Penguins

The kids are alright.

"Who dat?" will be the rallying cry of Saints fans during the Super Bowl tomorrow night.

This afternoon, at the Bell Centre, Canadiens fans were wondering "Who dey?"

Three emergency call-ups from Hamilton – Ryan White, Brock Trotter and David Desharnais – formed the best fourth line the Canadiens have had this season.

I know: That isn't saying much.

But suffice it to say the youngsters did a lot more skating and hitting than we'd seen from Georges Laraque in two years.

Did anyone see this coming?

That's why they play the games.

No cigars for 41 shots against

Surprised?

C'mon.

Crosby, Malkin, Staal and – despite the absence of Chris Kunitz and Tyler Kennedy – a supporting cast of big, hard-hitting forwards against an undermanned team with an undersized defence.

The stat that caught my eye: 45 hits by the Penguins. That's a high against the Canadiens this season. Michael Rupp had nine.

Earlier this season, in a game the Penguins won 6-1, they had 16 hits.

This time around, the Pittsburgh pro scouts told Dan Bylsma what works aganst the Canadiens:

Hit them, hard and often. Don't give them the time and space to get their skating game going. Wear down the Montreal Bulldogs, playing their second game in as many nights.

So the game unfolded the way Bylsma drew it up:

When Bill Guerin goes into the corner with Josh Gorges, Pittsburgh gets the puck.

When Rupp hits Roman Hamrlik, the pillar of the Canadiens' D feels it, and gets sorer as the game wears on.

And thanks to Max Pacioretty, they weren't shut out in what was probably their last visit to Mellon Arena.

Shots were 30-19.

As bad as Vancouver?

The Canadiens had 28 shots against the Canucks but only 24 in Pittsburgh.

Henrik Sedin had two goals, his brother three assists.

Sidney Crosby had a hat trick and might have had five. His brothers-in-arms, Bill Guerin and Chris Kunitz, each had three assists ... and Kunitz added a late goal.

Not to put too fine a point on it, the Canadiens came up empty against quality opposition in both games.

With the exception of an OT win against the Rangers – who may be in the process of plummeting back to earth – the Canadiens haven't taken a point against an upper-bracket team this season.

Ominous?

Well, it's still early. 

And does any person not watching the game at the Douglas Hospital think the Canadiens are as good as Pittsburgh?

Jaroslav Halak starts his fifth in a row tonight at the Igloo.

Pat Hickey also reports Scott Gomez did not participate in morning skate.

He's at the team's hotel with flu-like symptoms.

Uh-oh.

The lines at morning skate:

Cammalleri-Plekanec-Gionta
Latendresse-Metropolit-D'Agostini
Kostitsyn-Lapierre-Stewart
Pacioretty-Chipchura-Moen 

AUDIO: Jacques Martin | Hal Gill | Marc-André Fleury | Kris Letang

After playing five pre-season games in five nights, the Canadiens get a well-deserved day off on Tuesday before the serious work begins.

The scrubeenies have been cut out of the herd. 

Tomorrow morning, they're off to Scotland, where the Hamilton Bulldogs – including late cuts Shawn Belle and Eric Neilson – will train and play.

Then it's two practices and two more pre-season games, against Boston at the Bell Centre on Thursday and Buffalo on Saturday.

"We'll work on systems and habits," said Jacques Martin, after the Canadiens played a spectacular third period, scoring three times to beat the Stanley Cup champions 4-3.

"Sometimes," Martin added, "it takes time to change things."

The big change last night was an accident.

After Max Pacioretty sustained an "upper-body injury" at the end of the second period, Martin juggled his lines.

Mike Cammalleri took Max-Pac's place on a line with Scott Gomez and Brian Gionta.

Gomez scored shorthanded early in the period. Gionta cashed a pass from Cammalleri.

It was magic ... and the crowd loved the combination of three fast, skilled forwards.

AUDIO: Mike Cammalleri  Carey Price  Scott Gomez  Jacques Martin

As previously announced, you guys are on your own for the climactic game of a very long hockey season.

