PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – Along with hearing the words ‘resilience’ and ‘dirty goals’ another playoff adage or maybe even cliché, is ‘the fourth one is always the toughest one to get’. It’s referring to closing a series with a fourth win and the Pens said they will keep ‘the pedal down’ to borrow a reporters’ cliché.
“We have a lot of work left,” said Pens Captain Sidney Crosby. “When you are in a game like this, you know you are going to see a teams’ best the next time. They are a good hockey team, we definitely got an opportunity. We know it is going to be a big challenge going to New York. We need to continue to get better.”
Crosby is one of three Pens who remain from the team that lost a 3-1 series lead against the Rangers in 2014. There were several circumstances involved there, including the inspiration provided by the passing of Martin St.
Louis’ mother following Game 4. New York held the Pens to three goals total in the last three games of that series.
“We have a veteran group and these guys have been through this a lot,” said Pens Head Coach Mike Sullivan. “Everyone understands the position we are in and we have to go out and earn the next one. We have to continue to try and get better and improve as a group. We are going to stay right in the moment. No one is thinking beyond that.”
Gallant Goes Therrien
Not quite to the level of Pens Head Coach Michel Therrien in 2006 when he described a loss as a pathetic performance, saying half of the team doesn’t care. He said their goal was to be the worst defensive squad in the league. He also criticized them for being soft. That’s about as tough as you can be on a team, saying a hockey player is soft.
The Rangers coach wasn’t as brutal, but said after the loss Monday.
“Played soft,” said New York Head Coach Gerard Gallant. “We were soft all over the ice. That’s the biggest difference, we were soft all over the ice.”
The Pens would probably like to take some credit for taking the game to them.
“I thought tonight may have been our best effort in terms of play away from the puck,” Sullivan said. “I thought we did a better job of limiting odd-man rushes. We were on the right side of the puck for most of the night making it hard for the Rangers to get quality looks.”
“They are a highly skilled team,” said forward Jeff Carter. “No one likes their time and space taken away and I feel like the last couple of games we’ve been doing a good job of that, especially on their top line, limiting their odd man chances against. It’s a whole team effort out there.”
Pens laid out a game-high 54 hits and 18 blocked shots. They also limited the Rangers to 24 shots.
What Up Igor
The Pens have scored 14 goals in the last two games against the Rangers. They scored 11 goals in their entire series against the Islanders last season. And doing it against the best goalie in the league this year as the Rangers pulled Igor Shesterkin in back-to-back games. Shesterkin was pulled twice all regular season due to ineffectiveness, allowed an NHL best average of 2.07 goals a game in the regular season and .935 save percentage. The Rangers allowed 204 goals all season, it’s got to feel like they’ve allowed that many in two games.
“We are competing hard at the net front,” Crosby said. “We have some great tips, sometimes those don’t always go in and fortunately for us they did tonight. Whether we are getting tips or second chances, guys are getting pucks through and then competing to get in front of the net.”
Pens veteran Jeff Carter echoed some of those comments saying the forwards are doing a great job batting for the area in front of the net. They are also simply just executing.
“I think the guys are playing hard,” Sullivan said. “This is a players’ game. These guys are on the same page. There is a commitment to play the game the right way, they are helping one another out there. We talk a lot about collective effort, that’s the team game we need to have. We need collective effort in three zones and we need it on both sides of the puck.”