Pittsburgh Penguins shutout Tampa Bay Lightning in first match of quarter-finals – NHL Playoffs
What a wild way for the Penguins to start off the 2011 National Hockey League playoffs as they shutout the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-0 at the sold out CONSOL Energy Centre in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Even without their top players, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh still managed to keep the Lightning’s healthy roster at bay on Wednesday.
Penguins’ goalie Marc-Andre Fleury stepped up to fill the gap created by a few injured players and made some outstanding rejections. He blocked all 32 of Tampa Bay’s attempts at the net while counterpart Dwayne Roloson fell short of three making only 37.
After the match Fleury was delighted as he heard the crowd chanting “MVP!” along with his last name when they were leaving the ice. It was his fifth career shutout and without a doubt the best.
"Fleury was outstanding, there's no question about it," Lightning Coach Guy Boucher said, talking about some acrobatic manoeuvres his goal-keeper made. "I just saw some clips of the replays and I still can't believe he made some of those saves."
Both goalies shutdown their offensive opponents during the first and second period, but Pittsburgh managed to breakdown the rival defence in the final period. Alexei Kovalev opened the scoring 6:05 into the final. He brings good luck to the team whenever
he scores as the Penguins have remained unbeaten 5-0 when he pots a postseason goal.
"He's always had the ability to be a factor in the playoffs, a playoff performer, so it wasn't too big a surprise to see him get that opportunity," Tampa Bay Coach Dan Bylsma said.
Right wing, Arron Asham extended the lead 18 seconds later on his second shot faking attempt. The first time he tried, Roloson seemed to read his mind and move with him but on the second try, he fell out of position, leaving the left side wide open.
Tampa Bay had 11 attempts at the net during the final period, but Fleury was just too much in form and managed to block the all with ease. Chris Kunitz topped it off while firing another goal with under a minute remaining on an empty net.
After the match, critics wondered what would happen if they added Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, to the already fired up line-up. If Pittsburgh plays with consistency then reaching the finals will not be a problem for them.
Both teams face off in game two of the quarter-finals in Pittsburgh on Friday. It is a highly anticipated matchup between both teams who have worked hard to enter the play-offs. The Penguins entered the postseason as the fourth seed for the third consecutive
time and have high hopes of going deep this time around.
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