Way of the K

Update – the Pens have confirmed the recall and the demotion of Kennedy, and they have also sent down defenseman Alain Nasreddine, although he has until noon tomorrow to clear waivers.  These moves leave the Pens with 22 players filling 23 roster slots. 

The Times-Leader reports that the Penguins have called up right-handed defenseman Kris Letang from their affiliate Wilkes Barre-Scranton of the AHL.

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Last Place in the Atlantic was on the line… win and the Pens put themselves three up on New Jersey, lose and the Devils jumped the Pens, leaving the Pens in last by a point.

The Pens spotted the Devils two goals in the first, then clawed their way back with one in the 2nd and one in the third to tie it at 2-2, but allowed the deciding goal with five minutes to go in regulation on a 3 on 2 rush by the Devils after Georges Laraque sent a blind pass out from behind the Devils net – sending Jersey away as no Pen was near the pass. It didn’t matter that the tide in the game had turned towards Pittsburgh’s direction, one mistake was enough for the Devils to get the two points.

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Although the Rangers scored first, the Pens tied midway through on a goal by Sergei Gonchar. The Rangers got a late powerplay goal on the first half of a double-minor to Gary Roberts, for high sticking and roughing, for a 2-1 Rangers lead after one. The Pens PK, which had been stellar the previous 5-6 games, allowed two goals this night, going back up 3-1 after two. Both teams would add a goal in the third, including Mark Recchi’s 1st goal since opening night, but Lundqvist was stellar yet again, despite the Pens dominating play in the third.

Crosby extended his point streak to 15 games, extending his career long, and Malkin extended his to 9 games, including an 8 game assist streak.

Stats update, game 16 (Only Hall, Laraque & Talbot in plus territory, but Ruutu, Kennedy and Malone are now Even)
Name GP G A P +- PIM
Crosby 16 9 15 24 -2 16
Malkin 16 5 17 22 -1 14
Gonchar 16 3 11 14 -4 22
Sykora 16 7 5 12 -6 6
Talbot 16 4 4 8 +3 10
Whitney 12 3 3 6 -3 2
Recchi 16 2 5 7 -2 8
Roberts 15 1 6 7 -4 8
Malone 16 4 3 7 E 21
Hall 15 2 3 5 +1 9
Christensen 14 2 1 3 -6 2
Orpik 16 0 3 3 -3 4
Staal 16 1 1 2 -6 9
Laraque 8 0 2 2 +1 7
Armstrong 13 1 0 1 -5 4
Kennedy 6 1 0 1 E 2
Scuderi 16 0 1 1 -1 4
Sydor 16 0 1 1 -5 4
Ruutu 9 0 1 1 E 10
Eaton 16 0 1 1 -1 2
Nasreddine 4 0 0 0 -2 2
Fleury 11 0 0 0 — 0
Sabourin 8 0 0 0 — 0

It should be noted that the stats above reflect the correct scoring from the first Toronto game, where Recchi was given a phantom assist at the expense of Malkin. This scoring change was made after the game, and the official NHL stats have not been corrected. Emails to the NHL and ESPN.com that same night have not been answered. As of October 31, 2007, this error has still not been corrected.

The loss dropped the Pens record to 7-8-0-1 (W-L-OTL-SOL) on the season, and leaves them 4th in the Atlantic Division, still three points behind the Flyers, and only 1 point ahead of the Devils.

The Flyers scored 28 seconds into the first, and made it 2-0 about five minutes in en route to a 3-1 win over the Penguins. Ryan Malone redirected a Sidney Crosby shot into the net in the last minute of the first period to close within 2-1 on a delayed penalty call against the Flyers, but that was all the Pens sniffed, as goaltender Marty Biron was on his game. All four goals scored in the game featured the Pens top line of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Ryan Malone on the ice, leaving the trio each -2 for the night.

Crosby extended his point streak to 14 games, extending his career long, but the team’s power-play goal scored streak ended 14 games.

Stats update, game 15 (Only Hall, Laraque & Talbot in plus territory, but Ruutu, Kennedy and Malone are now Even)
Name GP G A P +- PIM
Crosby 15 9 14 23 -2 16
Malkin 15 5 16 21 -1 14
Gonchar 15 2 10 12 -4 20
Sykora 15 7 5 12 -5 6
Talbot 15 4 4 8 +3 8
Whitney 12 3 3 6 -3 2
Recchi 15 1 5 6 -2 8
Roberts 14 1 5 6 -4 2
Malone 15 4 3 7 E 19
Hall 14 2 3 5 +1 9
Christensen 13 2 1 3 -6 2
Orpik 15 0 3 3 -3 4
Staal 15 1 1 2 -5 9
Laraque 7 0 2 2 +1 7
Armstrong 12 1 0 1 -4 2
Kennedy 6 1 0 1 E 2
Scuderi 15 0 1 1 -1 4
Sydor 15 0 1 1 -4 4
Ruutu 9 0 1 1 E 10
Eaton 15 0 1 1 -1 2
Nasreddine 3 0 0 0 -1 2
Fleury 10 0 0 0 — 0
Sabourin 8 0 0 0 — 0

It should be noted that the stats above reflect the correct scoring from the first Toronto game, where Recchi was given a phantom assist at the expense of Malkin. This scoring change was made after the game, and the official NHL stats have not been corrected. Emails to the NHL and ESPN.com that same night have not been answered. As of October 31, 2007, this error has still not been corrected.

