Bruins-Penguins Preview
(Sports Network) - The sizzling Pittsburgh Penguins will shoot for a ninth straight victory when they welcome the Boston Bruins for today's Eastern Conference showdown at Consol Energy Center.
The Penguins are on a season-high winning streak, posting eight consecutive victories since a 6-2 setback in Buffalo on Feb. 19. It's the longest winning streak for Pittsburgh's since a 12-game tear from Nov. 17-Dec. 11 of last season.
The hot streak has helped Pittsburgh close the gap considerably in the race for the Atlantic Division title. The Pens are now just four points behind the first-place New York Rangers, who are playing tonight against the visiting Islanders.
Pittsburgh's latest victory came in a close decision Friday against the visiting Florida Panthers. The Pens tied the game at 1-1 on a goal by Steve Sullivan early in the third period and James Neal eventually won the contest in the shootout.
Neal began the shootout with a tally against Jose Theodore and Evgeni Malkin backed it up with a goal on his chance. Marc-Andre Fleury stopped Wojtek Wolski and Mikael Samuelsson's shot sailed wide of the net to end the game.
"We do a good job of not panicking on the bench, staying level-headed and focusing on the task at hand," Neal said about his team's ability to come back in games.
Fleury finished with 28 saves for the Penguins, who have won six in a row on home ice and are 23-8-2 in the Steel City this season. Today's game marks the end of a four-game homestand for Pittsburgh, which will play its next three games on the road, beginning with Thursday's game against the rival Rangers.
Malkin has gone the last two games without a point, marking the first time he's been held off the scoresheet in two straight games since Dec. 31 and Jan. 2. With 81 points, the Russian star is trailing Tampa's Steven Stamkos by one point for the NHL scoring lead.
Pittsburgh won't have captain Sidney Crosby today, but the star forward is nearing a return from his head and neck injuries. It's possible that he could play Thursday against New York.
Crosby, who was cleared for contact recently, has been limited to just eight games of action since suffering a concussion in January of 2010. He made a brief return in late November before again experiencing concussion symptoms. The center was also diagnosed with a soft tissue injury in his neck this past January, but resumed skating with the team in February.
Boston, which is two points ahead of Ottawa for the Northeast Division lead, will try to bounce back from Saturday's close loss to visiting Washington.
Although Boston fought back from a two-goal deficit to tie the Capitals at 2-2 early in the second period, the Bruins were unable to gain a point in the a 4-3 regulation loss. The Bruins had won two in a row before the loss to Washington, but were denied in their pursuit for their first three-game winning streak since late December.
Brad Marchand had a goal and an assist and Johnny Boychuk and Milan Lucic each lit the lamp for the Bruins. Tim Thomas was tagged with all four goals on 30 shots in the loss.
"It's tough to play catch-up hockey in this league," said Boston head coach Claude Julien. "That's what we've been having to do a lot of lately."
Boston played Saturday without defenseman Andrew Ference (lower body) and forward Daniel Paille (left arm). Both players are questionable for today.
This afternoon's test marks the start of a three-game road trip for the Bruins, who boast a solid 20-11-1 record as the guest. All told, Boston will play six of its next eight games away from Beantown.
The Bruins and Pens have split a pair of meetings this year with each club winning on the road. Pittsburgh has taken three of four and six of nine overall in this series and Boston has claimed three straight in the Steel City.
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