Bruins end Pens winning streak as Malkin injured, Tanev ejected
Tanev #Tanev
PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – Boston ended the Pens six game winning streak in a physical 2-1 decision Tuesday night at PPG Paints Arena. Trent Frederic scored the game winner at 7:07 of the third as rookie Dan Vladar stopped 34 of the 35 shots he faced.
“We battled hard from Casey on out,” said captain Sidney Crosby. “We gave ourselves a chance. Unfortunately it didn’t go our way.”
“I think everyone knows we’ve been playing really well,” said goalie Casey DeSmith who stopped 31 shots. “We played well this game. There’s a lot of adversity, things that happened, losing guys, things like that. Everyone knows we battled hard. We are staying positive. We have been on such a good run. We are not going to let this affect us.”
Tanev ejected
Brandon Tanev assessed a 5-minute major penalty for boarding, hitting Bruins defenseman Jarred Tinordi by his bench. The 6’6” Tinordi crashed into the wall and he didn’t move at first. Tinordi was wobbly getting up.
“I think Tans plays the game hard,” said head coach Mike Sullivan. “He was trying to finish his check. The player was a long way from the boards on the initial contact. I just think Tans was trying to finish his check.”
“I didn’t think he had any intent there,” Crosby said of Tanev’s hit. “I hope Tinordi is ok. He went in pretty awkward.”
“I don’t think there was any intent. He hit him clean. He hit him timely as far as the puck being there. He did go in awkwardly. You never like to see that. I didn’t think it warranted a 5-minute. The refs are out there. They are trying to protect us and keep us safe. I get it. I can see them trying to do that. I didn’t see it that way.”
“I hope as players we can get some clarity on what is a good hit and what is not. It’s tough to really gauge when you are out there. I know it’s fast. Right now it’s really hard to know what is in fact clean and what is not. When you are out there playing, it’s important that you do know that.”
“It’s hard as a player to know. You know we look at a hit and we think ‘oh, that’s a suspension’ and it’s not or we think ‘it’s a penalty’ and it’s not. Then you see a hit like that and you don’t expect a 5-minute major and it ends up being one. It seems like it’s a little gray right now.”
“There’s a lot of latitude for the discretion of the referee,” Sullivan said. “I think they are trying to err on the side of caution and protect the players. We all would agree that is the right way to go, but there is a lot of latitude and a lot of referee’s discretion in those types of circumstances.”
Malkin injured
Evgeni Malkin injured on a big, clean hit by Tinordi in the first period. Malkin was slow to get off the ice, came back for a power play shift, only to return to the bench. He would then head to the locker room for the rest of the night. Sullivan said Malkin is being evaluated for a lower-body injury.
“Nobody likes to see that,” Crosby said. “Guys that are stepping in are just trying go out there one shift at a time. You want to go out and do a job and get a win for him. Unfortunately we weren’t able to do that.”
Blueger out
Sam Lafferty was a late replacement for forward Teddy Blueger, who may have been injured on a crosscheck from Brad Marchand Monday. Blueger, the center of an effective third line, is out longer-term with an upper body injury.
Jankowski started the game centering the third line Tuesday with Tanev and Zach Aston-Reese. Lafferty, who hadn’t played since March 6 against the Flyers, returned to center the fourth line.
Stick Save and a Beauty
Colton Sceviour had a couple of opportunities lately where he may have felt snake bit, but no more than halfway through the first period. Wide-open cage, Sceviour able to collect the puck with his foot, elevate it, but a sprawling Vladar got his stick up. That piece of carbon fiber was the only thing keeping the puck out of the net. It was the best of some quality saves on the night.
“You just have to tip your cap on that one,” Jankowski said. “Unlucky for us where if you kind of whiff on it, (it) slides on the ice, it goes in. You get a good shot off and he gets the save.”
Up Next
Pens return at New Jersey Thursday night at 7p