PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Saturday, April 26, 2008
The Penguins' Evgeni Malkin celebrates his game-winning goal in front of Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist late in the third period Friday, April 25, at Mellon Arena.
Christopher Horner/Tribune-Review
The occasion was such that on the eve of the NFL Draft, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin was among those filling the seats at Mellon Arena.
Tomlin didn't participate in the first-of-its-kind "Whiteout," but he kept his give-away T-shirt draped over his shoulder (perhaps trying to capture the spirit of the thing), even while signing a few autographs between periods.
The first round of the draft, apparently, could wait.
This was Penguins--Rangers.
Game 1 of what's anticipated to be a six- or seven-game struggle, one that might decide Eastern Conference supremacy, confirmed that the NHL's postseason has moved beyond the point where participation by the likes of the Ottawa Senators is permitted.
The Penguins somehow won it, 5-4.
Five or six more games of this will be as difficult to decide as they promise to be breath-taking in nature.
A shot by the Rangers' Chris Drury gets past Penguins goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury during the second period Friday, April 25, at Mellon Arena.
Christopher Horner/Tribune-Review
The talent amassed on both benches was such that the Rangers deployed forwards Brendan Shanahan, Scott Gomez and Chris Drury on their power-play unit -- their second power-play unit.
The Blueshirts' first unit was as familiar as it was lethal at 13:40 of the first period -- Martin Straka scoring off assists from Jaromir Jagr and Michal Rozsival.
The goal also was as playoff-ugly as they come -- Straka's centering feed deflected off the skate of Penguins defenseman Sergei Gonchar and past goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury -- and a reminder that such grandiose matchups aren't above being influenced by a deflection or a bounce.
The Rangers got another such fluke from Drury; the Pens got a Jarkko Ruutu ricochet off Rozsival.
Ruutu's gift sparked a two-goals-in-14-seconds uprising by the Pens.
A similar such outburst, third-period goals 20 seconds apart by Marian Hossa and Petr Sykora, confirmed that these Penguins have indeed evolved to the point where they don't fall apart when faced with a little adversity (a 3-0 deficit perhaps qualifies as more than "a little adversity," but you get the idea).
Penguins' Petr Sykora buries the puck behind Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundquist in the third period of game 1 Friday, April 25, at Mellon Arena.
Chaz Palla/Tribune-Review
The Rangers, likewise, are a serious enough bunch that they can hemorrhage a 3-0 lead and keep coming.
The skill was apparent, the grit everywhere.
It was one of those nights when neither team blinked. Not the Pens after they had allowed their third-period lead to dissipate, and not the Rangers after Straka was whistled for interference with 3:20 left in regulation.
Well, not until Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin helped untie it once and for all on the Penguins' first power-play goal of the evening and the only one they would need at 18:19 of the third.
The goal, initially credited to Crosby, had to withstand a replay review (as did Drury's near high-stick tip in the second) before being confirmed.
It was eventually deemed to have gone in off Malkin's knee or shin (the ever-popular lower-body game-winner), making the goal as appropriate as it was lustily celebrated inside and outside of Mellon Arena.
The Penguins' Sidney Crosby watches as New York goaltender Henrik Lundqvist can't stop a goal by Marian Hossa during the third period Friday, April 25, at Mellon Arena.
Christopher Horner/Tribune-Review
And still, the Rangers weren't officially finished until Gomez deflected a Jagr pass off the goalpost with 14.2 seconds remaining.
It's only the second round, but this is a whole new ballgame, one as compelling as it promises to be fiercely contested.
Tomlin won't be here Sunday afternoon; he has a prior commitment.
Is there any doubt he'll have a TV turned on in the "war room?"
Mike Prisuta is a columnist for the Tribune-Review. He can be reached at mprisuta@tribweb.com or 412-320-7923.
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