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Penguins Hang On; Kindel Shines, Skinner Brilliant
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- Penguins Hang On; Kindel Shines, Skinner Brilliant
Pittsburgh Penguins Game 3-2 Win Vancouver Canucks
' VANCOUVER, British Columbia —A couple of goals from hometown boy Ben Kindel , more good work from the Penguins ' second line led by Tommy Novak , combined with some game-changing saves by goalie Stuart Skinner , provided the Penguins with their fourth-straight win.
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The game got tense as Vancouver scored a pair of third period goals, but the Penguins and Skinner prevented the equalizer, including a diving Skinner save in the final minute on what looked to be a sure goal.
The Penguins beat the Vancouver Canucks 3-2 at Rogers Place Sunday. The Penguins are 11-2-2 since the holiday break ended on Dec. 27.
In the first period, both teams thought they scored the first goal of the game. First, Penguins center Tommy Novak slipped past defenders, setting in motion a series of slick plays by him, Evgeni Malkin , and Egor Chinakhov, which ended in an apparent Chinakhov goal at 7:47 as his rebound putback dribbled past Vancouver netminder Kevin Lankinen . However, instead of challenging if the puck actually crossed the line, Vancouver coach Adam Foote challenged for offside, which he easily won.
No goal.
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Late in the first period, referees gave the Penguins a little help when they ruled Vancouver forward Teddy Blueger was in the blue paint as Conor Garland 's slap shot slipped past Penguins goalie Stuart Skinner.
It was a soft call, but the Penguins have been on the wrong side of enough bad goalie interference calls this season, including one in which Rickard Rakell didn't even enter the crease, that they did not mind the hockey gods returning one.
The first period ended scoreless with both teams having eight shots on goal, not counting those uncounted attempts that did not count.
The Penguins put the game away in the second period with a trio of goals, including two by Kindel.
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Evgeni Malkin (13) continued his torrid pace when he buried a pillowy soft pass from Novak on a two-on-one at 5:24 of the second.
Kindel, 18, scored the next two.
A few minutes after Malkin finally got one to count, Kindel (9) deflected Ryan Shea 's centering pass past Lankinen at 8:24.
Late in the second period, Kindel put the game out of reach for the struggling Canucks when he one-timed a pass from Justin Brazeau on an innocent-looking zone entry. Kindel (10) whistled a pure 39-foot wrister through Lankinen's five-hole at 17:22.
Kindel's shot was dead center, and referees needed a moment to fix the in-net camera. The large contingent of the rookie's family and friends filled a luxury box at Rogers Arena and provided some of the loudest cheers.
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Don't forget Skinner.
While the Penguins' skaters were a mix of superior and inferior games, Skinner continued his red-hot Penguins run. Skinner made a half-dozen saves as he stood on his head to keep Vancouver scoreless when they pushed hard early in the second period.
Skinner was brilliant. He stopped all 18 shots he faced in the first 40 minutes. Vancouver got one past him midway through the third period, but not until Skinner made a couple of tough saves and had a fallen Elias Pettersson on top of him. Jake DeBrusk (13) chipped the puck into the net at 6:29.
Former Penguins forward Teddy Blueger scored the Canucks second goal after another net-front scrum.
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Skinner has won seven of his eight starts since the holiday break ended on Dec. 27. His save percentage has dipped below .900 only once in those eight games.
The Penguins were not their best on Sunday, but they didn't need to be when facing the team that has the fewest points in the NHL and a whopping eight points behind the next-to-worst.
Penguins Notes
Word was that the Kindel contingent was 192 people. The largest anyone associated with the team could remember.
Defenseman Kris Letang returned after missing the first three games on the road trip.
D-man Jack St. Ivany left the game in the middle of the first period with an apparent injury, and the Penuins played with five defensemen for most of the game. The Penguins announced St. Ivany suffered an upper-body injury.
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The Penguins now have a four-point lead on the New York Islanders for second place in the Metro Division with an even 51 games played. New York plays the fourth-place Philadelphia Flyers on Monday.
There was only one penalty Sunday. Vancouver was 0-for-1 on the power play. The Penguins did not get a power play.
The post Penguins Hang On; Kindel Shines, Skinner Brilliant appeared first on Pittsburgh Hockey Now .
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