Hello ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the latest edition of Big Dave's Pens Pregame. It is another Metropolitan Division showdown for the Penguins tonight as they make their first trip to the Barclays Center in Brookly to face John Tavares and the Islanders tonight.
Puck drops on Pens/Isles tonight at 7:30pm, but you can begin enjoying the Pregame now....
Tonight's "Big Dave's Gameday Jam" comes from my favorite rapper and Brooklyn native. Y'all know this guy, he's been one of the biggest names in hip-hop/rap music scene for the last two decades. I'm talking Jay-Z and this comes off his "The Blueprint" album. It's "IZZO." Enjoy!
The State of the Penguins
The Penguins went into New Jersey on Sunday, a place where they have notoriously struggled the last few seasons, and got a huge win. The Penguins annihilated the Devils by a final score of 6-1. In this showing, the Pens got goals out of several different players from both the top and bottom six, and quality play overall from everyone in the lineup. It was a huge win, but it was one they could not afford to slip by, like they did on Saturday v. Calgary.
Now, the Penguins are moving forward with 8 more games over the next two weeks against the Metropolitan Division. This is the most important stretch of hockey for the Penguins this season. If the Penguins not only hope to make the playoffs, but contend, they need to get on a run and show they are team that is capable of playing a consistent, sixty minute game night-in, and night-out. They haven't done that this season for either coach.
While the Penguins have looked miles better under Mike Sullivan, they have yet to piece together a winning streak of more than four games, and besides that once instance, have struggled to win more than two games in a row the rest of the time. The Penguins need to put stretches, streaks together if they hope to be a legitimate contender this season. Now would be the time to do it too.
The Penguins will play the Islanders tonight in Brooklyn, head to Columbus on Friday before taking on the Rangers at MSG on Sunday in a 12:30 matinee. The Penguins will then return to CEC to host the Islanders and Carolina before heading to Philadelphia for the first time this season. The next day, they will come home and face the Capitals before a few days off when they host the Devils again.
In reality, I believe the Penguins need to win 6 of those 8 games. Naturally, all 8 games need to be won, but realistically, if the Penguins can take 6 of 8 in this stretch, that would be huge. With that in mind, the Penguins absolutely CANNOT afford to lose the games vs. the Islanders, Rangers and Philadelphia. Those games mean too much in the standings at this point to be allowed to pass without a win. If the Pens can win those four games and beat either New Jersey again or Carolina, then that is a really good outcome for this stretch.
The next two weeks will make or break the Penguins. If they can finally show some consistency, they could really help themselves out in a big way.
Brooklyn Blues: The NY Islanders
I hate to phrase it that way, but I have not seen a lot out of the Islanders this year that make me believe they are a Stanley Cup contender this season. It is hard to say that considering the Islanders currently sit 3rd in the Metro with 79 points and are only 3 points behind the cross-town rivals for 2nd place. They are hot of late too, going 7-2-1, but the Islanders have gotten little talk and have not looked overly impressive all year long in my eyes.
Despite my opinions, the Islanders are proving they are a solid team. They are 36-20-7 this season, despite some of their players having down seasons. Captain John Tavares, the Isles cornerstone player, has had a down year with just 51 points in 60 games. Very much like Sidney Crosby earlier in the year, the Isles captain has just looked out of sorts and hasn't really gotten it going like he's capable of. He is still a dangerous player and, like Sid, could get really hot, really fast. Mikhail Grabovski and Nikolay Kulemin have also really struggled this season. The Isles hoped to have them as a great, 2nd scoring line when they signed them both two years ago, but it just hasn't happened this year. Grabovski only has 25 points in 57 games while Kulemin has 16 in 63.
With that in mind, the Islanders have gotten solid play to get them to this point. Kyle Okposo, who was rumored to be on the move at the deadline, has led the Isles in scoring this year to this point. He's got 52 points in 61 games skating alongside Frans Nielsen on the second line. Nielsen and Brock Nelson have been solid, with 42 points and 34 points respectively through 63 games each. Big acquisitions in the fall of 2014, Nick Leddy and Johnny Boychuk, have been solid on the blue line, with Leddy posting 32 points and Boychuk 21.
What has kept the Islanders rolling has been their goaltending. The incumbent Jaroslav Halak has been solid, despite missing a few weeks due to injury. Halak is 17-13-4 on the year with a 2.33 GAA. His backup, former Pens backup Thomas Greiss, has been even better with 18 wins, a 2.21 GAA in 28 games this season. Without the play of these two, the Islanders could easily be out of the playoff hunt.
The Islanders are hot right now and also ahead of the Penguins in the standings. The Pens NEED this game, period. They cannot afford to let this game slip by them, as it would really hurt their chances for better positioning themselves for the playoffs. Pens need this game, the Islanders will not make it easy.
The Lowdown on the Islanders:
- 36-20-7 overall record.
