The Daily Bongo

November 2010


Monday, November 29, 2010 -- Evening

Pens Continue Winning Ways
The Pens were in New York to play the Rangers this evening. Marc-Andre Fleury was in goal, and he was playing well again this evening. Max Talbot got the first goal with an assist by Pascal Dupuis. Kris Letang and Chris Conner added goals to the Pens tally in the second period. Unfortunately, as the second period was ending, Marian Gaborik got a goal for the Rangers. Those were the only goals in the game. The Pens held off an attack from the Rangers late in the third period to win with a final score of 3-1.

Saturday, November 27, 2010 -- Afternoon

Pens versus Flames
The Pens game this afternoon was against the Calgary Flames. Marc-Andre Fleury sat out the game, and Brent Johnson was in goal. Sidney Crosby had an unsuccessful penalty shot four minutes after the start of the game. The Pens had 24 shots, unsuccessful shots, on goal in the first period. Mikka Kiprusoff, the Flames' goalie, was on his game. Aaron Asham scored first for the Pens. After that, Sidney Crosby went on a scoring binge, getting a natural hat trick with an open goal for the third goal. The Pens won with a final score of 4-1.

Friday, November 26, 2010 -- Evening

Another Win!
The Pens played an early afternoon game against the Ottawa Senators. I was only able to catch bits and pieces of it because I wasn't home for most the day. Marc-Andre Fleury was back in goal, and again, he did a stellar job. The Pens won with a final score of 2-1 with goals by Evgeni Malkin and Alex Goligoski. There's another game tomorrow at 1:00 p.m., and I hope to actually watch that game.

Wednesday, November 24, 2010 -- Evening

Fleury Gets a Shutout
The dads got to watch another game for the Pens Dads' Trip. Tonight, the Pens were in Buffalo to play the Sabres. Marc-Andre Fleury was back in goal. Ever since Sidney Crosby came out in defense of playing Fleury, George McFly has played Fleury. And Fleury has not disappointed, making several nice saves each game. Halfway through the first period, Pascal Dupuis scored off a Crosby assist. Fortunately, or unfortunately, that was the only goal of the game. Fortunately, the Pens won, and Fleury got his 17th career shutout and number 1 star of the game; unfortunately, the game was a boring one. Pens win with a score of 1-0.

Monday, November 22, 2010 -- Evening

Dads' Trip
The dads were on hand for tonight's Pens game against the Florida Panthers. Ray Shero has made the Dads' Trip an annual event for the Pens. Basically the fathers get to go along, watch practice, watch the game, and hang out with their sons. There are other activities too, like golfing, and it seems like a fun time is had by all. Marc-Andre Fleury was back in goal because he is the hot goalie now. The Pens got goals from Kris Letang and Sidney Crosby in the first period. The Panthers tied things up in the second period. Fortunately, Chris Conner got the go-ahead goal in the third period to give the Pens the win. Final score: Pens 3 - Panthers 2.

Friday, November 19, 2010 -- Evening

Shootout Win!
The Pens have been busy over the past week and a half. Tonight, they were playing the Carolina Hurricanes. The Hurricanes scored first on their first shot. I'm sure that it started people wondering about Marc-Andre Fleury in goal. Then Chris Kunitz and Tyler Kennedy got goals for the Pens to get the lead. Unfortunately, the Hurricanes came back to score another in the first to tie things up. Sidney Crosby got into the act with a goal in the second period to give the Pens the lead again. Unfortunately, the Hurricanes tied things up again. In the third period, Kunitz got a goal that had to be reviewed by Toronto. It looks like the puck might have crossed the line, obstructed by the goalie's pads, and the whistle blew. The question was, when did the puck cross and the whistle blew? Bob Errey thought it would not be a goal, but Toronto called it as a goal. With less than a minute left in regulation, the Hurricanes pulled their goalie and scored the tying goal. The game went into overtime. Overtime went by without a score, and so we had a shootout. The Hurricanes wanted the ice cleaned for Jussi Jokinen. Up first was Kris Letang for the Pens. Letang went slow, but pulled some fancy moves, and he scored. Next was Jeff Skinner for the Hurricanes. Skinner missed the net. Next up was Sidney Crosby. Crosby scored! Next was Jokinen. Fleury stopped him, and the Pens won! Final score: Pens 5 - Hurricanes 4.
Warm-up at Console Energy Center with Pens and Canucks

Wednesday, November 17, 2010 -- Evening

Pens and Fleury on a Hot Streak
The Vancouver Canucks were in town to play the Pens tonight. Marc-Andre was back in goal, and he played a stellar game. The first goal came when Sidney Crosby came out of the penalty, grabbed the puck, and scored a goal on a breakaway. Max Talbot got a short handed goal and Arron Asham got a goal in the second to give the Pens a 3-0 lead. The Canucks were able to score one goal in the second period, but the Pens held the Canucks scoreless in the third period. Fleury got the number one star in the game and validated Crosby's faith in him. I think that George McFly should be eating crow right now. Final score: Pens 3 - Canucks 1. I went to tonight's game, and I took a few pictures.

