Big Game for the Pens

pens host ottawa tonite. its a pretty big game, seeing as how the pens are in 5th place in the east, only one point behind the senators. puck drops at 7:30 p.m. new jersey has the night off, so the pens can move within 2 points of the atlantic-leading devils with a win over the sens.

pittsburgh has won 7 of their last 9, with points in 8 of those contests. pretty impressive. a young team like the pens really benefitted from the veteran leadership of mark recchi and gary roberts. crosby and company seem to be peaking at just the right time, and another win versus an eastern conference top-5 team would surely boost player morale and confidence heading into the playoffs. i know teams like the colts and the cardinals (i cant stand mentioning either of those teams) backed their way into the playoffs, and won their respective sports' championships. however, i am a strong believer of playing tough down the stretch, and rolling into the playoffs (i.e. pittsburgh steelers 2005). crosby leads the points race, and is battling brodeur for the hart. malkin will win the calder, and him and staal are 1-2 in rookie goal scoring. therrien could be coach of the year, and gonchar is tied for 3rd in scoring among league defensemen. but you knew all that. i just wanted to document it