- Their 79 points on the season is third in the Metropolitan Division entering tonight.
- The Isles are hot of late, winners of three straight and 7-2-1 over their last 10 games.
- Despite many within and outside of the team's dislike for the Barclays Center, it has been good to the Isles, as they are 19-8-4 there his season.
Scoring Leaders:
- RW Kyle Okposo - 52pts (17G-35A)
- C John Tavares - 51pts (23G-28A)
- C Frans Nielsen - 42pts (19G-23A)
- LW Brock Nelson - 34pts (22G-12A)
- D Nick Leddy - 32pts (4G-28A)
Injury Report:
- C Mikhail Grabovski (upper-body) is a game-time decision tonight. Grabovski, who has greatly underwhelmed this season, has missed the last couple games due to an upper-body ailment. He has skated with the team, but missed Sunday's shootout with the Rangers.
- D Calvin de Haan (lower-body) is OUT tonight. de Haan missed five games prior to Thursday's showdown with the Jets, but missed Sunday's game v. the Rangers with another injury.
- D Marek Zidlicky (undisclosed) is OUT tonight. HC Jack Capuano announced the veteran defenseman would miss tonight's game this morning, though no statement on the nature of the injury.
Projected Lines:
- Brock Nelson - John Tavares - Ryan Strome
- Josh Bailey - Frans Nielsen - Kyle Okposo
- Shane Prince - Nikolay Kulemin - Anders Lee
- Matt Martin - Casey Cizikas - Cal Clutterbuck
Projected Pairs:
- Nick Leddy - Johnny Boychuk
- Travis Hamonic - Thomas Hickey
- Brian Strait - Ryan Pulock
Jaroslav Halak is expected to start tonight for the Isles.
News & Notes from Around the Pens
- LW Carl Hagelin (undisclosed) missed Sunday's game due to unspecified reasons. Hagelin took a huge hit in Saturday's loss to Calgary and despite passing concussion protocol, woke up Sunday feeling off. He did not skate today and is expected to miss tonight's game.
- Both C Eric Fehr and RW Beau Bennett skated with the team this morning at the Barclays Center. Neither will play tonight, but it is possible they could both play on Friday in Columbus.
Pens/Isles Matchup Notes:
- Tonight is the second of four games between these teams this season.
- The Penguins took the first game on January 2nd at CEC by a 5-2 final score.
- Kris Letang and Evgeni Malkin lead the team in scoring v. NYI with 3 assists each.
- Sidney Crosby (2), Matt Cullen, Phil Kessel and Patric Hornqvist scored the 5 goals that night.
- Marc-Andre Fleury earned the win with a 38-save effort that night.
- Nick Leddy and John Tavares scored both Islander goals that night.
Miscellaneous Notes:
- The Penguins are 8-2-1 in their last 11 games against the Metropolitan Division.
- A win tonight for goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury will be his 350th of his NHL career.
- F Bryan Rust had a career-night on Sunday, posting his first career multi-point game with his goal and two assists.
- C Sidney Crosby and C Evgeni Malkin are both currently tied for third in the NHL with a 1.03 points per game average.
- D Justin Schultz made his debut Sunday and scored his first point as a Penguin with his assist on Bryan Rust's third period goal.
#AskBigDave
Great question guys and one I am sure many are thinking on right now with the way the AHLers have played and the impending return of Fehr and Beau. I will preface my answer with we still do not know when Fehr or Bennett will return. They skated with the team last week without any limitations, but there has yet to be any confirmation on a time table for either's return.
Now, Eric Fehr is going to go right back in the lineup. He has been outstanding on the penalty kill for the Penguins and was really looking good 5-on-5 while playing more minutes with Kuhnhackl and Rust. So he goes right back in the lineup for me, no question. Bennett, on the other hand, I don't think I'd put back in lineup. Is there talent there? Yeah, sure, but he underachieves when he gets to play and lets face it, he's a hit away from being back on IR. I'd also be willing to be he will be afraid of the dirty areas when he comes back, thus making him even less effective. If I'm Rutherford and/or Sullivan, he remains #PressBoxHero unless absolutely necessary.
Now, for the AHLers. To me, Bryan Rust needs to stay in the lineup. I absolutely love the way he plays, the way he uses his speed and the chances he creates. He is a really talented player, who with a little more refinement, can be a legitimate NHL player for years to come. So for me, he is a definite stay in the lineup. As of right now, I think Scott Wilson stays too. He's got five goals over his last ten games and has looked good for the most part. He's finally got some confidence and he's rolling right now. Ride the hot streak. The other guy I would keep in there would be Tom Kuhnhackl. I like Kuhnhackl's style of play; he goes to the corners, he goes to the net and he's big. That's what you want to see from a young kid in his position. He, like Wilson, has looked great the last 10 games or so since he got his first few goals. He's only got 4 points, but he's looked good in both ends and on the PK. Finally, Kuhnhackl looks good alongside all three bottom six centers (Fehr, Bonino and Cullen) and I wouldn't take someone out who works well with them.
