Pens barely stay alive

The Dave Pucks wing of the Blueshirt Brothers complex is rooting for the Capitals now. We want to see them beat everybody - so that the Rangers extending them to 7 games grows in stature - and makes people think of us as the 2nd beats team in hockey.

Last night the Penguins just managed to avoid a 3-0 hole, by winning in overtime. Rookie goalie sensation Simeon Varlamov was brilliant again. Even in defeat he was selected as the 3rd star of the game, repelling 39 shots with a .929 save percentage (which was higher than Fleury's - even though he won)

The winning shot deflected late off a Caps defenseman - but Varlamov still appeared to get a piece of it before it got behind him.

The Bruins also won in OT, 3-2 over the Hurricanes. So all four series are 2-1 now.

Caps goals by Ovechkin (who else?) and Backstrom. For the Aquatic Birds, Mr. Crosby had two assists on the night and a big faceoff win that led to the OT winner.

In a related story - the NHL selected their 3 finalists for the Pearson award for Most Outstanding Player. Ovechkin made the top 3 - and the Penguin's Malkin - but not Sidney Crosby. That's my feel good story of the day.