Sid Leads The Penguins To Victory

Three Nobodies Named Malkin, Neal, and Crosby

Friday night’s 5-3 victory against the Buffalo Sabres was one filled with milestones for the Penguins.

Sidney Crosby became the 7th youngest player in NHL history to record 600 points when he assisted on a James Neal goal. Crosby had a 4 point night, including 1 goal and 3 assists. Since coming back from head and neck injury on March 15, Crosby has had 17 points in 10 games. Not too shabby, huh?

Evgeni Malkin, who said earlier this month it would be nice to hit 50 goals this season, came close to achieving that with his 48th goal of the season. Malkin leads the NHL in points, with a total of 102, 11 points ahead of 2nd place Steven Stamkos. At the pace he’s going, there is a huge chance Geno will be able to hit the 50 mark before the season ends.

Pascal Dupuis got 2 assists against Buffalo, extending his point streak to 13 games. This makes Dupuis the owner of the longest point streak in the NHL this season. This marks a banner year for the normally quiet Dupuis, who also has 24 goals this season, a career high for him.

Brent Johnson, who missed 17 games with an undisclosed injury and hadn’t been playing like his usual beasting self this season, got the start in goal and turned away 25 of the Sabres 28 shots.

Congratulations to them all!

Cooke Nominated For Masterton

No, this is not a typo. No, this is not a joke. And no, you are not reading it wrong. Penguins forward Matt Cooke has been nominated by local media for the NHL’s Masterton award which goes to the player who has overcome adversity while showing sportsmanship and dedication to hockey.

Cooke, has had a transformation season after being suspended twice last season, and missing the playoff series against Tampa Bay where the Pens lost in seven games.

Although Cooke has had the persona of a bad boy or instigator for much of his career, he has been a vital part of the Penguins penalty kill the past few years.

Many people don’t know the personal issues Cooke was battling towards the end of last season. A day after the Penguins participated in the Winter Classic, his wife fell deathly ill. Doctors believed it was a reoccurrence of a serious kidney infection. Cooke, meanwhile, was 600 miles away from his wife’s hospital room in Pittsburgh.

After he couldn’t get in touch with his wife, he got a concerning call from her doctor. The doctor told Cooke, “I think you should come back right now.” Cooke continues by saying, “I got there, and they’ve got a chaplain giving her the blessing and our kids are in that room.”

Being on the road while his wife’s condition worsened, had to be hard for Cooke. Trying to separate his professional life from his personal life, also had to be a struggle. Weeks later, Cooke found himself suspended for the remainder of the season and the first round of the playoffs after a hit on Rangers’ Ryan McDonough.

Although Cooke told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that, “I don’t use (Michelle’s health) as an excuse for anything that happened last season,” he said. “I’m responsible for my actions out there.” “He does agree that, “It all happens for a reason.” His wife even said that since their daily routine of hockey and time with their kids had to change dramatically he was “not himself” through this time.

” I don’t want to hurt anybody,” he said. Well, fast-forward to the present. The Penguins were on a 11 game winning streak in which Matt Cooke had a hand in. With Sidney Crosby’s return, Cooke was lucky enough to win a spot on his line along with Tyler Kennedy. In the past three games with his new line, Cooke had four points. He is also having a career year, with a career high 16 goals and only 30 penalty minutes.

After watching the Penguins lose in game seven of the first round of the playoffs he promised himself and his teammates that he would never watch that happen again. While Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin were sitting in the press box out with injuries, while he was missing time due to his suspension, he felt partially responsible for the early playoff exit. ” [Malkin and Crosby] couldn’t go. But I was healthy and sitting up there. It was a gut-wrenching feeling. I feel responsible to them. I said from the outset that I wouldn’t put them in that situation again.”

Today he watches hours of game clips feauturing hits in the league, learning how to deliver a clean check and stay away from controversy.

Being a changed player, doesn’t mean his personality has changed. His teammates will still call him the jokester who pulls pranks like cutting laces, filling skates with bubble gum, or pouring snow from the ice surface down players shirts. His intensity and love for the game hasn’t changed either. “We all play the game to win.” And Cooke has been a vital part to the Penguins success this season. The Pens have the third best penalty kill in the league and Cooke is a huge part of that.

“The playoffs are the time to win,” Cooke said. And this year the Penguins will have Cooke in their lineup this year where teams should be scared of his skills, not just his hits.

So next time you think of Matt Cooke think of the family man, team player, prankster and human being who brings perseverance and dedication to the game of hockey.

In a world that loves hearing about the underdog, here you go. Meet the New Matt Cooke. The Pittsburgh Penguins Masterton Nominee, coming to an arena near you.

A Perfect 10

On a special night in New York City, the Penguins expanded their win streak to 10 games while welcoming captain Sidney Crosby back into the lineup. The Pens 5-2 win moves them to four points behind Eastern Conference leading Rangers.

Not only did the Pens get Crosby back but they also welcomed all-star defensemen Kris Letang back into the lineup after missing five games to concussion-like symptoms. Both players had an immediate impact on the game’s result. Crosby’s line with Matt Cooke and Tyler Kennedy scored on their first shift, while Crosby ended the game with an assist and a plus-3. Letang also ended the game with an assist, and a career high plus-5.

