Game Night - Game #12

Pittsburgh Penguins at New Jersey Devils

Pittsburgh - 1-5-5 - 7 pts - Last in Atlantic
New Jersey - 6-5 - 12 pts - 3rd in Atlantic

Okay - it's still nice to put a number other than zero in the Pens win column... I must be easy to please.

The Devils are better at home than on the road, sporting a 4-2 record at home. They've won two in a row without Brodeur, who is day-to-day with a sprained knee. Last I heard, he was due back in time to face us. What happy news. Other than that, they're remarkably average this year. Pedestrian, even. They've given up more goals (40) than they've scored (36). Their power play is in the upper third of the league. Their penalty kill is in the lower third. Brian Gionta (who shall henceforth be known as Mighty Mouse on this blog, due to his stature and his tendency to kill the Pens) still hasn't learned how to score against anyone other than the Pens. He has one goal in the Devils nine games against teams whose mascot isn't a flightless bird. He has four goals against us. We must stop Mighty Mouse.

The Pens are in a life and death battle to avoid being the last team in the NHL without a win on the road. Currently, only the Pens and the St Louis Blues are winless on the road. The Pens have several chances before the Blues have their next road game (Nov 9th). Soon will be the unforgettable battle to not be the last team with a single digit point total.

I have to stop writing late in the evening...

Seriously, hopefully the Pens will be energized by the callup of two top prospects, Christensen and Whitney. It'll be good to get a look at those two.

Here's hoping for win #2 (and road win #1).