Penguins vs Rangers Game 3 (Series tied 1-1)
Penguins vs Rangers Game 3 (Series tied 1-1)
Pivotal game 3 matchup tonight at 7:00 at Madison Square Garden (USA Network).
Here are some news/notes/predictions for the Penguins lineup tonight:
-Murray and MAF split time in one goal while Zatkoff had the other cage all to himself in practice. Seems to indicate that Zatkoff will be the starter again in game 3.
-Justin Shultz took Ollie Maata's spot on top 6 rushes in practice. Looks like Maata will be a scratch in game 3 and Shultz will be in the lineup. It'll be interesting to see if Shultz does play along side Letang. Kris Letang spent over 32 minutes on the ice in game 2 so his partner will likely log a fair amount of ice time.
-Eric Fehr appears to be centering the 3rd line that will have Sheary and Malkin on the wings. If anyone recalls, Fehr played very well with Geno before breaking his wrist before Christmas. This also confirms that the upper body injury Malkin sustained was in fact to his wrist because the staff doesn't want him taking draws right now. Fehr is a key penalty killer so Sullivan may give Cullen a few shifts at 3rd line center to keep Fehr fresh for potentially important PKs but still allow Malkin to have his standard allotment of shifts.
Both teams will have key personnel out tonight. The Rags appear to be without (their captain) Ryan McDonagh and Dan Girardi (who is morphing into NYR's version of Scuderi from last post season) at defense. The Penguins will be without Murray and most likely MAF. Both teams are hopeful to get these difference makers back into the lineup for the stretch run of the series.
Historically, the team that has a 2-1 series lead will win the series 69% of the time. In this particular round of the playoffs, the team that holds a 2-1 series lead wins the series 64% of the time. It's not insurmountable odds to the loser of tonight's game but the loser will have the deck stacked against them.
I really see this series going 6 or 7.
Here are some news/notes/predictions for the Penguins lineup tonight:
-Murray and MAF split time in one goal while Zatkoff had the other cage all to himself in practice. Seems to indicate that Zatkoff will be the starter again in game 3.
-Justin Shultz took Ollie Maata's spot on top 6 rushes in practice. Looks like Maata will be a scratch in game 3 and Shultz will be in the lineup. It'll be interesting to see if Shultz does play along side Letang. Kris Letang spent over 32 minutes on the ice in game 2 so his partner will likely log a fair amount of ice time.
-Eric Fehr appears to be centering the 3rd line that will have Sheary and Malkin on the wings. If anyone recalls, Fehr played very well with Geno before breaking his wrist before Christmas. This also confirms that the upper body injury Malkin sustained was in fact to his wrist because the staff doesn't want him taking draws right now. Fehr is a key penalty killer so Sullivan may give Cullen a few shifts at 3rd line center to keep Fehr fresh for potentially important PKs but still allow Malkin to have his standard allotment of shifts.
Both teams will have key personnel out tonight. The Rags appear to be without (their captain) Ryan McDonagh and Dan Girardi (who is morphing into NYR's version of Scuderi from last post season) at defense. The Penguins will be without Murray and most likely MAF. Both teams are hopeful to get these difference makers back into the lineup for the stretch run of the series.
Historically, the team that has a 2-1 series lead will win the series 69% of the time. In this particular round of the playoffs, the team that holds a 2-1 series lead wins the series 64% of the time. It's not insurmountable odds to the loser of tonight's game but the loser will have the deck stacked against them.
I really see this series going 6 or 7.
Last edited by abpk2903 on April 19th, 2016, 11:11 am, edited 1 time in total.
Re: Penguins vs Rangers Game 3 (Series tied 1-1)
Game three of a seven game series is only pivotal if you find yourself down 2-0.
Re: Penguins vs Rangers Game 3 (Series tied 1-1)
The loser has to win 3 of 4 to win the series and history shows they have about a 3 in 10 chance to do so.
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theoneandonly
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Re: Penguins vs Rangers Game 3 (Series tied 1-1)
According to Sullivan... Matt Murray is an option to play in Game 3. Interesting.
Re: Penguins vs Rangers Game 3 (Series tied 1-1)
I don't know about you but I'm still thinking we will see Zatkoff.
Murray had his first practice in nearly 2 weeks yesterday.
