Pittsburgh Penguins blank Vancouver Canucks 4-3 in shootout -NHL Match Update
The 2011-2012 National Hockey League (NHL) season has finally began and both Vancouver and Pittsburgh are aiming high this time around. Penguins showed they are not a team to be reckoned with anymore by scoring both shootout goals to blank Canucks, 4-3,
on Friday, October 7, at a sold-out Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Vancouver honoured former defenseman, Rick Rypien, who died earlier this year due to unknown reasons, before the matchup started. A heartfelt atmosphere could be felt all around the stadium as fans lowered their heads and observed a moment of silence for
the deceased player.
Pittsburgh still might be missing their captain all-star player, Sidney Crosby, but they are determined to not let anything get in their way by starting off the scoring as James Neal and Matt Cooke took advantage of back-to-back power play opportunities
to put Penguins ahead, 2-0.
Maxim Lapierre took the puck on a breakaway, unassisted, and scored with less than four minutes remaining to end the period with Vancouver Canucks on the scoreboard with 2-1.
Matt Cooke again scored in the opening three minutes of the second, this time shorthanded as Evgeni Malkin was penalised with an early penalty for elbowing Christopher Higgins.
Vancouver’s Keith Ballard scored his first goal on an assist by both Sedin brothers, Henrik and Daniel at the 17:47 mark of the second period.
Daniel Sedin picked up his second point by levelling the match nearly midway through the final regulation period, giving brother Henrik his second assist and forcing an uncertain overtime extension.
Hoping for a better start to their first matchup, Vancouver could not help but praise Pittsburgh for their strong outcome.
"We didn't get off to the kind of start we wanted to", Canucks coach, Alain Vigneault, said. "But I think you have to give credit where credit is due -- they came out and played real strong. They played fast. For the first 25 minutes, they were the better
team".
A shootout showdown was forced after the overtime turned out fruitless for either team. Pittsburgh’s Kris Letang and Evgeni Malkin scored perfectly on both team opportunities to automatically win the matchup as Vancouver missed both.
Pittsburgh Penguins continue their Canadian road-trip as they face off against Calgary Flames on Saturday while Vancouver Canucks visit Columbus on Monday to play against Blue Jackets.
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