With that in mind, the guys who are on the outside looking in for me are Bennett and Conor Sheary. Bennett I just have no use for. Sheary has played really well. It is through no fault of his own that I have him sitting, but I think Rust, Kuhnhackl and Wilson would be better suited at the moment.
If it were up to me, I'm going with this bottom six: Cullen - Bonino - Wilson, Kuhnhackl - Fehr - Rust. I think that would work best for the Pens down the stretch.
This one comes from Reedie on the Tweety: "Why do you think Derrick Pouliot was scratched last night rather than Ian Cole?"
Reedie, this is a mind-boggling situation. The way Derrick Pouliot has played, I would not have taken him out of the lineup yesterday. Pouliot is far from a polished NHL defenseman, but he has played well and he needs games, minutes to become more polished. I want to see him in there. Now, if he was struggling than that is one thing. But he hasn't, so he shouldn't have sat.
Now, to be fair, Ian Cole has played really well the last few games. He looks much more comfortable in a bottom pair role and with those minutes. He is not a bad defenseman, he was just misused and underachieved to start the year. We saw last year down the stretch that he is a solid player, and since being reinserted he has produced a few points and been a plus-5. I also like that he is shooting a little more because he does have a nice point shot.
As for yesterday's situation, my guess as to why Cole played over Pouliot is a two part answer. Firstly, I think they wanted to give Pouliot a game off. He's played a lot this year and every now and then, it is good for a young player to take a seat, get a break and watch a game from the press box. Honestly, I'd love for the Pens to do that with Olli Maatta so he can refuel a little bit right now. Secondly, with Schultz's reputation as an offensive defenseman and the questions surrounding his defensive play, I think the Pens wanted to have more defensive or two-way guy back there to pair with him; someone to cover when Schultz's joined the rush or pinched. Cole fits that mold better than Pouliot.
So Reedie, I think that is why Cole played over Pouliot on Sunday.
This one comes from Franjione Pens Press on the Tweety: "Where do you think the pens finish at end of season: top 3 in division, wild card, or out of playoffs?"
Good question. I actually answered something similar a few weeks back, but that was pre-deadline moves, pre-injuries and everything else. So I will happily answer again.
To be completely honest, I think the Penguins are going to finish in a wild card spot. Unless they go on a huge run over the next two weeks with 8 games v. the Metropolitan Division, I see them coming in with one of the wild card spots and not one of the two remaining guaranteed spots in division. I think the Rangers will get the two seed, and the Islanders will somehow manage the three seed without being all that impressive this season what so ever.
Now, I think the Penguins will get one of the two wild card spots, but can't predict which at this point. As I said, barring a huge run down the stretch, I don't see the consistency from this team to take a guaranteed spot or even really contend in the playoffs. Unless something changes, and the Penguins get a favorable first round matchup, I think this team will be eliminated in the first round. I hate to say it, but it just is not a Stanley Cup team as they sit today. Maybe a month from now will be a different story, and here's to hoping that it is.
So my final word on this is the Penguins will be one of the two wild card teams heading into the playoffs.
From Jonathan M. on the Tweety: "How can we justify a win vs Devils but not vs. the Flames? Seems odd to me."
Jonathan, the biggest thing about this weekend is the way in which the Penguins played. I talk about it in the state of the Pens above, they just do not play with enough consistency. How they played Sunday is how they should play every game. I don't care if the win or lose, if they bust their asses in the process. What I hate watching, and we saw it Saturday, are those "phoned in," half-assed efforts where the Penguins need a win and just didn't seem to care.
The Penguins needed a win in both of those games. They didn't do it Saturday, but they came out and played great on Sunday. I can't justify it Jonathan, because frankly I am pissed they through away two perfectly good points Saturday then played the way they did Sunday. If they put in half the effort they did on Sunday in Saturday's game, they could've won two points.
It's all about consistency. If the Penguins don't start playing more consistently, they will not stick around long in the playoffs, if they make it.
This final question comes from Rob A. on the Tweety: "If Sally sells seashells and woodchucks chuck wood, why do fan boys/girls think they know hockey?"
This is a dangerous question for me to answer Rob, but I will give it a go for you. I should start this answer by saying this, I am just a fan of the Penguins and the game in general. I have a good hockey knowledge, a decent understanding of the game and the other teams/players around the league, but I do NOT have the same knowledge of someone who has played the game their entire life or been around it their entire life. I became a hockey fan when I was about 10-11 years old, which would have been right around 2000-01. I only ever really watched the game until the last year or so when I began playing. I didn't become a hardcore, don't miss a game fan until I was probably 16-17 years old. The reason being is not living in the Pittsburgh area growing up, I only got the nationally televised Pens games. So those 10-20 nights a year, plus playoffs, were a big event for me. I like to think I know a lot about the game, but I will flat out say I don't know as much as many others out there.
