National Hockey League (NHL) October Review: Pittsburgh Penguins
Pittsburgh Penguins were probably the most injury ridden team in the National Hockey League (NHL) entering the 2011-2012 regular season. With the comeback of top forward, Evgeni Malkin, the team has received a considerable boost, but they still await the
return of their superstar and former top entry draft pick, Sidney Crosby.
After the first two games to kick off the new season, which Pittsburgh won against Vancouver Canucks and Calgary Flames, Penguins lost Malkin once again for a number of games again and faced back-to-back losses.
Losing to a team like Edmonton in a shootout for their first loss of the season, Pittsburgh had trouble finding their game without their top class shooters.
Out of a total of 22 points throughout the month of October, Pittsburgh managed to grab 12.
They saw victory once again against Florida Panthers as they played their first matchup in Pittsburgh at the CONSOL Energy Center, but faced three straight losses top Washington Capitals in overtime, Buffalo Sabres and the newly relocated, Winnipeg Jets.
It was after their loss to Winnipeg that Penguins realised that in order to keep themselves strong as the season progressed, they would need to start winning and their goalie, Marc-Andre Fleury also gained the much needed motivation.
Pittsburgh began by winning against Minnesota Wild, 4-2, followed by two straight near shutout of Montreal Canadiens, 3-1, and New Jersey Devils, 4-1. Marc-Andre Fleury finally achieved his much awaited inaugural shutout of the season against New York Islanders,
3-0, along with another straight win against the team in their back-to-back meeting.
To end off the season, Penguins nearly escaped Toronto Maple Leafs, the number two team in the conference, but were defeated, 4-3, to close the month of October at the top spot of the Eastern Conference with 18 points.
They enjoy a comfortable three point lead over Toronto, which has 15 points, since Pittsburgh boasts a record of 7-3-1. Penguins also lead the Atlantic Division by a decent margin of five points with Philadelphia Flyers following behind at number two.
Malkin leads the team in points (16, 3 goals, 13 assists), including some major contributions during overtime extensions and shootout deciders.
Hoping to get Sidney Crosby anytime during November, Pittsburgh Penguins are in full throttle to emerge as the top contenders for the cup this season, which is not hard to imagine at all.
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