Penguins Nation

The Pittsburgh Penguins went out and dominated the New York Rangers in Game 4. The Blueshirts flipped the script on the Penguins in Game 5, taking it to the home team right from the outset. New York had its forecheck going early, and defenders were jumping into the play at every opportunity. The kitchen sink has been thrown, and this Eastern Conference semifinal series is now 3-2 in Pittsburgh's favor. It was an inspired effort from a Rangers team that came into the contest fighting all sorts of demons. Ryan McDonagh hadn't been playing well. Rick Nash has been totally snake bitten. ...

During any NHL regular season, teams will have both high points and low points, and that is even more true in the two-month long NHL postseason. Having started off slow against the upstart Columbus Blue Jackets who turned a best-of-seven series into a best-of-three series with gritty play and a never-say-die attitude, the Pittsburgh Penguins weathered the storm and are now just one win away from advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals. As the Pens look to close out the New York Rangers, let's take a look at the five biggest reasons why they've been able to, at least momentarily, continue their march ...

The New York Rangers had a chance to get back into their semifinal series against the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 4. After outshooting Pittsburgh in Game 3 by a wide margin, New York had every reason to be confident. The Rangers lost a game they could have won, but that happens in the playoffs sometimes. Odds were against Marc-Andre Fleury pitching a third consecutive shutout, and the Rangers needed a must-win game effort to even things out before the series went back to Pittsburgh. They came out completely flat and played their worst game of the series. Now the Penguins have a chance ...

The Pittsburgh Penguins already got what they went to New York for in Game 3. After dropping Game 1 on home ice before winning Game 2, the Penguins needed to win either of the next two contests in the Big Apple to reestablish home-ice advantage. They did just that and are now poised to take a commanding 3-1 series lead before heading back to Pittsburgh for Game 5. Considering how many things have gone sour for the Penguins against the New York Rangers in the second round, that's not a bad position to be in. Sidney Crosby wasn't at his best early ...

PITTSBURGH — "Marc-Andre Fleury was really good tonight except for that one bad goal he allowed" should be a trademarked statement by reporters covering the Pittsburgh Penguins. The maddeningly inconsistent goaltender hasn't been anywhere near the train wreck he was during the 2012 and 2013 playoffs, but he has had a few relapses in 2014. The most infamous mistakes by Fleury came in Game 4 of the Penguins' first-round series with the Columbus Blue Jackets, when he stumbled his way toward allowing a game-tying goal late and then whiffed on a long wrist shot that cost the Penguins the game. In Game 1 ...

PITTSBURGH — It was a spirited morning skate for the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday at Consol Energy Center, and no one was more spirited during the session than Sidney Crosby. Before coach Dan Bylsma began putting his players through drills, Crosby scooped a puck onto the blade of his stick and flung it over the protective netting and into an unpopulated section 106. He also showed no signs of an alleged nagging injury as he lunged over the boards in front of his bench, using his stomach and hips to balance on top of it, and extended his stick in an effort ...

It's not a series until a road team wins a game. There's a lot of conventional wisdom swirling around the NHL at this time of year as the emotions of the postseason kick into high gear. Sometimes the knowledge that is dispensed is good and makes sense; sometimes that isn't the case.  The idea that a series doesn't get real until a visiting team secures a win is accurate, and the Pittsburgh Penguins find themselves up against that fact after losing Game 1 in overtime to the New York Rangers. Now the boys from Steel City find themselves in a must-win contest early ...

SOUTHPOINTE, Pa. — One of the longest running and least meaningful clichés in the world of hockey-speak involves the need to “play a full 60 minutes.” A team either wins or loses games based largely on the number of minutes a coach deems the team played on a given night, if you choose to believe that philosophy.  During the Stanley Cup playoffs, sometimes it’s not enough to play a full 60 minutes. This isn’t the regular season. Games aren’t decided by shootouts after five minutes of overtime. That effort needs to translate into a full 80, 100 or perhaps even 120 ...

Despite yet another first-round scare, the Pittsburgh Penguins have advanced to the second round to face the New York Rangers. While winning a playoff series should bring joy, Pens fans seem to be more relieved than joyous as they know that anything less than a trip to the Stanley Cup Finals will be considered a disappointing end to the season. As the Pens get ready to drop the puck against the Rangers in Game 1, let's take a look at the five ways they need to improve to continue their postseason march.Begin Slideshow

The Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Rangers both fought off considerable adversaries to make it to the second round, and the level of play is just going to get higher from here. A dream matchup from the standpoint of the NHL and its television deal with NBC, this semifinal features two of the largest and most passionate fan bases around. If star power is your forte, there's plenty to go around here. Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, James Neal and Kris Letang squaring off with Rick Nash, Brad Richards, Martin St. Louis and Henrik Lundqvist. Some of the most talented individuals in ...