Now, what you are referencing Rob, I'm assuming, are some of the tweets out there where fans are saying this, or saying that because they are a fan of a specific player and thus the team. I see the tweets occasionally, and to be honest, I just ignore some of those. I am not going to get in, for lack of a better term, a "pissing contest" with someone over something they said or I said. I have my opinion, others have theirs, and frankly I don't get my jollies off from starting a twitter argument over something so trivial. To me, it's just silly. If you agree with what I say, that's great. If you don't, I'm not going to lose any sleep over it. I enjoy writing these posts and tweeting for everyone because I love to talk Penguins. And frankly, I encourage anyone to get involved in the game, to learn more about it, and to talk about it. It is a great sport, and a fun one to talk about.
Rob, I think the thing we need to remember is we all, at one point, were new to this game. We picked a player, we fanboyed/girled over them and liked that team because of it. I started liking the Penguins because Mario Lemieux was the only athlete to ever answer my fan letters as a little kid. I loved Mario and thus loved the Penguins. Over time, I came to love the Pens and their other players, and now I am a complete lunatic when it comes to the Pens; just can't get enough. My biggest thing about the specific individuals you are talking about in your question, is that you continue to grow as a fan and particularly, put the LOGO ahead of the name on the back of the jersey. That is the biggest step in becoming a true hockey fan and one who really knows the game. Once you put your love of the team, and the game, over your love for a specific player, that is when you are a knowledgeable hockey fan.
I hope that answers your question and I hope it didn't offend anyone out there.
Projected Lines & Pairs
- Scott Wilson - Sidney Crosby - Patric Hornqvist
- Chris Kunitz - Evgeni Malkin - Phil Kessel
- Tom Kuhnhackl - Nick Bonino - Bryan Rust
- Conor Sheary - Matt Cullen - Tom Sestito
Pairs:
- Kris Letang - Olli Maatta
- Brian Dumoulin - Trevor Daley
- Ian Cole - Justin Schultz
Marc-Andre Fleury will start in net for the Penguins in Brooklyn tonight.
My 3 Keys to the Game
2. Power Play: The Pens special teams has looked good for the last few months. The power play struggled without Geno during February, but has looked much better since his return. Tonight, it will be imperative that this unit posts a goal or two. Power play goals are always big, but if you can go on the man-advantage, not only can you score easier, but you're keeping guys like Tavares or Okposo on the bench.
3. Bottom Six: This unit has been huge for the Pens the last month. Rust, Cullen, Wilson, Kuhnhackl, Bonino, Sheary have all been good, and scoring goals too. Bottom six scoring is always important, but the Penguins need this to continue for them to have a legitimate run down the stretch and into the playoffs.
My 3 Penguins to Watch
2. Matt Cullen: Cullen has been a revelation this year. Cannot say enough good things about him and what he has done for us this year. In fact, the Penguins record when Cullen scores is outstanding. If Cullen scores again tonight, making it two games in a row, it'd be great for the Pens and their standing. So lets hope for another good game from the 39-year-old.
3. Justin Schultz: I was really impressed with what we saw from Schultz in his debut Sunday. He is incredibly talented in the offensive zone, as we had heard and saw that day, and could be a huge piece of the Pens offense from the backend moving forward. Defensively, he looked pretty solid. Is he perfect? No, but he is definitely far ahead of where some had him after the trade. If he gets more confidence, it would be huge for the Penguins. I'd like to see him backup Sunday's game with another solid night tonight.
What to Know for Watching/Attending
- ROOT Sports has the coverage tonight. Paul Steigerwald and Bob Errey with the call beginning at 7:30pm. Dan Potash will have the interviews.
- Penguins Pregame will precede the game coverage beginning at 7:00pm.
- Penguins Post Game will follow the game action.
- For those of you outside the Pittsburgh area, NBCSN and Sportsnet have the game tonight as well.
Here is what you need to know if you're LISTENING to tonight's game:
- 105.9 The X, the Penguins app, the Penguins website and iHeart Radio app are all places you can pick up the game tonight.
- Mike Lange and Phil Bourque will have the game call beginning at 7:30pm.
- Penguins Pregame will precede the game coverage at 6:30pm. Josh Getzoff will host.
- Penguins Hot Line will follow the game action.
Pens Points:
- ROOT Sports Pregame Keyword: 5pts
- ROOT Sports Post Game Keyword: 5pts
- Pens Radio Keyword: 5pts
- Miller Lite Nite at 99 Bottles in Carnegie: 25pts
- Miller Lite Nite at Arena Sports Grill in Irwin: 25pts