Pittsburgh Penguins Move on to the Eastern Conference Finals
The Pittsburgh Penguins have done it. They defeated the Washington Capitals in seven games to move on to the Eastern Conference Finals. They are now just eight wins away from back-to-back Stanley Cups.
When the Pittsburgh Penguins went up 3-1 in the series, everything was looking great. Our offence was scoring, Fleury was solid in net, and our defenceman were keeping the pucks out of the net. Sidney Crosby and Conor Sheary may have been out with concussions, but their returns for game five were looking optimistic. Ultimately they did return, and the Penguins were looking to close out the series sooner than later.
Pittsburgh Penguins
However, things went in Washington’s favour for games five and six. The Penguins ended up allowing the Capitals to tie the series up at 3-3, bringing forth the various possible “blowing a 3-1 lead” jokes online.
It all came down to game seven, and the Penguins were able to hold it together and come out with a 2-0 win. They avoided being defeated and being humiliated given their lead. They will now look to defeat the Ottawa Senators in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Offence Was Slow, but Rolling
I’ve said this countless times before and i’ll say it again. The Penguins offence sucks in the first period. Throughout these entire playoffs, they have only scored one or no goals in the first period. The Penguins may be able to score later in the game, but they need to figure out how to dominate early in their games. Only then can they easily take control of games.
In game seven, the Penguins eventually found two goals, one each in the second and third periods. Bryan Rust has been a big contributor throughout these playoffs, and he contributed with his fifth goal. Meanwhile, Patric Hornqvist showed he is starting to heat up by scoring his fourth goal of the playoffs.
Fleury is Still Spectacular
In games five and six, I unfortunately went on Twitter and saw many fans blaming Fleury for the Penguins losses for some odd reason. For example, they wanted Matt Murray back because they felt that he would put them in a better position to win.
Well Fleury has been playing phenomenally throughout these playoffs, and he deserves credit. In the Penguins losses, their offence didn’t seem to show up most of the time. It was especially terrible in game six when they only showed up in the final minutes to score two goals.
In game seven, Fleury decided just to shut the naysayers up by posting a shutout performance. Excellent.
Looking Ahead to Ottawa
The Penguins now have to prepare for their next opponent: the Ottawa Senators.
The season series seems to slightly be in Ottawa’s favour. They took two out of the three games against us, but might I add that one of their wins was a shootout win.
The Senators have surprised many this season and they are looking to surprise many more. The Penguins shouldn’t let their guard down one bit. We already almost blew it against the Capitals,, we can’t afford to slip up again.
The Penguins should rely on their strong defence and offence. Erik Karlsson may be one of the best defenceman in hockey, but our offence is nothing to laugh at. It will be a hard fought series i’m sure, but the Penguins can pull through and earn a trip to the Stanley Cup Finals once again. I’m sure.