After Game 1, if you told me that the New York Rangers would be on the brink of elimination less than a week later, I might have laughed. Yet this is the reality New York finds itself in after the Pittsburgh Penguins reeled off three straight wins. For whatever reason, it just seems that New York cannot get out of its own way.
Give the Penguins credit though, they have made Henrik Lundqvist look very ordinary to the tune of six goals on only 42 shots. Even Sidney Crosby scored his first goal in Game 3, although that was a bit soft as well. When a goalie plays too deep in their crease (Roberto Luongo was guilty of that too), they have to be very good all the time. Lundqvist has been very good at times but also very ordinary against Pittsburgh.
Okay, that is enough of the bad. Let’s get to the three stars and some of the good from Game 4 of the “Metro Division Championship”.
Fantasy Hockey Three Stars
Third Star — Brandon Sutter — Pittsburgh Penguins
Yes we could have gone with Jussi Jokinen (game winning goal) but Sutter’s tenacity was noticeable all night long. His pickup of a brilliant Brian Gibbons rush made the score 2-1 at the tail end of a second period that probably should have been tied. Sutter may not be the most gifted on the defensive side of things but simply “his pickup” changed the course of the game and likely the series. It will also be interesting to see whether or not Sutter sees 17 or 18 minutes a night in Game 5 and then beyond.
Second Star — Sidney Crosby — Pittsburgh Penguins
It looks like that goal in Game 3 sparked Sidney Crosby as he just looks more relaxed on the ice. Last night he had two assists in the 4-2 win and chipped in with a few scoring chances too. The primary assist early in the first period that set up the Evgeni Malkin goal was quite a nice play. It was then another third period goal where Crosby started another play where the puck went to Malkin again but this time Chris Kunitz was the recipient of a goal. The more Sidney Crosby facilitates, the more likely the goal scoring comes back in its accustomed form.
First Star — Evgeni Malkin — Pittsburgh Penguins
It had to be that goal, didn’t it? The answer is emphatically yes! Overall, Evgeni Malkin had a goal, assist, with three shots and a +2 rating. Everyone is going to talk about that spin-o-rama because it was fantasy hockey gold and pretty awesome too. However, Malkin does most of his damage in a more precise and quiet way, if you will. Ever since the hat trick against Columbus, #71 has looked a lot more at peace with his offensive game with less bouts of mental frustration. After all, production makes elite players happy and of course fans too. The bottom line is Malkin put the Penguins one step closer to the Conference Finals.
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Thanks again for reading and we will be back at it tomorrow night with the latest on the NHL Playoffs.
