The move by Bylsma to insert Godard in the line-up paid off immediately. Godard played along side Adams and Rupp on the 4th line, and assisted on the 1st goal of the game by Rupper. Immediately after, he fought Trevor Gillies on the centre ice face-off. Gillies won (sucks saying that), and I'm sure Godard would've liked a rematch...but Mission Accomplished. He took Gillies off the ice for 15 minutes. Not a peep from Turd Boy the rest of the game, who had only 2:09 TOI. He failed in his only responsibility as a player: injuring people. It's more likely we will never see this joke in an NHL game ever again. Gillies, FAIL.
Another FAIL: some impersonator named Haley. You may never hear his name again in a meaningful NHL game. Haley took a run at Deryk Engelland in the first, trying to take out his knees behind the Pens net. Engelland popped back up, and played the rest of the game unphased. Haley was not heard from again. Probably never will be.
Then there was Zenon Tonkaturd. Arron Asham took him off the ice for 17 minutes after their scrap. A pretty boring fight, and a draw by most people's standards. But again, Mission Accomplished. Tonkaturd had 3 times as much time in the box as he did on the ice. Bag your clubs, dick.
Comedic relief for the night: P.A. Parenteau took a high stick in the face in the 3rd. Legit call. The camera then zooms in on Parenturd as he's trying to pick a herpes scab off his lip as he argues with the ref for a double minor. Hilarious!
The only question left for Garth Snow and the Islanders:
Who will they try to cheap shot at the 1st tee box?
Other than John Tavares drawing a couple of penalties by giving himself whiplash, not too much more involving the side show. Actually, a pretty entertaining hockey game. 3-3 until the Shootout.
Kuni Mind Trick time...
Winner.
My 3 Stars of the Game:
#1 Mike Rupp - Rupper got an ugly, get-to-the-net goal to open the scoring. He then drove the net on the PP, providing a bit of a screen on Zby's PP tally. sidenote: Michalek looks very comfortable on the PP. Rupp also assisted on the 3rd and final goal of the game. 1 G, 1 A, +2, 3 shots in only 7:00 TOI. Impressive return.
#2 Mark Letestu - Got the go-ahead goal late in the 3rd. It didn't stand, but Test Tube was money again in the face-off circle.
#3 Eric Godard - just for a lack of other stand-out performances, and more of an appreciation for Godard, who realistically, may have played his last game as a Penguin. If he doesn't play in Atlanta this afternoon, I'm afraid we've seen the last of EG, who is a UFA at season's end. You can pretty much bet you won't see him in the playoffs. Yeah, the guy is an enforcer in most simplest terms, and that job isn't the most glorious. But his teammates love him, and from what we've heard around the city, a great guy off the ice who is always willing to lend a helping hand. Props to you, Mr. Godard. We hope you're back. His 1 A, +1, and elimination of Gillies also merits this #3.
So with the Flyers dropping an OT loss to Buffalo on Friday, the Pens still had a chance to finish atop the Atlantic, and get the #2 seed. That was squashed last night when Philly came back to beat your Isles. Figures...that would be the team we would rely on help from. Oh well. Bring on the Bolts. The NHL Network will have an announcement show tonight at 10:00 for the 1st round schedule.
Other Penguin notes:
- PK good.
- PP sucky.
- Fleury, beast.
- James Neal. WTF, dude?
- Today's game vs. Atlanta is meaningless. If you're a fan, you still watch.
The best time of the year starts this week. Let's go.
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