BigBen2Ward
12-11-2005, 11:40 PM
The Pittsburgh Penguins ended six games of frustration Saturday night with a 4-3 win over the Colorado Avalanche at Mellon Arena.
The Penguins (8-15-6) picked up their first win since Nov. 22 and responded following Thursday’s 5-0 loss to Minnesota.
“[The effort] was 100 times better than it was Thursday. If we want to win some games, that’s how we have to play as a team for 60 minutes like we did [Saturday] night,” Penguins forward Maxime Talbot said. “It feels awesome; it’s a great feeling for everyone. We needed a game like that to understand what it takes to win.”
Mark Recchi set the tone for Pittsburgh. He scored the team’s first goal 10:35 into the game and assisted on the second goal.
“The way we played, I think everybody understands the commitment and what it’s going take to win hockey games in this league. Guys had to compete hard and we had to do a lot of good things and play with a lot of energy,” he said. “If we do that, we’re going to win seven out of 10 games and get ourselves back into position to make the playoffs. If we play inconsistently like we were before, we’ll just keep floating along. If we can grasp this feeling and run with it, we’ll be OK.”
Recchi ripped Matt Murley’s rebound past Colorado goalie Vitaly Kolesnik. Lasse Pirjeta earned the other assist. It was Recchi’s first goal since Nov. 12.
“I don’t think there is any doubt that the guys came out with a lot of energy and excitement and determination,” Penguins coach Eddie Olczyk said. “They weren’t going to be denied and they deserve all the credit, that’s for sure.”
link-----> http://www.pittsburghpenguins.com/team/features/arts/1516.0.php
The Penguins (8-15-6) picked up their first win since Nov. 22 and responded following Thursday’s 5-0 loss to Minnesota.
“[The effort] was 100 times better than it was Thursday. If we want to win some games, that’s how we have to play as a team for 60 minutes like we did [Saturday] night,” Penguins forward Maxime Talbot said. “It feels awesome; it’s a great feeling for everyone. We needed a game like that to understand what it takes to win.”
Mark Recchi set the tone for Pittsburgh. He scored the team’s first goal 10:35 into the game and assisted on the second goal.
“The way we played, I think everybody understands the commitment and what it’s going take to win hockey games in this league. Guys had to compete hard and we had to do a lot of good things and play with a lot of energy,” he said. “If we do that, we’re going to win seven out of 10 games and get ourselves back into position to make the playoffs. If we play inconsistently like we were before, we’ll just keep floating along. If we can grasp this feeling and run with it, we’ll be OK.”
Recchi ripped Matt Murley’s rebound past Colorado goalie Vitaly Kolesnik. Lasse Pirjeta earned the other assist. It was Recchi’s first goal since Nov. 12.
“I don’t think there is any doubt that the guys came out with a lot of energy and excitement and determination,” Penguins coach Eddie Olczyk said. “They weren’t going to be denied and they deserve all the credit, that’s for sure.”
link-----> http://www.pittsburghpenguins.com/team/features/arts/1516.0.php