The loss dropped the Pens record to 7-7-0-1 (W-L-OTL-SOL) on the season, and leaves them 3rd in the Atlantic Division, now three points behind the Flyers.

Sidney Crosby scored a power-play tally in the 1st, and Adam Hall had a deflection off of a Brooks Orpik shot to go up 2-0 after one. Petr Sykora and Erik Christensen added tallies in the 2nd to go up 4-0 after two periods.

Crosby extended his point streak to 13 games, extending his career long, and the team extended its power-play goal scored streak to 14 games. (At least one PPG for in each game this season – NHL record is apparently 21 games).

Stats update, game 14 (Only Hall, Laraque, Malkin, Malone & Talbot in plus territory, but Ruutu, Kennedy, Scuderi, Nasreddine and Crosby are now Even)
Name GP G A P +- PIM
Crosby 14 9 13 22 E 16
Malkin 14 5 15 20 +1 14
Gonchar 14 2 10 12 -3 20
Sykora 14 7 5 12 -5 6
Talbot 14 4 4 8 +3 8
Whitney 12 3 3 6 -3 2
Recchi 14 1 5 6 -2 8
Roberts 13 1 5 6 -4 2
Malone 14 3 3 6 +2 19
Hall 13 2 3 5 +1 9
Christensen 12 2 1 3 -6 2
Orpik 14 0 3 3 -2 4
Staal 14 1 1 2 -5 9
Laraque 6 0 2 2 +1 7
Armstrong 12 1 0 1 -4 2
Kennedy 5 1 0 1 E 2
Scuderi 14 0 1 1 E 4
Sydor 14 0 1 1 -4 4
Ruutu 9 0 1 1 E 10
Eaton 14 0 1 1 -1 2
Nasreddine 2 0 0 0 E 2
Fleury 10 0 0 0 — 0
Sabourin 7 0 0 0 — 0

It should be noted that the stats above reflect the correct scoring from the first Toronto game, where Recchi was given a phantom assist at the expense of Malkin. This scoring change was made after the game, and the official NHL stats have not been corrected. Emails to the NHL and ESPN.com that same night have not been answered. As of October 31, 2007, this error has still not been corrected.

The win improved the Pens record to 7-6-0-1 (W-L-OTL-SOL) on the season, and leaves them 2nd in the Atlantic Division, one point behind the Flyers.

Ryan Malone scored a power-play tally in the 1st, and Tyler Kennedy scored is first career goal 1:48 into the 2nd period, but it would not be enough, as the Pens allowed a goal midway through the 2nd, and two more in the third as the Pens dropped a 3-2 contest at the Islanders.

Crosby extended his point streak to 12 games, extending his career long, and the team extended its power-play goal scored streak to 13 games. (At least one PPG for in each game this season – NHL record is apparently 21 games – it was errantly reported here as 14 in last game’s summary). The Pens went 1 for 2 on the night, but got few chances compared to the 6 the Islanders got.

Kennedy’s goal required a video review near two minutes later at the next whistle, as the referee initially waved it off thinking it hit the crossbar. His goal secured points for all position players except for Alain Nasreddine, who played his first game of the season tonight.

Stats update, game 13 (Only Malone & Talbot in plus territory, but Ruutu, Kennedy & Hall are now Even)
Name GP G A P +- PIM
Crosby 13 7 13 20 -2 16
Malkin 13 5 14 19 -1 14
Gonchar 13 2 9 11 -4 18
Sykora 13 6 4 10 -6 6
Whitney 12 3 3 6 -3 2
Recchi 13 1 5 6 -2 8
Roberts 12 1 5 6 -4 2
Talbot 13 4 2 6 +1 6
Malone 13 3 3 6 +1 19
Hall 12 1 3 4 E 9
Staal 13 1 1 2 -5 9
Christensen 11 1 1 2 -7 0
Armstrong 12 1 0 1 -4 2
Kennedy 4 1 0 1 E 2
Laraque 5 0 1 1 -1 5
Scuderi 13 0 1 1 -1 4
Sydor 13 0 1 1 -5 4
Ruutu 9 0 1 1 E 10
Orpik 13 0 1 1 -6 4
Eaton 13 0 1 1 -1 2
Nasreddine 1 0 0 0 -1 2
Fleury 10 0 0 0 — 0
Sabourin 6 0 0 0 — 0

It should be noted that the stats above reflect the correct scoring from the first Toronto game, where Recchi was given a phantom assist at the expense of Malkin. This scoring change was made after the game, and the official NHL stats have not been corrected. Emails to the NHL and ESPN.com that same night have not been answered. As of October 31, 2007, this error has still not been corrected.

