Before I discuss tonight's game against the St. Louis Blues, I forgot to mention some good news in my post yesterday. Dan Bylsma and Marc Andre Fleury are being recognized for their contribution to hockey and the Pens in the year of 2011 as Dapper Dan Sportsmen of the Year. They surely had a hand in making an injured team reach the playoffs last season and are still a major part of the team this season as well.
Also, soon after my blog post was written, some more good news came out of the NHL. It was announced that Alexander Ovechkin was suspended for 3 games for his hit on Pens' player Zbynek Michalek. He left the ice and targeted Michalek's head in the hit. On the other hand, Michalek, who also had a hearing with the league yesterday, was not given a punihsment from the league for his hit from the same game.
It's good to see Ovechkin get a suspension for a hit that would suspend any other player, because he did not receive a penalty for the hit during the game. This is Ovechkin's third suspension in his career and if he continues to play the way he does, it certainly won't be his last. There is no denying that Ovechkin is a talented player and when he is on his game, it is something to see most nights, but if he continues to think he can take any hit that he wants and play that style of hockey, he will surely see those suspension lengthen. At least we could hope that would be the case and that he would not receive any special treatment because of who he is. Hopefully this suspension sends a message.
It may have sparked something inside Ovechkin. It was announced today that he will not be participating in the All Star Game this upcoming weekend. Ovechkin stated that he did not feel deserving to attend the All Star game because of his suspension and that his "heart is not there." I think I know someone who should replace him, a very deserving player from the Pens lineup, goes by the last name of... Neal.
Now, on to tonight's game against the St. Louis Blues. Despite having a slow start to the season that prompted a coach change, the Blues are one of the top teams in the NHL at the moment. They have been receiving some great goaltending and have been winning a lot of hockey games. It says something that their 3-1 loss to the Detroit Red Wings last night was their first regulation loss in January. They have gone 8-1-1 in this month and are a stellar 13-0-2 in their last 15 home games.
Ok, they have a lot of good stats to look at, but we won't let those numbers and facts get in the way of what we have to do. The Pens have been playing very well against some good hockey teams and they will have to approach this game with just as much effort and determination.
The Blues have a strong lineup that consists of a number of players that chip in and do their part, with no real stand-outs, well, no Evgeni Malkin at least. They have a strong group of players who play well together. While the Pens have been a one-line team most recently for scoring, we are certainly capable of having more memebers of the team chip in and we may need to see that tonight against the Blues. The Pens would love to see their win streak continue going into the All Star break tonight and we all know... 7 is better than 6.
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