Bits And Pieces

– Sidney Crosby has been named one of the finalists for the Ted Lindsay award, awarded to the league’s most outstanding player and voted on by members of NHLPA.

Crosby is up against Martin St. Louis of the Tampa Bay Lightening, and his old friend Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals.

Crosby was having a stellar season up until he took a puck to the jaw and missed the last month of the season. Despite that, he still finished tied for third in points. Good luck to Sid!

– Some big changes for game 5 tonight. Tomas Vokoun will be starting today, instead of Marc-Andre Fleury, who hasn’t been playing his best recently. This will be Vokoun’s first playoff game since 2007.

March Of The Penguins

Look at that smile!

The Pittsburgh Penguins last game of the month was certainly a memorable one.

The Pens won their 15th straight, setting a couple of records. This is currently the longest win streak of the season for any NHL team, and they are also the first NHL team to have a perfect month of wins in history.

The Penguins’ latest acquisition Jarome Iginla, who only landed in Pittsburgh at 12:30 in the morning, made his debut with his new team. In total, he had 17:30 of ice time, 3 shots on net, 2 hits, and was a plus 1. He was also awarded the 3rd star of the game.

Goaltender Tomas Vokoun recorded his 3 straight shutout, giving the Pens a 2-0 victory over the New York Islanders. He now holds the franchise record for shutouts.

Matt Cooke was a man on a mission. After a spectacular performance killing off a 5-on-3 penalty, Cooke scored the first goal for the Penguins, which ended up being the game winner. James Neal got the second one. Douglas Murray, the Pens’ newest defenseman, got his first point as a Penguin on that goal.

Now the not so great news.

Christ Kunitz was given a 5 minute major and a game misconduct after it appeared he boarded Josh Bailey. No word on whether he’ll hear from Shanahan for that hit.

And the worst.

50 seconds into his first shift, Sidney Crosby was hit in the jaw with a Brooks Orpik slapshot. After not showing up on the bench for the second period, word got out that he was transferred to a hospital. After the game, Dan Bylsma said that he was having oral surgery, and that’s all he knew.

Yikes. Let’s hope everything is OK with Sid. To see him lose any time is just the absolute worst.

Pens have a break until Tuesday, when they play the Buffalo Sabres.

Vokoun Signs With The Pens

Welcome to the Pens!

Goalie Tomas Vokoun has signed a 2 year, $2 million contract with the Penguins.

He was acquired in a trade that sent the Penguins’ 7th round pick from the 2012 draft to the Washington Capitals.

This will be the fifth team for the 35 year old Vokoun. He was drafted by the Montreal Canadiens in 1994, and has played for the Nashville Predators, Florida Panthers, and of course, the Washington Capitals.

Vokoun is the back up goalie the Penguins need. He’ll hopefully be able to play a few games and give Marc-Andre Fleury a rest from time to time.

While I welcome Vokoun with open arms, I will be sad to see Brent Johnson go. Thanks for everything, Johnny, and good luck wherever you go next.