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| Road trip brings Pens together By The Hack OK, we have seen the worst Penguins start in history and now a road trip has shown us the road to recovery is upon us. Now where do the Pens go from here? The answer isn't as simple as black and white. Two solutions to the early season woes have come from within. By bringing up Erik Christensen and Ryan Whitney from Wilkes-Barre the team has solved its glaring weakness at two key areas. Christensen has been the second line center they have needed since camp started. He plays a two way game. He has the size,speed and determination to get the job done. Right now he is on a line with Sidney Crosby,who has temporarily moved to left wing. Edzo can't be seriously considering keeping him there. He has too much creative ability not to center a line. Defensemen Ryan Whitney has not looked out of place as a rushing,passing,puck mover they have missed since Dick Tarnstrom was injured. Whitney looks at ease with the puck and is playing with the confidence of an NHL veteran. Another solution may come from a trade once Tarnstrom comes back. The Guins can't keep all those offensive D-men. Ric Jackman could be the odd man out and might bring a speedy,hard-nosed, defensemen in return.This is a weakness the Pens must address if they want to improve enough to do something come playoff time. Special team is still a big factor . Lemieux and company still have been undisciplined at times and it cost them the Boston game. Nobody in this town will criticize Mario but here it goes. Mario Lemieux is the best or second best player to ever play the game but he is 40 years old and cannot carry this team anymore. His passing has been sub-par and worst yet he has let his temper get the best of him. By taking unsportsmen like conduct penalties, Mario has put the team in a position to fail. Our penalty killing unit is the second worst in the league in front of only Atlanta. By getting extra minutes and 5 on 3's the Penguins have made it next to impossible to have a good percentage. Frustrating calls by the referees are part of the game. Mario and the assistant captains need to work the officials, not spout off and get extra time in the box. A good example of how to handle the situation was by Mark Recchi in the Montreal game. Annoyed by a hooking call. He said his peace and then quickly skated to the box. The more you show up the zebras the less chance you have later with them. NOTES: Goaltender Jocelyn Thibault played his best game of the season against Montreal. He stopped three shots in the shoot-out to get the win in the first ever SO victory at the Mellon Arena. The crowd exploded when Rookie of the Month Sidney Crosby roofed a back-hand shot to beat Jose Theodore. The 16,000 plus witnessed history and proved to the NHL that the shoot-out is an event in itself. Sebastien Caron was injured in the Boston game and appears to be day to day. Marc-Andre Fleury is back with the team for now.......Rico Fata , Konstantine Koltzov, and Matt Murley have taken the fourth line and created good energy shifts by finishing their checks and creating positive momentum...... Maxime Talbot was left sprawling on the ice after an elbow by Canadiens Mike Begin. Some bad blood may carry over from this as the Pens appeared to think it was dirty......... The NewYork Rangers' Jaromir Jagr and Martin Straka visit the Igloo on Saturday the 12th, sure to be a sellout . |