Pens Beat Flyers In Strange Game
The Pittsburgh Penguins were able to beat the Flyers yesterday with a lot of second and third line scoring, and a 3 on 5 short handed goal. The 3 on 5 shorty is something that absolutely never happens and it accented the weak goal tending and poor defensive play the Flyers have been getting lately. The Penguins were able to exercise their Philadelphiademons with a 6-4 victory.
The scoring started off with an unassisted Matt Cooke goal around the 4 minutes mark of the 1st period. The goal and the overall Penguins play was enough to keep the Philly crowd unusually quiet. That quiet though only lasted about 15 minutes when Jaromir Jagr took over and scored 2 goals in a 30 second time period to give the Flyers the lead. A lead they were able to take into the locker room.
The Pens played good defense and fought off many power play opportunities to keep the game close. The Penguins were able to not only tie the game up but also take the lead with not one but 2 short handed goals. The First of which was a Jordan Staal shorty at the 15minute mark. The second short handed goal came about a minute and a half later but what was strange about this one, it was not only short handed but it was short handed by 2. Matt Cooke scored his second goal of the day to give the Penguins the lead back 3-2. Then after all the Pens were back out on the ice at even strength and all the momentum firmly back in the Penguins corner, the Flyers were able to get a game equalizer at the 18:41 mark of the 2nd period. Both teams finished the period all tied up.
The Pittsburgh Penguins exploded out of the locker room in the 3rd period with a goal just 37 seconds in by Dustin Jeffrey. They were able to extend their lead to 5-3 just a minuted and half later by Pasqual Dupuis. The Penguins were able to put the game away with a James Neal goal at the 9 minute mark. The Flyers were able squeeze out another goal just seconds before the end of the game to make the final 6-4.
Jordan Staal was given a minor penalty for boarding in the second period. The NHL reviewed the hit and gave Staal a $2500 fine which is the max the CBA would allow for such a hit. As a note of reference, the money goes into an emergency fund for the NHL Players Association.
The Penguins have a short turnaround as they face the Buffalo Sabres this afternoon. Expect to see Marc Andre Fleury in net for the second game in as many days. The Penguins netminder was able to get plenty of support from his teammates yesterday, and playing a struggling Buffalo squad today could help him get back on track.
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