Monday, November 15, 2010 -- Evening

Another Solid Game from Fleury
The Pens were back in action tonight against the New York Rangers. Marc-Andre Fleury was in goal, and he gave a very solid performance. Erik Christensen got a goal in the second period when Fleury was heavily screened. Henrik Lundqvist was also solid in goal, and it wasn't until the last three minutes of the third period that the Pens scored with a goal by Chris Kunitz. Then 38 seconds later, Matt Cooke scored the go-ahead goal for the Pens. Lundqvist broke his stick in frustration by whacking it at the top of the net. Then Lundqvist threw the stick on the ice, which resulted in a penalty. The Rangers were short handed. With 1:26 left, Marc Staal scored a short-handed goal to tie the game. Regulation ended in a 2-2- tie. Unfortunately, the Rangers scored in the overtime period. It was a solid performance by Fleury, and he is showing George McFly that if Fleury gets to play, he will be better. Final score: Pens 2 - Rangers 3.

Saturday, November 13, 2010 -- Evening

Pens Back in Action
The Pens played in a back-to-back game tonight against the Atlanta Thrashers. Marc-Andre Fleury was back in goal for the Pens. The Thrashers scored the only goal in the first period, and that really brought out the anger in Fleury, who whacked his stick against the net. Fortunately, Evgeni Malkin scored in the second period to tie things up. Sidney Crosby got a goal at the start of the third period to give the Pens the lead. Then a bit after a minute later, Malkin got his second goal of the game. Unfortunately, the Thrashers got a goal to pull within one of the Pens. The Thrashers pulled their goalie in the last two minutes of the game, and Malkin got an empty net goal to give Malkin his sixth career hat trick. The Pens won by a final score of 4-2. Fleury had a really solid night in goal. He's obviously back on his game.

Friday, November 12, 2010 -- Evening

Fleury Gets a Win at Console!
The Pens played the Tampa Bay Lightning at Console Energy this evening. The big news was that Marc-Andre Fleury was in goal for the Pens, and right before the National Anthem, the fans started a loud Fleury chant to show their support of the goalie. Fleury made some really good saves in the first period. Kris Letang gave Fleury a pat on the head and a hug afterwards. i think the players might be making a statement that they are supporting Fleury over George McFly (Bylsma). There were no goals in the first period, but Pascal Dupuis and Alex Goligoski both got goals in the second period. The question became whether the Pens would continue to play in the third period. Almost midway through the third period, the Lightning had a 5-3 power play, and Steven Stamkos took advantage to make a goal. Fleury was under attack by the Lightning, but he made some very nice saves. Max Talbot, being the clutch player that he is, scored a goal to give the Pens a two point buffer. Then with only 3:16 left in the game, Sidney Crosby fired a rocket at Mike Smith to give the Pens a 4-1 lead. Then Derrick Engelland scored his fist NHL goal for the Pens. The Pens won with a final score of 5-1. The fans were going wild in the final seconds of the game, chanting Fleury's name. Fleury tapped his stick on the ice to acknowledge the chants. This was Fleury's first regular season win at Console, and his 150th career win. Fleury also got the number one star of the game. Way to go, Marc-Andre! You show George McFly what an idiot he is!

Wednesday, November 10, 2010 -- Evening

Pens Back Home
The Pens were back in town after their road trip, and they were up against the Boston Bruins. Tim Thomas has been hot in goal this season and was undefeated in seven games. Brent Johnson was in goal for the Pens. The Pens scored first with a goal by Aaron Asham with an assist by Evgeni Malkin. The Bruins got two back in return, the first a power play goal by Mark Recchi. Brooks Orpik tied things up at the end of the first period. Chris Kunitz got a goal towards the end of the second period to give the Pens a 3-2 lead. The lead was lengthened when Sidney Crosby shot the puck at the net, to only have the puck go off the stick of Bruin, Mark Stuart. The puck then went five hole on Thomas', which really ticked Thomas off, causing him to whack his stick off the ice in anger. At the beginning of the third period, the Bruins got two goals in less than a minute to tie things up. Then another two quick, soft goals, gave the Bruins a 6-4 lead. Finally with 1:17 left in the game, the Pens pulled Johnson to give the Pens an extra man advantage. But the Bruins scored an empty net goal to score five goals in the third period. The Pens lose with a final score of 7-4. Mark Recchi, old man that he is, was player of the game.
Crosby Defends Fleury
Interesting story from the Pens today. Sidney Crosby spoke out in support of Marc-Andre Fleury. Dan Bylsma, aka George McFly, has been making comments that Fleury doesn't have confidence and also has "unsatisfactory practice habits and focus." Crosby's comments:

