East Division Update - February 16th

There were two games tonight, with one of them being a better matchup than the other. They both started at the same time, and both finished around the same time. The Penguins played host to the Capitals for the second time in two days, and the Sabers hosted the New York Islanders at First Niagara Center in Buffalo. My analysis of both games can be found below. There was also a game between New Jersey and New York tonight, but I will post an update on that one following this one.

Penguins vs. Capitals Islanders vs. Sabers

(Older Photo, Credit: The Athletic) (Credit: NBC Sports)

CAPITALS @ PENGUINS

Pittsburgh came into this game riding high after beating these same Capitals on Valentines Day, 6-3. The focus was on the pushback that was inevitable for Washington, being losers of four straight coming into tonight's game. Pittsburgh was starting goaltender Tristan Jarry again, after Casey DeSmith was sick (non-covid related). The Capitals would start Vitek Vanecek again as well, after Ilya Samsonov was sent to the Hershey Bears on a conditioning stint.

- The first period would show Pittsburgh hungry to get another win at home, getting good chances right off the bat. The Penguins got a 5-on-3 powerplay chance early in this one, and went to work. They were moving around well and creating chances, when defenseman Kris Letang got the puck up high. He threw it down low, and forward Jake Guentzel tipped it toward the net, but off the iron to the right of the Washington goaltender. Not long after that, Penguins captain Sidney Crosby got the puck on the opposite side of the net with the goaltender moving, but he flung the shot off the iron. These two chances were critical for Pittsburgh, and something that would come back to bite them. The first period would continue on with the trading of chances by both teams, but Washington picking up their play as the period progressed.

- The second period began with more of what the first entailed, with each team exchanging chances and switching momentum. The Capitals would gain some more momentum off of their powerplay chances, as they had four of them in the period. This caused Pittsburgh's game to be thrown off, and they couldn't gain any momentum always being on the penalty kill. Washington got a few chances off a broken play in front of the net, which would eventually lead to forward Conor Sheary throwing the puck in for the 1-0 Caps lead. The energy was now entirely on Washington's side, and they had many more chances than Pittsburgh at this point of the game. The Caps got another goal midway through the period when forward T.J. Oshie slid a beautiful pass across the ice to Jakub Vrana. He held onto it for a second, then roofed a shot over the shoulder of Tristan jarry for a 2-0 lead. This energy got Washington even more comfortable going into the third, as they were playing with all kinds of jump and controlling the flow of the game. The Penguins only registered 5 shots in the second period, with Washington outshooting them 12-5.

- The third period was pretty heavily in favor of Washington, especially after they got a quick tally from center Lars Eller a minute in. He was hard on the forecheck coming into the zone, and took the puck off the wall, after a Pens turnover. He crossed in front, and threw into the net for the 3-0 Capitals lead. This basically killed any chance of Pittsburgh coming back, and you could tell from their body language. The Penguins would have a bit of a late push, after a net front scramble led to a goal for forward Zach-Aston-Reese. The goal came with five minutes left in the final frame. The Capitals got a penalty assessed to Sheary, after he hooked a Penguin coming into the zone with the goalie pulled. Pittsburgh got some chances to score again on the 6-on-4, but the Washington goaltender held his ground and preserved the 3-1 win. The Capitals broke their 4 game losing streak, and Pittsburgh lost their first at PPG Paints this season, being 5-0-0 there coming into tonight. Another quick note, Zach-Aston-Reese got a goal for the third time in three games this season for Pittsburgh, since his return to the lineup from offseason shoulder surgery.

ISLANDERS @ SABERS

The Sabers were coming off a loss to this same Islanders team two nights ago, and trying to get back into the groove after being off all that time due to covid problems. The Islanders were riding a seven game point streak coming in, and looked to keep it going in Buffalo tonight.

- This game doesn't need much of a review, as you can probably guess what happened. The Islanders were starting goaltender Ilya Sorokin, who was a newcomer in the NHL, being brought up from the Bridgeport Soundtigers. The Islanders got two goals from captain Anders Lee, and another from the red hot John Gabriel Pageau, his fourth in three games. The goals came in the first and third periods, with the second being pretty uneventful. The Islanders goaltender faced 20 shots from Buffalo, and stopped all of them, for his first NHL win, and his first shutout to boot. The New York Islanders are rolling right now, and that will mean trouble for the rest of the division. Matt Barzal was held scoreless, however, and his point streak of 9 games came to an end.