The loss dropped the Pens record to 6-6-0-1 (W-L-OTL-SOL) on the season, and leaves them 2nd in the Atlantic Division, one point behind the Flyers.

Crosby had two goals as the Pens stormed out to a 2-0 lead after 1, but surrendered 3 goals in a span of 3:30 in midway through the 2nd, as the Pens dropped a 3-2 contest at Colorado.
Crosby extended his point streak to 11 games, besting his career long, and the team extended its power-play goal scored streak to 12 games. (At least one PPG for in each game this season – NHL record is apparently 14 games)

Stats update, game 11 (Only Malone, Talbot, & Hall in plus territory, but Ruutu, Laraque, Kennedy & Scuderi are now Even)
Name GP G A P +- PIM
Crosby 12 7 12 19 -2 12
Malkin 11 5 13 18 -1 10
Sykora 12 6 4 10 -5 6
Gonchar 12 2 9 11 -3 18
Whitney 12 3 3 6 -3 2
Recchi 12 1 5 6 -1 8
Roberts 11 1 4 5 -4 2
Talbot 12 4 1 5 +1 6
Malone 12 2 3 5 +1 17
Hall 11 1 3 4 +1 9
Staal 12 1 1 2 -4 9
Christensen 10 1 1 2 -6 0
Armstrong 12 1 0 1 -4 2
Laraque 4 0 1 1 E 5
Scuderi 12 0 1 1 E 4
Sydor 12 0 1 1 -4 4
Ruutu 9 0 1 1 E 10
Orpik 12 0 1 1 -6 4
Eaton 12 0 1 1 -1 2
Kennedy 3 0 0 0 E 2
Fleury 9 0 0 0 — 0
Sabourin 6 0 0 0 — 0

It should be noted that the stats above reflect the correct scoring from the first Toronto game, where Recchi was given a phantom assist at the expense of Malkin. This scoring change was made after the game, and the official NHL stats have not been corrected. Emails to the NHL and ESPN.com that same night have not been answered. As of October 31, 2007, this error has still not been corrected.

The loss dropped the Pens record to 6-5-0-1 (W-L-OTL-SOL) on the season, and leaves them 2nd in the Atlantic Division, one point behind the Flyers.

Crosby had a four-point night, while Malkin added two goals and an assist in a 4-2 win over the Minnesota Wild. It was a strong peformance by the line of Crosby-Malkin-Malone, netting three even strength goals, while the Pens added a power-play goal in their lone opportunity to do so, while killing off the two opportunities the Wild had. Crosby extended his point streak to 10 games, tying his career long, and the team extended its power-play goal scored streak to 11 games. (At least one PPG for in each game this season)

Stats update, game 11 (Only Malone, Talbot, Hall, & Scuderi in plus territory, but Malkin, Ruutu, Laraque and Kennedy are now Even)
Name GP G A P +- PIM
Malkin 11 5 12 17 E 10
Crosby 11 5 12 17 -2 10
Sykora 11 6 4 10 -5 6
Gonchar 11 2 7 9 -4 18
Whitney 11 3 3 6 -2 2
Recchi 11 1 5 6 -1 8
Roberts 10 1 4 5 -4 2
Talbot 11 4 1 5 +1 6
Malone 11 2 3 5 +2 17
Hall 10 1 3 4 +2 9
Staal 11 1 1 2 -4 7
Christensen 10 1 1 2 -6 0
Armstrong 11 1 0 1 -4 2
Laraque 4 0 1 1 E 5
Scuderi 11 0 1 1 +1 4
Sydor 11 0 1 1 -3 4
Ruutu 8 0 1 1 E 10
Orpik 11 0 1 1 -5 4
Kennedy 2 0 0 0 E 2
Eaton 11 0 0 0 -2 0
Fleury 9 0 0 0 — 0
Sabourin 5 0 0 0 — 0

It should be noted that the stats above reflect the correct scoring from the first Toronto game, where Recchi was given a phantom assist at the expense of Malkin. This scoring change was made after the game, and the official NHL stats have not been corrected. Emails to the NHL and ESPN.com that same night have not been answered. As of October 31, 2007, this error has still not been corrected.

