Well, we finally got to see what a real competitive hockey game looks like again. It felt like it was going to be a long time before that happened. The game started with one of the better periods for the Penguins in recent memory, and the Wilkes-Barre Boys came through again to tip the first goal of the game in for the Pens. Before the Penguins could score though, the Avalanche ran into something I touched on in the gameday post. Saves in the crease, the Av's on a solid scoring chance are denied by a combination of Rupp and Michalek in the crease helping Fleury deny the shot.
Not but a minute later off a long feed by Martin down to Sterling entering the zone, he dishes a pass off to Vitale who's beaten 3 guys in the slot, Vitale rings one home in the top left corner for his first NHL goal of his career.The Avalanche announcers forgot to review their press doc's to see that another forward had a number in the 40's, reads Vitale's goal as a Kennedy goal, little did he know he foreshadowed the future.
The second period didn't go as smoothly for the penguins, 3:24 into the period the Av's score with half the right side of the net wide open after Fleury tries to pokecheck the puck. Not but a minute and a half later Nick Johnson decides to test the Johnson name and gets in a "fight" with Ryan Wilson. Steigerwald goes ballistic. Wilson destroys Johnson in this fight sadly while raining down blows on his head for upwards of a minute before the fight is over. Steigerwald goes into how he feels like Johnson was outright attacked, and basically is still steaming over the fights on Long Island, this had been the first since, and it wasn't necessary, nor a good one to take. Errey somehow calms Steigerwald down, by avoiding the subject entirely and actually talking about hockey, a first for Bob.
Still in the second period, with a little more than 5 minutes to go, the Av's score again off a ridiculous goal that had no business going in, making the lead 2-1 and forcing the broadcasters to mention the fact that the Av's are sick nasty at winning games after leading in a game after the second period, etc... well Staalsy has something to say about that and 30 seconds later lifts Penguins nation on his shoulders and plays NHL 96 with Budaj, skating down the right wing he lets a shot go from the faceoff circle, top left corner into the net. Budaj loses and the game is tied 2-2.
The most notable thing about the third period were Fleury's saves. Here Fleury turns away O'Reilly after he splits the defense in the zone.
Fleury turns aside Yip on a break away to essentially save the game for the Penguins, even so early on in the third.
The rest of the third period sadly only included a noteworthy post shot by Paul Martin that would of changed the outcome a bit, but no we head to Overtime.
The overtime period was slow, and the Avalanche looked to be trying to just get to a shootout where they felt like they could win the game, and without the Penguins dominating shooters it's entirely possible the Av's would of been right. Slow your roll though Avalanche, you can't trip up Zybenek Michalek behind the net like that. 4 on 3 hockey starts now in the final minute and a half of the game. A few seconds later...
Tyler Kennedy saves the day and gets mobbed by his team mates.
Penguins pick up a highly necessary 2 points in a tightening Atlantic division.
A couple Penguins went missing during this game, so if anyone saw Tim Wallace(Re-Assigned to WBS today) or Max Talbot do anything in this one, pat yourself on the back you're probably the only one.
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