Anti Niemi managed to shut out the Stanley Cup champs for 58 minutes & 28 seconds on their home ice, making several sparkling saves in the process, after Marian Hossa had put the hawks up 1-0 early in the first, however, a fortuitous bounce off of Madden or Keith on a point shot by Malkin, with the Fleury on the bench, went right to Jordan Staal, the extra attacker, and with Niemi out in his crease to play the original shot, Staal had essentially an open net to tie the game late & send it to OT.
In the 4 on 4 OT, the teams looked a bit tentative & perhaps tired, after entertaining their audience with an exciting and well played game that featured plenty of hitting, good scoring chances, excellent goaltending and a bit of a physical edge. The Pens seemed to lay back a bit more in OT than the hawks though, perhaps content that they had managed to tie it late & salvage a point, and the hawks took advantage, creating a couple of chances off of dangerous looking odd man rushes arising out of turnovers that finally paid off when Campbell picked the puck up after his initial shot was blocked, then moved in deep into the left corner, laying it in front of Fleury with Versteeg at his doorstep. Versteeg's first shot was stopped, but he managed to quickly pick up his own rebound & with his long stick move it away from Fleury & fire it into the opening before Fleury had a chance to react, to clinch a big win for the hawks.
While the hawks worked hard and played well, it was Niemi who was the story of the game, especially in the 2nd period which the pens controlled, outshooting the hawks 17 to 6 (and 33-31 on the game), even without Sydney Crosby, who sat out the game with a bad groin. Niemi was sharp from the start, making several big saves, and managing the puck well as the pens tested the rookie often and from everywhere on the ice.
He hasn't played many games compared to Huet so far, but when he is in the net, he seems to exude more confidence than the hawks #1, reading plays better and making quick and good decisions managing the puck in terms of where to steer rebounds out of danger areas or when to cover up at the end of a shift. If he continues to play this way, he is bound to see more action and may even challenge for the starting job, which may afford the hawks the opportunity to move Huet & his $5M+ cap hit after the season.
Niemi made a point blank save off of Kennedy in the 2nd, and a brilliant stop off Gonchar (who had hit the post earlier in the period) late in the second after the Pittsburgh dman moved in off the point, eluding Kane on a 4 on 4, to take a cross-ice pass and fire a point blank shot that Niemi managed to stop with his right leg pad. He made several good saves with his blocker, as well as his glove, stoning Malkin & Guerin in succession. Guerin perhaps frustrated, blasted one off Niemi's upper body late in the 1st to try to intimidate the hawk goalie, though he brushed it off with no noticeable ill effects. Niemi also caught some breaks with a couple shots ringing off the post behind him, and Staal just missing an open net earlier in the 3rd after being left unchecked in the slot.
The game started off with some big physical hits, with the pens clearly looking to get in on the hawks mobile defense and slow them down, not giving them a chance to activate their transition game. The pens registered 7 hits in the first two & a half minutes, but also took a couple of early penalties, with Orpik going off 33 seconds after the pens had killed off an interference penalty to Cooke.
Cooke on his return to the ice caught Keith with a high hit behind the hawk net on the hawks 2nd powerplay, and Keith didn't take long to retaliate, blindsiding Cooke with a high hit of his own on the same shift deep in the pens zone, that sent Cooke flying and negated the hawks' powerplay. Cooke pleaded his case for a major penalty for a clear hit to the head, however, Keith was assessed a minor for interference. Half a minute later on the 4 on 4, after Malkin had nailed Seabrook with a heavy hit in the hawk zone along the boards, the hawks managed to strike, with Hossa knocking down a high rebound from a Campbell shot from the left circle & firing the puck into the net behind Fleury before running into the crossbar & knocking the net off its moorings. 1-0 Chicago.
A few minutes later, the pens sent out their 4th line of Rupp, Goddard and former hawk Craig Adams against the hawks 4th line, with Sopel & Barker out as well. A scuffle ensued with Rupp going after Sopel, and drawing the extra minor with Eager also going off, however, the hawks again couldn't convert on the pp.
More hits ensued later in the period, with Orpik catching Toews with a high hit at center, though Toews appeared no worse for wear. In the second, former hawk Adams anticipating Campbell's spinorama move in his own zone, caught him as he turned his back towards him, sending Campbell flying. Late in the second, Malkin & Fraser got into it, with Malkin effectively pinning the hawk to the ice in a move that resembled a WWF position & cross-checking him while down. Both players received minor penalties. At the end of the second, the pens' Talbot went after Byfuglien who continued into the zone after the buzzer, but no harm was done. Regulation ended with more pushing & shoving in the pens corner, tho no penalties were assessed.
Hossa, who was booed by pens fans each time he touched the puck, played perhaps his best game as a hawk, being a physical presence as well as creating chances and also coming back hard on the back-check, stick-checking the puck away from a Pittsburgh player from behind in the neutral zone, and thereby thwarting a rush attempt. He also stripped the puck off Malkin in the neutral zone in the first, then promptly found a streaking Kane who had a partial break & forced Fleury to make a good glove save.
The other notable hawk UFA addition in the off-season, John Madden, also played a prominent role in the win, playing almost 19 minutes, virtually exclusively against Malkin, and going 7 for 12 in the faceoff circles against the pens' superstar, effectively limiting his chances, tho Madden did lose the late draw on the play the Pens scored. Nevertheless, Madden's veteran presence & experience was especially evident in the 2nd, during a particularly dominant shift by the pens where they controlled the puck & looked to have the hawks on the ropes, running around a bit. Madden eventually was able to gain control & help clear the zone, managing to carry the puck into the pens zone & force Fleury to freeze the puck for a faceoff, allowing the hawks to make a change, relieve some of the pressure and regain their composure.
Keith & Seabrook both played their season high in minutes, playing against Malkin virtually every time he was on the ice. Bryan Campbell & Hjalmarsson's minutes were accordingly cut back, though Campbell was key on both hawk goals, getting the primary assist on each, and made a couple of important defensive zone clears to ease the pressure, ending up with a +2 on the evening. Hjalmarsson played his usual reliable if unheralded game - in some respects the Swede may be the steadiest of all the hawks defensemen, considering he plays with Campbell, whose offensive forays & bias mean his defensive game clearly isn't as strong as Keith or Seabrook's.
Overall, the hawks responded well to this test against the Cup champs - not backing down when challenged physically, and coming through in the overtime after giving up the lead late. While the pens were missing Crosby and clearly not at full strength, especially considering how well Crosby has been playing of late, the pens clearly took this game seriously, giving it a playoff type feel.
The win takes away some of the bad taste left over from the hawks recent efforts, which seemed to lack energy & urgency. It was reminiscent of their win in Vancouver. They get a few days off before the Rangers come in to the UC next Wednesday.
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