Forward Evgeni Malkin added his 39th goal of the year while Matt Cooke scored twice to help lead the Pens to the important two point victory.

Goalie Marc Andre Fleury summarized the recent stretch perfectly. “We’re playing pretty solid hockey these days. It’s a long season. We need to keep going.”

With important games against division rivals, New Jersey Devils and Philadelphia Flyers this weekend, the Pens look to carry their winning streak along.

Don’t Call It A Comeback

These two are back!

Tonight’s Penguins game against the New York Rangers just got a little more interesting.

Kris Letang confirmed that he will be back in the line up tonight, along with some third line center named Sidney Crosby.

Letang has been out since being hit by in the Dallas Stars game on February 29th.

On the Rangers front, Marty Biron will start in goal while Henrik Lundqvist backs him up. Lundqvist sat out the last Rangers game with the flu.

Michael Del Zotto and captain Ryan Callahan will also sit out this game.

This will be only the 10th game in the last two seasons that Crosby, Letang, Evgeni Malkin, and Jordan Staal have all been in the lineup for. Crazy, right?

Puck drops at Madison Square Garden at 7:30. You can catch the pregame on the NHL Sports Network, TSN2, and Roots Sports Pittsburgh starting at 7:00PM

Everybody! Crosby’s Back! Alright!

Hide your forwards, hide your d-men, and hide your goaltenders.

Sidney Crosby confirmed that he will play on Thursday against the New York Rangers.

Interesting enough, this is an away game, being played at Madison Square Garden. Many thought Sid would want to return during a home game.

And to make this day even better, defenseman Kris Letang says he might be ready to go on Thursday as well. Letang says he was never diagnosed with another concussion, like many were speculating.

We’re this close to a healthy team, and it’s ridiculously exciting, isn’t it?

Crosby Isn’t Returning Tomorrow

Soon

That comeback will have to wait a little longer.

Sidney Crosby said today, after practice, he would not return against the Boston Bruins on Sunday.

“No, I’m not playing. The good thing is that we have a good chunk of practices next week so we’ll see how that goes. Hopefully, it’s soon.”

When asked if he would maybe come back on Thursday, against the New York Rangers, Sid gave a typical Crosby answer.

“That’s soon, so we’ll see”.

However, he was quick to point out that he had not had another setback, just that he didn’t want to rush it.

“I have to make sure that I’m ready and responsible out there,” he said. “That being said, it always takes time. … I need to get to another level as far as the extent of the physicality out there. There’s been nothing that’s really alarming.

“I’m really happy with the way I’ve felt leading up to this point.”

Sidney was cleared for contact on Tuesday. Back in January, it was discovered that, along with concussion like symptoms, he also had a soft tissue neck injury.

Crosby Cleared For Contact

Penguins captain Sidney Crosby made another step in his return from concussion-like symptoms after being cleared for contact today.

Practicing with the team this morning marked the first time he had participated in all team drills since symptoms came back after the December 5th game against the Bruins.

Crosby says he has been symptom-free for the past couple of days. Although he did not give an exact day for return, he gave Pens fans and even hockey fans everywhere optimism by saying he could play as soon as Sunday. Although that seems unlikely, it is good to see the positive vibes from the Pens captain.

Crosby made his return in November after being hurt in back to back hits in January. After only playing eight games, he again was sidelined.

After rumors about whether Crosby actually had a concussion or if he broke the C1 and C2 vertebrae in the neck, the Penguins and doctors have continued to stay mum.

Crosby though will agree with most people on one thing. “Contact is the big step. You have to get through that. Once I do that for a few days I can jump into games. The best way to do that is to be in games. The sooner the better,” he told reporters in Pittsburgh today.

Well for hockey fans, the sooner is better, but hopefully this return is for good.  The Penguins have be 20-4-1 since their 5 game losing streak in January, so there’s no push for Crosby to come back immediately.  But it certainly won’t hurt.

Letang Hurt On Controversial Play

Midway in the first period Wednesday, Penguins defensemen Kris Letang was hurt on a controversial play involving Stars forward Eric Nystrom. While traveling to the corner of his defensive zone, Letang was hit in the head by Nystrom at 9:55 of the first period.

After lying on the ice for a couple of minutes, Letang was eventually walked off with help from trainer Chris Stewart and teammates. He did not return for the rest of the game.

Anyone who was watching the game on NBC Sports Network would have seen the argument between analysts Mike Milbury and Jeremy Roenick who each had their own opinion. The Penguins on the other hand, stayed mum.

“It was potentially borderline,” right winger Craig Adams told the Pittsburgh Tribune Review. Most teammates decided to stay quiet until they saw the hit from better angles.

Head coach Dan Bylsma told reporters after the game that he is listed at day-to-day but Letang has already missed extensive time this year with a concussion.

Although Roenick said that the hit was clean and was not a headshot, Letang was seen after the game with a clear gash on his chin. Last time I checked the chin was part of our head, but you make the decision. Was the hit clean? Is it suspendable? Time will tell. Let’s just hope that Letang returns to the lineup soon.