PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – Pens licked their wounds following a blowout loss at Madison Square Garden with an 11-goal outburst against Detroit. Now another shot at the Rangers 96 hours after getting pounded in New York.
Tuesday night the third meeting of the season between the two teams fighting for second in the Metropolitan, still with division title dreams. Rangers with 42 wins and 89 points in 66 games. The Pens with 40 wins and 90 points in 67 games. Hurricanes lead the division with 95 points in 66 games.
Friday night was a game New York dominated from the drop of the puck scoring three goals in the first four minutes and an eventual 5-1 drubbing of the Pens at MSG. Rangers head coach Gerard Gallant said it was their most complete game, while Pens head coach Mike Sullivan and captain Sidney Crosby said they were simply and thoroughly outplayed. Evgeni Malkin missed the game due to illness.
1st game, 1-0 Pens (February 26)
Payback
"You are going to have your ups-and-downs," said Pens center Teddy Blueger. "The last game in New York was really bad. The next game against New York is going to be a big test for us to and how we respond against them. I think it's a good challenge. In a way it can be a good for us that we play them again so soon. We are fighting with them for a playoff spot and it's a big game for us."
Forward Bryan Rust said they want to build off the momentum from the win over Detroit. They will use the lessons from Friday night to improve this time.
"We got them coming in, that will be another big test," said forward Danton Heinen admitting they took the 5-1 loss personally. "We have to ramp up the intensity."
"They are a really fast team," Blueger said. "They got a lot of skill with a quick transition, really good off the rush. Especially the last game, they gave us a lot of trouble with that. Great goaltending, they defend hard. They are a hard team to play against. It's no secret why they are where they are in the standings and why they've been so good this year."
"We got to focus on ourselves. If we get the details right, we compete hard and play the right way. We will give ourselves a good chance to win."
Different Geno
Malkin already scored a gamer against the Rangers this year and comes in off a hat trick against the Red Wings. The 35-year-old center has 16 goals and 32 points in 30 games since opening his season in early January.
"He's been really good," Heinen said. "He's so fun to watch with unbelievable skill. It looks like he really wants the puck right now and it seems like he is making high-end plays every time he has it."
"When he's at his best, he's one of the few players that can take a game over," Sullivan said. "We are fortunate we have a couple of them on our team. He's a generational talent, as is Sid. Geno in my mind is one of the greatest players of all-time, not just of his generation. He's one of the greatest players of all-time."
"No one loves to score more than him. You can see his raw emotion when he scores. I think he gains so much confidence off his ability to generate offense and score goals. We are hopeful that he will just build more confidence and his game will continue to grow and improve. It will help us create the balance we need throughout our lineup. We are that much more dangerous when he is in our lineup."
They are also more dangerous with 22-goal scorer Bryan Rust on Malkin's right side.
"Been on his team, been with him a long time," Rust said. "Know how he plays, how he likes to play. We were able to build that chemistry, maybe took a game or so."
Malkin now finally has a pair of fast, hard-working, veteran wingers with newcomer Rickard Rakell promoted to his left wing and scored his first goal with the Pens on Sunday.
"I think Rakell is getting much more familiar with how we are trying to play," Sullivan said. "The more familiar he gets the less thinking he does and the more instinctive he can become. I think he's getting better with each game he plays and that's only going to help him moving forward."
The teams will meet one more time, April 7 in New York.
