Pittsburgh (5-2-1) at NY Rangers (7-2-1), 7:00 pm EDT
NEW YORK (Ticker) -- Thanks to the abilities of captain Sidney
Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, the Pittsburgh Penguins have developed
the reputation as an explosive offensive club. That, however,
hasn't been their best trait lately.
Yielding just one goal in each of their last three games, the
Penguins hope to continue their stellar defensive play when
visit the New York Rangers on Saturday.
Crosby started slowly this season, failing to score a goal in
Pittsburgh's first five contests. The talented superstar has
come on of late with two tallies in the last three games -
including his 100th career tally on Thursday.
For his part, Malkin has been effective all season and leads the
league with 13 points.
Playing without star blue-liner Sergei Gonchar, Pittsburgh is
coming off a 4-1 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes on
Thursday. The Penguins also notched a 2-1 triumph over the
Boston Bruins on Monday and a 4-1 victory over the Toronto Maple
Leafs last Saturday.
Meanwhile, New York had suffered from a mild two-game losing
streak this week before bouncing back with a strong effort on
Friday. Nikolai Zherdev registered one goal and two assists and
Henrik Lundqvist made 25 saves as the Rangers cruised to a 3-1
victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets.
This game marks the first matchup between the two Eastern
Conference juggernauts since the Penguins eliminated the Rangers
in the Eastern Conference semifinals last season.