The outlook for Maatta looks more promising than it did 24 hours ago.
The rule of thumb in the NHL is you need to have 10 NHL ready defensemen to win Lord Stanley's Cup. That is quite evident in this series so far. In all reality, blueliners all throughout the league seem to be struggling to get and stay on the ice.
Murray had his first practice in nearly 2 weeks yesterday.
The outlook for Maatta looks more promising than it did 24 hours ago.
The rule of thumb in the NHL is you need to have 10 NHL ready defensemen to win Lord Stanley's Cup. That is quite evident in this series so far. In all reality, blueliners all throughout the league seem to be struggling to get and stay on the ice.
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theoneandonly
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Re: Penguins vs Rangers Game 3 (Series tied 1-1)
Yeah I think we see Zatkoff too but he may have a very short leash. If Murray is healthy and 100% to go it's going to be tough not to throw him back out there.
I don't think Maatta plays tonight... Maatta is a far superior defensive player than Schultz but Schultz is so much faster than him and seems to fit the way the Pens were playing much better. I don't really know how I feel about that but it'll be interesting to see which direction they go.
I don't think Maatta plays tonight... Maatta is a far superior defensive player than Schultz but Schultz is so much faster than him and seems to fit the way the Pens were playing much better. I don't really know how I feel about that but it'll be interesting to see which direction they go.
Re: Penguins vs Rangers Game 3 (Series tied 1-1)
Maatta was toasted about 3 times in game 2. The advantage of having 8 high quality d-men is Sullivan can have a quick trigger for underperformers.
After Letang, I think the next 7 defensemen on this roster are all interchangeable.
After Letang, I think the next 7 defensemen on this roster are all interchangeable.
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billmurray
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Re: Penguins vs Rangers Game 3 (Series tied 1-1)
Two situations in this series really have me excited about the Pens chances this postseason.
•The first came in game 1 when they took a 2-0 lead into the 3rd. Early in the period they got called for a minor and double minor penalty simultaneously. So the Pens had to defend a 5 on 3 for 2 minutes and follow that up with a 5 on 4 for 2 more. Both the calls were probably correct but could be argued borderline. The Penguins teams of a few years ago would have folded up and lost their minds. This team did give up a goal on the 5 on 3 but bounced back to score a short handed goal to take back control of the game.
•In game 3, you could tell early on that both goaltenders were going to tough to beat. When the Pens thought they had a chance early in the second period, Rick Nash got behind the defense for a short handed goal. What I liked is the Penguins didn't change what they were doing at all. They stayed the course and got the equalizer on their next power play opportunity.
Here are some other thoughts about game 3:
•Kessel really does take his game to another level in the postseason. He created the Crosby goal by putting the shot pass perfectly on Sid's stick.
•These coaches really do a great job of keeping the opponents and fans in the dark of what the lineup is going to look like. I don't think many people at all predicted Tuesday morning that Murray, Maatta, or McDonagh would play.
•The first came in game 1 when they took a 2-0 lead into the 3rd. Early in the period they got called for a minor and double minor penalty simultaneously. So the Pens had to defend a 5 on 3 for 2 minutes and follow that up with a 5 on 4 for 2 more. Both the calls were probably correct but could be argued borderline. The Penguins teams of a few years ago would have folded up and lost their minds. This team did give up a goal on the 5 on 3 but bounced back to score a short handed goal to take back control of the game.
•In game 3, you could tell early on that both goaltenders were going to tough to beat. When the Pens thought they had a chance early in the second period, Rick Nash got behind the defense for a short handed goal. What I liked is the Penguins didn't change what they were doing at all. They stayed the course and got the equalizer on their next power play opportunity.
Here are some other thoughts about game 3:
•Kessel really does take his game to another level in the postseason. He created the Crosby goal by putting the shot pass perfectly on Sid's stick.
•These coaches really do a great job of keeping the opponents and fans in the dark of what the lineup is going to look like. I don't think many people at all predicted Tuesday morning that Murray, Maatta, or McDonagh would play.
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konjo78
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Re: Penguins vs Rangers Game 3 (Series tied 1-1)
How long might letang sit for the slash to the neck. Even uninentional i cant see the nhl not giving him atleast a 1 game suspension