The Bruins will try to close out 2008 with their ninth straight win. The only thing standing in their way is the Pittsburgh Penguins, one of only a handful of teams to beat the B's this season.Just who are these Penguins that you speak of?
Pittsburgh Penguins 19-13-4; 42 pts (4th in Atlantic, 7th in East)
Leading Goal Scorers
Evgeni Malkin: 15 Goals (15-44-59)
Sidney Crosby : 15 Goals (15-34-49)
Goaltending
Marc-Andre Fleury: 20 GP 11-6-2; 2.85 GAA .909 Sv% 1 SO
Dany Sabourin: 16 GP 6-6-2; 2.55 GAA .908 Sv%
Sean Curry: 3 GP 2-1-0; 2.40 GAA .913 Sv%
Guys Who Like to Drop the Gloves
Eric Godard: 11 Fighting Majors
Paul Bissonnette: 2 Fighting Majors
'08-'09 Season Series
Bruins' record vs. Penguins this season: 0-0-1
10/25 vs. PIT 2-1 SO
Injury Report
Boston
LW Marco Sturm: IR (Knee)
D Andrew Ference: IR (Broken Tibia)
C Petteri Nokelainen: Out (Arm)
C Patrice Bergeron: Out (Concussion)
Pittsburgh
D Kristopher Letang: Day-to-Day (Lower Body)
C Michael Zigomanis: Out (Upper Body)
C Tyler Kennedy: IR (Knee)
D Sergei Gonchar: IR (Shoulder)
Notes:
- Hal "The Human Turnstile" Gill is scheduled to return to the lineup for the Pens after missing 10 games with a shoulder injury.
- When Jordan Staal steps on the ice, he will become the youngest player in NHL history to play in 200 regular season games (20 years, 111 days).
- Claude Julien had Milan Lucic and P.J. Axelsson swap lines in practice today. No word on whether or not Axelsson will be skating with the top line tomorrow night.
- The NHL wants Sidney Crosby to be the face of the league. There is only one problem: he is extremely unlikeable. Crosby can usually be seen with a slack-jawed look on his face, bitching to the officials. Then there was this little display of sportsmanship:
In case you haven't bought anything for #87 for the Holidays, I suggest a copy of The Code.
- The Pens special teams are the definition of average. Both their power play and penalty kill are ranked #15 in the NHL.
Today's Obligatory Embarrassing YouTube Fan Video