My dear friend, the beautiful barrister, is singing Tosca at La Scala tonight, and I'm on a 9 a.m. flight to Milan. Should make it just in time for the curtain to rise ... just as the curtain falls on hockey for 2008-'09.

In the immortal words of the Grateful Dead, what a long strange trip it's been.

I'd review the Canadiens' season, but would rather save my tears for Puccini.

As a special treat for Habs Inside/Out readers, the Living Legend of Sports Journalism is handling the live blog tonight:

Pre-game: That rocket's red glare song sounds familiar. I think they used to sing it at the Olympia.

1P 20:00: Come with me now to the anxious moments before Game 6 of the 1958 final ...

Just kidding. Red Fisher will be home watching the game ... like everyone except me.

Enjoy it and post lots of Comments.

Game 7 at the Joe on Friday.

Tyler Kennedy, of all people, scores the winner in a 2-1 thriller. 

Superb efforts by Jordan Staal, Marc-André Fleury, Rob Scuderi 

I went out to a bar when it was 5-0 after two.

Total domination by the Wings.

I just want this to end in six because I have something on Friday night.

And the Penguins are looking awfully darn good.

They took control in the second period, played textbook lead protection in the third and now it's best of three. 

In the third game in four nights, the young Penguins own the third period with a 10-3 shot advantage.

They keep the puck in the Detroit zone for 1:25 on a PP before Sergei Gonchar scores the winner.

Max Talbot, who played his usual energetic game, scored an empty-netter to make it 4-2. 

On 32 occasions, teams have taken 2-0 leads in the Stanley Cup finals.

They've won it all 31 times.

Pittsburgh has a HUGE mountain to climb.

And who the heck is Justin Abdelkader? 

 

Justin Abdelkader scores the insurance goal early in the third period, caping a 3-1 win.

Pretty decent game .... although Detroit was in complete control once they got the two-goal lead.

They'll be at it again tomorrow at 8 p.m. 

Our friend Steve Kerley, who kindly supplied scouting reports and asute analyses all through the season, weighs in look at the final weighs in with a look at the final.

I really don’t care who wins the Cup once the Habs are out but I would
imagine that most hockey fans are picking the Wings to win it all this
year.  I still feel it will be a close series and the Pens just might
win it due to the following factors:

This is how much the NHL cares about its players:

The league's showcase series begins with exhausting, injury-risking back-to-back games.

The Penguins and Red Wings begin the Stanley Cup final Saturday night at 8 in Detroit. Game 2 will be played on Sunday, time to be determined.

The series resumes in Pitsburgh on Tuesday and Thursday.

Game 5, if necessary, will be in Detroit on Saturday, June 6. A Game 6 would be in Pittsburgh on Tuesday, June 9.

If a Game 7 is necessary, it will be played in Detroit on Friday, June 12.

All games are on the CBC. Games 1, 2 and 5 through 7, if necessary, are on NBC in the U.S., with Games 3 and 4 on Versus.

Pittsburgh returns to the finals.

Different this year?

Marc-André Fleury is on fire.

And Dan Bylsma is a MUCH better coach than "Mike" Therrien. 

No live blog tonight.

I'm in the Eastern Townships, attending the wedding of my good friend Mike Hockey, Pat's younger brother.

Should be a good game. But if Geno stays on, the series is over.

Feel free to rant. I'll try to catch up with Comments when I get back tonight.

A superstar takes over ...

Carolina gets a late power-play goal by Joe Corvo to set up a frantic final minute.

But Marc-André Fleury is great late, and the Penguins hang on to win 3-2.

First blood in a series that may have a lot of bleeding. 

What a downer!

Marc-André Fleury stopped Alexander Ovechkin ewarly and Pittsburgh took over.

Total domination.

How dominant?

Six goals, 18 hits, forced 19 giveaways ... and NO PENALTIES. 

