Kukla's Korner Hockey
Next entry: Scoring First
Previous entry: Joining The Video Club
Penguins Strength Is Up The Middle
by Paul on 05/20/08 at 07:20 AM ET
Comments (5)
from Scott Burnside of ESPN,
We haven’t seen a team boast this much world-class talent down the middle since maybe Joe Sakic and Peter Forsberg were in their prime in Colorado. Start with Crosby, who centers the Pens’ “1A” line. Then go to Malkin, who centers line “1B.” The Wings will have their hands full regardless of how good their defense is (and it’s plenty good). Crosby and Malkin have combined for 40 points in 14 postseason games, and Crosby will hit the finals tied with Zetterberg for the playoffs scoring lead. Almost lost in the shuffle is Pittsburgh third-line center Jordan Staal, who had a terrific series against Philadelphia (four goals).
more and Scott’s prediciton for the SCF…
Filed in: NHL Teams, Detroit Red Wings, Pittsburgh Penguins | KK Hockey | Permalink
Comments
I don’t get the arguments about Pittsburgh being so productive. Granted they have many great stars that have produced a lot of points, but look at who they’ve played: Ottawa, the absolute worst team to even make it into the playoffs, and had been imploding for months; New York, whose only concept of defense seemed to be “let Lunqvist handle it”; and Philadelphia, arguably much better than the other two, but still not top-caliber defensively, especially without their top defenseman, out with an injury.
Contrast this with Detroit’s production, just a shade under Pittsburgh’s, who played the following: Nashville, with the “hottest goaltender in the playoffs” going into the series and a very impressive defensive core; Colorado, with the “hottest goaltender in the playoffs” going into the series, but admittedly many injuries; and Dallas, with the “hottest goaltender in the playoffs going into the series” and a remarkable defensive core. And now who do they play? Oh yeah, Pittsburgh, with the “hottest goaltender in the playoffs”...I see a trend here.
Posted by BuzzFledderjohn on 05/20/08 at 09:55 AM ET
C’mon, you have to admit Scotty Blindside has a good point (other than the one on his head). The Wings only have Zetterberg, Datsyuk, Draper, Filppula, (hopefully) Franzen, Helm, and—in a pinch—Hudler or Cleary to choose from at center. Those guys suck!
Posted by YzermanZetterberg on 05/20/08 at 10:21 AM ET
The Wings take the edge or are equal in every matchup, except for the second line matchup. Even with Franzen back, on paper, you have to give the nod to the Pens second line. If they can exploit that, it will keep us on the stress train.
The hope would be that the massive disparity in the two defense corps would more than make up for their advantage with the second lines.
Posted by Nathan from Jonny Ericsson's ice cream truck on 05/20/08 at 10:28 AM ET
The hope would be that the massive disparity in the two defense corps would more than make up for their advantage with the second lines.
FYI, I’m a big Pens fan. I was thinking also about the disparity, on paper, between the two D-corps, but the Pens D-men have played surprisingly well throughout the playoffs, and guys that you wouldn’t expect to make timely plays have been doing so. Obviously, the Wings still have the edge defensively, but I think it may be a little closer than it looks on paper…
Posted by NHLJeff from Boston, MA on 05/20/08 at 01:30 PM ET
Add a Comment
Please limit embedded image or media size to 575 pixels wide.
Add your own avatar by joining Kukla's Korner, or logging in and uploading one in your member control panel.
Captchas bug you? Join KK or log in and you won't have to bother.
Most Recent Blog Posts
Niklas Kronwall Out After Knee On Knee Hit By Laraque
Brian Mullen’s Heart Still With The Rangers
Dealing With A Make-Shift Lineup
Sutter Trying To Find The Fire In The Flames
Cory Stillman Out With Knee Injury
What’s Troubling The Avalanche?
Rangers Need More Consistent Play
About KK Hockey
Paul Kukla founded Kukla’s Korner in 2005 and the site has since become the must-read site on the ‘net for all the latest happenings around the NHL.
From breaking news to in-depth stories around the league, KK Hockey is updated with fresh stories all day long and will bring you the latest news as quickly as possible.
Email Paul anytime at
Kukla’s Korner is always a free service for readers, but it costs some money to maintain. If you’re ever in a position to donate a few dollars to help out, we’d be very appreciative.
Hockey Links
Or, maybe even since Yzerman, Federov, and Larionov centered the Wings to 3 Cups.
Posted by BobS. on 05/20/08 at 08:53 AM ET