Stanley Cup Playoffs Quarterfinals Game 3: Penguins @ Rangers

Game 3 from MSG in New York.
The Inside Scoop:
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The goaltending situation for the Pens has cleared up, slightly.
Marc-Andre Fleury (concussion) has been ruled out of tonight’s Game 3 showdown between the Pens and New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden. Fleury, who did not take part in the team’s optional morning skate, is still listed by the team as day-to-day.
Matt Murray (upper-body) did take part in the optional skate. And, according to head coach Mike Sullivan, is an option for the game as well.
“Matt Murray is an option for tonight,” Sullivan said.
Murray was joined by Jeff Zatkoff, who has started in Games 1 and 2 of the series, and Tristan Jarry, who has served as his backup, on the ice for the optional skate. Zatkoff was the first goaltender off, though at this time of year that doesn’t really mean much.
Notable absences at the skate were Sidney Crosby, Chris Kunitz, Phil Kessel, Nick Bonino, Kris Letang and Fleury.
HOME ICE
The Pens lost the “home-ice advantage” after dropping Game 2 in Pittsburgh and hope to reclaim that advantage by stealing one of the next two games in New York. The series sits at 1-1 heading into Game 3 tonight.
“We came to New York and of course we want to win,” Malkin said. “It’s a very important game. We know the Rangers are good at Madison. But we have a good team, too. It’s a big fight tonight. I’m excited to play, and we’ll see who is better.”
MALKIN “COMING BACK”
Evgeni Malkin (upper-body) returned to the Pens’ lineup in Game 2 after missing 16 straight games and 26 of 34. He played primarily on the wing and did not take any faceoffs.
Malkin was not happy with his performance, but feels that his game is starting to come around.
“I watched my game (in Game 2) and it’s so-so,” Malkin said. “I talked to coach. I think my game is coming back. The first game is a little bit tough. But I think it’s coming back. I believe (in Game 3) I will play better.”
Malkin said prior to Game 2 that his shooting and strength wasn’t quite 100 percent. But he believes he is in a much better place heading into Game 3.
“I feel my legs, my stick, everything is coming back,” Malkin said. “I didn’t play for a long time. I lost my hands. Now it’s all back. I’m controlling the puck more. I’ll play center the whole game and try to show my best game.”
Malkin said he feels comfortable taking faceoffs in Game 3.
“I (worked on it) yesterday,” Malkin said. “It’s not a problem.”
THIS N’ AT
*NY Rangers defenseman Ryan McDonagh (upper-body) took part in the Rangers’ optional morning skate. Head coach Alain Vigneault said, “Ryan’s going to meet with our doctors this afternoon, and from there they’ll make a decision. I said doubtful yesterday and a little higher than I said yesterday.”
*Coach Sullivan on Carl Hagelin: “He’s been invaluable for us. He improves our team speed. He plays in a lot of situations. … I think he’s improved our team in so many different ways since we got him.”
*Sullivan on Olli Maatta: “He’s played valuable minutes for us. We believe in him. We know he’s a good player. When you play the type of mintues that Olli plays, sometimes you’re going to make mistakes. That’s part of the game. It’s how you respond to those mistakes that’s important to us.”
*Sullivan on hits: “Do we want to be a team that’s physical? Sure we do. That’s part of being hard to play against. But I think we can’t get carried away with that, because that’s not who we are, that’s not the type of team that this team has become. Our identity is in our speed, quickness and pursuit.”
*Conor Sheary on playing with Malkin: “When he has the puck he makes things happen. At the same time I want to use my speed and play my game. I think he’s going to help me be a better player out there.”​"
Digital preview:

