ESPN 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs Blog

Posted by E.J. Hradek

PITTSBURGH -- Here are some quick notes from the Penguins' 4-2 victory over the Red Wings at Mellon Arena on Tuesday night:

• Pittsburgh center Jordan Staal, who struggled in the first two games in Detroit, seems to be regaining his confidence. He was better in Game 3 and took another big step forward in Game 4. Staal was much more of a force below the dots in both zones. He scored what could be a series-turning, short-handed goal at the 8:35 mark of the second period.

In a one-on-one situation against veteran defenseman Brian Rafalski, the lanky 20-year-old attacked the net with the puck on his backhand. He used his size advantage to shield the puck from smaller Rafalski. Then, he moved around him, shifting from backhand to forehand, before firing a point-blank shot past Wings goalie Chris Osgood to tie the score at 2 and ignite the crowd. To make the marker even more devastating, it came on the Wings' second of back-to-back power-play chances.

Staal, however, is still having a tough time in the faceoff circle. He won just two of 15 draws in Game 4. Of course, that's a little easier to overlook when you score a monster short-handed goal like he did Thursday night. He does need to be better in Game 5 faceoffs, though.

• The Wings' penalty-killing woes continued in Game 4. Penguins superstar pivot Evgeni Malkin converted a power-play chance just 2:39 into the game. Still, Red Wings coach Mike Babcock was more disappointed with his team's power-play unit. He wasn't impressed with any of their four opportunities. Babcock didn't think either of his PP units was sharp. In fact, he thought they "sucked the life" out of the team and surrendered Staal's game-changing short-handed goal. All in all, it wasn't a very good night for the Wings' special teams. As they head into their fifth game in eight days, they have little time to work things out in practice. They'll have to study some tape and work to execute better on home ice in Game 5.

• Babcock opted not to pursue the Henrik Zetterberg-Sidney Crosby matchup in Game 4. In the first two games, with the last change on home ice, Babcock had little problem matching Zetterberg's line against Crosby. He also made sure to have his top defensive pair of Nicklas Lidstrom and Rafalski on the ice in those situations. In Game 3, Babcock chased the matchup by making quick changes.

On Thursday, the Wings did try to make sure Lidstrom was on the ice against Crosby, but they didn't try to push Zetterberg too hard in their fourth game in six days. Instead, Zetterberg often found himself matched against Malkin, who has been the Pens' most dominant player in this series. When the series returns to Detroit for Game 6 on Saturday, I figure Babcock again will take advantage of the last change to get Zetterberg against Crosby. He probably would like to have his other star forward, Pavel Datsyuk, back for that game, too.

• Third-line Penguins right winger Tyler Kennedy made a great hustle play to set up what would become his goal at the 14:12 mark of the second period. On the play, Zetterberg went back into his own zone on the left-wing side to retrieve a loose puck. Not expecting pressure, the Detroit star didn't rush. Suddenly, Kennedy dashed forward to challenge Zetterberg, who had to change gears. Kennedy's hard work forced a turnover that was quickly gobbled up by oncoming winger Chris Kunitz. From there, the puck moved swiftly from Kunitz to Crosby and back to Kennedy, who tapped it into the empty side of the net. It was the Pens' third goal in a 5:37 span of the second period that decided the game.

• In last year's Cup finals, critics -- most notably longtime CBC hockey guru Don Cherry -- blasted Malkin for his subpar play. This season, Malkin has been dynamite for the Penguins in the Cup showdown. He seems to be everywhere in all three zones. In Game 4, he added another goal and assist to his playoffs-leading points total. He also had six shots, five hits and two takeaways. That's a pretty nice night! Right now, the Wings don't seem to have an answer for him.

• Pittsburgh goalie Marc-Andre Fleury did a nice job of making his team's two-goal lead stand up. He made several solid stops in the final period. He came up with a particularly nice pad stop on Valtteri Filppula with just 3:04 left in the game. The young goaltender did a nice job to rally after allowing two goals in a span of 2:27 at the end of the first period and early in the second. He finished with 37 saves.

• Usually reliable Pens defenseman Rob Scuderi made a major turnover in a four-on-four situation late in the first period that led directly to the Wings' first goal of the game. In the corner, uncontested, he thought he had enough room to pass the puck through the middle. He didn't. Detroit center Darren Helm moved off the boards to pick off the pass. He moved into the right-wing circle and ripped a wrist shot over the glove of Fleury to tie the score at 1 with 1:41 left in the opening period. No doubt, Scuderi was happy his teammates would pick him up later in the evening.