"He (Fleury)'s going to have good games. It's not like he can change overnight. He's going to put strings of games together, and he can't do that with one game. So, you've got to be patient, too, and let him get back there. With a goalie, you've got to give him time. He's got to play four or five games maybe to prove that, but to sit here and question his psyche doesn't really give him a chance."

This is the first time that Crosby has spoken out against a coach, and I'm sure that it doesn't look very promising for McFly if the Pens don't start performing up to snuff.

Saturday, November 6, 2010 -- Evening

Finally a Win
The Pens were up against the Phoenix Coyotes this evening. Both teams played last night, so they were in the same state of tiredness, although the Coyotes had the advantage of being at home. Marc-Andre Fleury was in goal again tonight. The Coyotes scored first, and then there was a fluke goal. One of the Coyotes crashed the net, knocking it off its moorings, and a ref called a tripping against the Pens. The refs reviewed the play, and decided that right as the guy crashed the net, the puck crossed the line, so it was called a goal, but it was really not conclusive. Bob Errey said that it was a confusing call because he thought that it should not have been called a goal. The bad thing was that George McFly pulled Fleury and put in Brent Johnson. All I know is that the Pens in general have been playing poorly, and Fleury got the wrong end of the stick by pulling him over this bogus goal. I think that the Pens woes are due to the poor coaching of George McFly. The question is how long will he be allowed to muck up the team? In the second period, both Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin were able to get goals to tie the game. The Coyotes got another goal in the second period, but in the last minute of the second, Chris Kunitz got a goal for the Pens to tie things up again. The game ended in a tie in regulation and went on to overtime. No goals in overtime, so we had a shootout. For the Pens, it was Crosby, Kris Letang, and Mark Letestu. Jason Labarbera was stopped by Johnson. Then Ilya Bryzgalov stopped Crosby. Wojtek Wolski was stopped by Johnson. Next up was Letang, and he wasn't able to get it past Bryzgalov, even though he tried several fancy moves. Lauri Korpikoski couldn't get it on goal. Letestu then had his chance, and he scored by going through the five hole. The Pens won with a final score of 4-3.

Saturday, November 6, 2010 -- Morning

Pens Lose Again
The Pens played the Anaheim Ducks later last night, and it wasn't a good one. Marc-Andre Fleury was in goal, and he did a decent job except for the three goals that he left in within seven minutes of each other in the second period. He did make some good saves in the third period to keep the Pens in the hunt. Sidney Crosby showed up for the game and made two goals. I say that because Crosby hasn't been performing well so far this season. The final score was Ducks 3 - Pens 2. The West Coast trip continues with a match against the Phoenix Coyotes tonight.

Wednesday, November 3, 2010 -- Evening

West Coast Trip
The Pens were in Dallas tonight to play the Stars. Brent Johnson was in goal, and quickly gave up 2 goals in the first eight minutes of the game. It wasn't until the second period when Tyler Kennedy and Max Talbot joined up to give the Pens a goal. But then a few minutes later, the Stars got another to take a 3-1 lead, and then Loui Eriksson got a goal on a penalty shot. By then the second period was half way over. The Pens were frustrated at losing and at the Stars for being rough on Evgeni Malkin. The gloves started to drop in numerous fights. First up was Kris Letang, which was really a stupid move on his part because he has an injured right hand, and shouldn't be hitting anyone with the hand. Then at the drop of the next puck, Sidney Crosby, yes Crosby, dropped the gloves against Matt Niskanen. When the play continued, Chris Kunitz got into some fisticuffs. Brent Johnson let in another goal starting the third period to give the Stars a 5-1 lead. The game was a sad display. Even though Johnson had played well in other games, he was mediocre tonight, and the stars on the Pens also did their usual mediocre jobs. Malkin and Crosby have not been performing up to expectations. At least, that's my opinion. The Pens did get one more goal in the third, but it was four less than then needed. The Stars won with a final score of 5-2.