Coach Talk:
http://penguins.nhl.com/club/news.ht...id=DL|PIT|home
"Coach Talk
Coach Sullivan discusses Malkin with Crosby, Rust's return and splitting up Schultz and Cole
Sunday, 04.17.2016 / 1:11 PM ET / 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs Coverage
Pittsburgh Penguins
Comment Print E-mail Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan held a conference call with the media. Here is a transcript of that conversation.
On balancing desire with reinserting Evgeni Malkin into the lineup and the desire for continuity:
That’s going to be one of the challenges moving forward. We did a little more juggling of lines (in Game 2) than I have in the past. We’ll settle into something so that there is more continuity. With ‘Geno’ in the lineup, as I’ve said all along, when the time came to put him back in the lineup it would provide options for us as far as how we’ve used guys. The coaching staff had a long meeting this morning about our lines and combinations and what we think is best moving forward. That’s certainly one of the challenges that we’re faced with. We feel as though it was a good challenge for us because we have a player in our lineup that we think can certainly help us win and makes us a better team.
On why he think Malkin and Sidney Crosby can work on the same line:
I’m not sure that they haven’t worked together in the past. I know that they’ve played together at times in the past and at times they’ve been apart. We should have the ability to do both, play them together at times and play them apart at times. They seem to work extremely well on the power play together. When Geno was in the lineup prior to getting hurt our power play was, for probably a 5- or 6-week span, was at 30-percent plus. I’m not one of those guys that throws an opinion around just because they’ve been used at times together in the past and certain people think it will work or it won’t work. I believe that two very good players have the ability to play with anybody and adapt their game accordingly because of their talent. Having said that, I’m not convinced that I’ll use them together moving forward. That’s something that is an option for us. If we do choose to go that route, there’s no reason why two players that are as good as they are cannot work together. They’re two elite players that think the game on a high level, and they have the ability to play a down low game and a fast, speed game off of the rush. That’s really the way I look at it. I know there’s been different schools of thought, theories in the past of how these guys have been used. Another comment that I would have is that I think both of these guys are in a different place than they were in the previous years. They’re a little bit older. They have more experience under their belt. They probably have the benefit of a little bit more perspective because they’ve gone through different experiences. We all learn from our experiences. For me, that’s how you gain wisdom. I think these guys from a mindset standpoint are in a very different place than they have been in the past.
On his assessment of Bryan Rust’s play in Game 2:
I think ‘Rusty’ is being a little hard on himself. I thought his play was fine. He brings an element of speed to our team. I think that was evident. He was strong on the boards. He ends up with a breakaway coming out of the penalty box. For me, he had a positive impact on the game. My hope is that with each game he gets under his belt that he’ll get his timing down. He’ll get more comfortable and his confidence level will improve to the point where he will have more of a positive impact on the game, from our standpoint. One of the things that I really like about Rusty is that he really wants to win. When things don’t go the way we want our team to go, he’s one of the first guys that looks in the mirror. That’s one of the great things about him.
On his decision breakup Justin Schultz and Ian Cole:
I explained my logic last night at the press conference on why we chose to go with the defensemen that we chose. I think Ian Cole has played a lot of solid hockey over the last few months for us. When we put him with Justin we thought they were a decent pair. (Cole) has played with other guys along the way. He’s played a solid game as well. I don’t necessarily think the only way Ian Cole can play a good game for us is if he has Justin Schultz as his partner. As I said last night, we felt as though we needed some defending defensemen in our lineup that would provide compliments to the other guys that we have. I think that with Geno being put back in the lineup and using him on that first power-play unit with four forward there isn’t as much of an emphasis on having a power-play defenseman per se. That was certainly taken into consideration when we made that lineup decision. As I said last night, nothing is etched in stone here. If we are displeased with any of our defensemen, we just have to make a lineup decision. We’re going to put guys in our lineup, each and every night, that we believe give us the best chance to win. That’s some of the rational that the coaching staff discussed when putting in those six defensemen in the lineup for last night’s game. "

Pumped for this.
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Originally Posted by Indiana Pittsburgh Fan This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. ://">://" onclick="kh99_iqts_show('359749_1'); return false;">Show Quote Pumped for this.
Sent from my LG-H811 using Tapatalk Pens HAVE to win this game, IMO. Rags can take control of the series with a win. I wouldn't want to play in this series from behind.

Originally Posted by sluggermatt15 This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. ://">://" onclick="kh99_iqts_show('359750_2'); return false;">Show Quote Pens HAVE to win this game, IMO. Rags can take control of the series with a win. I wouldn't want to play in this series from behind. Playing the series as a tie or ahead is really important.
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Fleury scratched tonight. Looks like Matt Murray will start in net.