks now that Sid needs to get going. Hopefully, that will happen tonight. The Captain has outstanding numbers against Ryan Millet and especially in that building. I feel like this could be Sids coming out game.
3. Nick Bonino: The now freshly shaven Bonino, which I am furious about by the way, plays his first game against his old team tonight. Don't for a second think he won't be amped up for this one. I forcast Bonino's best performance of the season tonight.
What to Know For Watching/Listening tonight
- The Pens game can be found locally on ROOT Sports. Puck drop is at 10:00pm. Paul Steigerwald and Bob Errey will have the call with Dan Potash handling the interview. "Thanks Daaaaaan."
- Penguins Pregame will precede the game, beginning at 9:30pm on ROOT.
- Penguins Postgame will follow all the action.
For those listening to the game tonight:
- The game can be caught on 105.9 The X, the Penguins app, the Penguins website and on the iHeart Radio app.
- Mike Lange and Phil Bourque are slated to have the game coverage starting at 10:00pm.
- Penguins Pregame will precede the coverage with Josh Getzoff as host.
- Post game coverage will follow all the game coverage.
Pens Points available tonight:
- ROOT Sports Pregame keyword: 5pts
- ROOT Sports Post Game keyword: 5pts
- Pens Radio Network keyword: 5pts
Id like to thank you all for stoping by. I apologize for missing the Pre and Post games on Saturday, but the holiday had me swamped. Sorry about that.
I will NOT have a post game tonight, since the game won't be over till late. I will however have pregames for Friday's showdown in Edmonton and Saturday's matchup in Calgary.
Everyone enjoy the game! Check in on the Tweety for my in game thoughts. LETS GO PENS!!!!