Props to Dan Bylsma for having his team ready to play a great game.

And in the Clash of the Titans, Round 1 to Sidney Crosby. 

Will the early game be another classic?

 I can't imagine anything better than Game 5 in Washington. And I think the Penguins are going to stomp them tonight.

I also think my man Gino is about to take over the series.

We'll run this the same as last night. I'll throw up a few Comments and everyone can join in.

I'm thinking of reviving the live-blog format for the final series.

Jacques Lemaire, anyone?

Out in Minnesota.

In in Montreal?

But not in time for the playoffs.

By losing rather ignominiously last night, the Canadiens ensured that the Rite of Spring will unfold, just as it did last season and 30 times before: Montreal vs. Boston.

The roles are reversed this time. Your Montreal Canadiens open the playoffs as the Eastern Conference's eighth seed and the Bruins are first.

A year ago,  Boston dropped the first two games at the Bell Centre. The Canadiens then got a split at the TD Banknorth Garden and led the series 3-1 before the Bruins rallied to make it interesting ... so interesting that Carey Price had to pitch a seventh-game shutout to get the Canadiens into the semi-finals.

Will the eighth-place team make it interesting this spring?

Off what we saw last night, No.

But maybe the last game of the regular season was not a valid indicator of what's to be expected when the playoffs begin on Thursday evening.

The Canadiens end their season taking one of a possible eight points.

Bog Gainey said a "lack of sharpness" was dterimental in the face of Pittsburgh's speed and the Penguins' commitment to improving their playoff position.

Result: a 3-1 loss, eighth place and a resumption of the annual rite of spring: Canadiens vs. Bruins.

Well, at least the scandal isn't that scandalous.

The big La Presse scoop concerns links between the Kostitsyn brothers and Pasquale Mangiola, a 38-year-old Montrealer with a criminal record who was arrested last week in Operation Axe, a massive crackdown on the city's drug trade.

The story does not accuse the brothers or Roman Hamrlik – who is also, the story alleges, a pal of Mangiola –  of any criminal activity.

The players are friends with a suspected wiseguy.

On a 1-to-10 scale of problems afflicting your Montreal Canadiens, that's a 6.

Coaching? That might be an 10.

Carbo hockey lasted one night.

And this 5-4 mess wasn't exactly Jacques Plante vs. Terry Sawchuk

The Pittsburgh Penguins aren't the Boston Bruins.

They aren't the New Jersey Devils.

A year removed from the Stanley Cup final, where they were undressed by Detroit, the Penguins don't hit or play tight D or swarm attackers with white sweaters like the aforementioed Cup contenders.

Give the Canadiens room to skate and they'll kill you. That's what happened last night.

But a W is a W, and that was a good one.

After the Florida trip planted seeds of doubt about the Canadiens' ability to beat non-playoff teams – anxiety that was not diminished by that nailbitting conquest of the Kings – the guys mercifully back in red jerseys did what they had to do against an inferior opponent last night.

The Canadiens worked hard for 60 minutes, pleased their coach and got two points.

And those guys in the white jerseys weren't the Boston Bruins or New Jersey Devils.

Result: a 4-2 win in which 20 guys in red jerseys played 60 minutes.

Canadiens' Andrei Kostitsyn (right) celebrates one of his three goals. Linemate Tomas Plekanec earned assists on the first two. See more photos here.
Jason Cohn, Reuters

Preview | Rosters | Tale of the Tape | Play-by-Play | Faceoffs | Game Summary | Event Summary | Boone

It's no secret that the Canadiens will need a productive Andrei Kostitsyn to enjoy a strong second half of the season.

AK46 answered the call and then some tonight, storming back from a two-game leg-injury absence to score his first career hat trick and lift the Habs to a 3-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins at Mellon Arena.

It was an auspicious beginning to a four-game road trip as the Canadiens returned to action following a five-day Christmas break. And it was a tremendously encouraging performance by Kostitsyn, one brilliantly backstopped by goaltender Carey Price.