The win improved the Pens record to 6-4-0-1 (W-L-OTL-SOL) on the season, and ensured they finished October above .500 for the month, finishing with 13 points in 11 games. Crosby and Malkin each have 17 points on the season, good for 4th on the league list with a game or two in hand on those in front of them. Zetterberg of Detroit leads with 22 in 13 games.

Marc-Andre Fleury of the Penguins pitched his first shutout of the season, 1-0, over the visiting Rangers in the first of eight meetings this season. The Pens lone goal came on the powerplay in the 2nd, by Evgeni Malkin off of a sick pass from Ryan Whitney (Note to Versus: his name is not Brian), following a cross-ice pass from Sidney Crosby. That would be all they would need this night as they shut down Jaromir Jagr once again. Fleury stopped 36 shots, and was named number 1 star.

Stats update, game 8 (Only Talbot, Hall, Scuderi & Ruutu in plus territory)
Name GP G A P +- PIM
Crosby 8 2 8 10 -4 6
Malkin 8 3 6 9 -3 4
Sykora 8 4 3 7 -1 8
Gonchar 8 1 5 6 -4 12
Roberts 8 1 4 5 -1 2
Talbot 8 4 1 5 +2 2
Recchi 8 1 4 5 -1 8
Whitney 8 2 2 4 -4 2
Hall 7 1 2 3 +2 0
Malone 8 2 1 3 E 15
Staal 8 1 1 2 -3 0
Christensen 7 1 1 2 -1 0
Armstrong 8 1 0 1 -2 2
Laraque 4 0 1 1 E 5
Scuderi 8 0 1 1 +1 2
Sydor 8 0 1 1 -1 4
Ruutu 6 0 1 1 +1 8
Orpik 8 0 1 1 -2 4
Eaton 8 0 0 0 E 0
Fleury 7 0 0 0 — 0
Sabourin 3 0 0 0 — 0

It should be noted that the stats above reflect the correct scoring from the first Toronto game, where Recchi was given a phantom assist at the expense of Malkin. This scoring change was made after the game, and the official NHL stats have not been corrected. Emails to the NHL and ESPN.com that same night have not been answered.

The win was the Pens third straight, and improved the Pens record to 5-3-0-0 for 10 points, and dropped the Rangers to 2-5-0-1 (W-L-OTL-SOL)

Although the Pens scored first, they found themselves down to the Maple Leafs 3-1 before they stormed back in the 2nd period to take a 4-3 lead, and added two more in the third period en route to a 6-4 win at the Air Canada Centre. The goals were from Erik Christensen (1st), Sidney Crosby (1st-2nd), Maxime Talbot (2nd-3rd) and Ryan Malone (2nd). Adam Hall and Evgeni Malkin each had two assists, while Sergei Gonchar, Darryl Sydor, Petr Sykora, Jordan Staal and Gary Roberts.

The NHL game stats inexplicably have credited Mark Recchi with the 2nd assist on the 5th Penguins goal, when the play went from Sidney Crosby to Evgeni Malkin, to Darryl Sydor, who shot it on goal, with Crosby with the tap in for the goal. While Recchi was on the ice, and was stationed in front of the net, he did not touch the puck, and even if he did, he would have had to have been the primary assist, not the 2nd assist. The NHL page took more than an hour after final buzzer to be marked “Final”; the play was originally correctly credited to Malkin, to which TSN followed for most of the night. But ESPN went with Recchi initially, and TSN later followed suit to the NHL page. Emails noting the error to NHL.com and ESPN.com have not been returned. At least the Penguins official recap by Joe Sager correctly has the assist assigned to Malkin.

Stats update, game 4 (Only Malone, Talbot & Hall in plus territory, at +1)
Name GP G A P +- PIM
Malkin 4 1 5 6 E 4
Sykora 4 2 2 4 E 0
Crosby 4 2 2 4 -3 4
Talbot 4 3 0 3 +1 2
Recchi 4 1 2 3 -1 2
Roberts 4 0 3 3 -2 0
Malone 4 2 0 2 +1 6
Christensen 4 1 1 2 -1 0
Hall 3 0 2 2 +1 0
Gonchar 4 0 2 2 -2 4
Armstrong 4 1 0 1 -2 2
Whitney 4 1 0 1 -2 2
Laraque 3 0 1 1 E 0
Scuderi 4 0 1 1 E 2
Staal 4 0 1 1 -1 0
Sydor 4 0 1 1 E 2
Orpik 4 0 0 0 E 2
Ruutu 2 0 0 0 E 2
Eaton 4 0 0 0 E 0
Fleury 4 0 0 0 — 0
Sabourin 2 0 0 0 — 0

The startling stats of the game: The Pens won 57% of the faceoffs, and the Pens had 52 shots.