Fleury Reason for Pens Success

Let me just say how great it is to have the Penguins back in the playoffs. It's been a long time coming for them to get back. It's not only good for Pittsburgh, it's good for hockey and the NHL. The league isn't exactly in its best days at the moment, but you wouldn't notice by looking at Pittsburgh. The Igloo was rocking, just like they were when Mario captivated the city with two Stanley Cups in the early '90s. It's good to see. Period. Well unless you are the New York Rangers....

Today, the Pens defeated the Rangers 2-0 to take a two-games-to-none lead over the Rangers in the second round and improve to 6-0 in the playoffs. Everybody talks about the Pens offense and the talented goal scorers they have, but the reason they have been so dominant in the playoffs so far is Marc-Andre Fleury. If the Penguins were finally going to take that step toward the Cup, it was going to be with Fleury becoming that shutdown goalie he was drafted to be. And he's done just that. He missed a good chunk of the season with an injury but has returned and played nothing short of amazing. Give him the credit he deserves. Maybe it was the yellow pads he dumped that changed him. Who knows, whatever the reason it's crucial to the Pens playoff success.

I remember being at Fleury's first NHL game. It was a 3-0 loss to the Kings. Despite the loss and the fact that Fleury gave up two goals (the other was an empty net)...he faced 48 shots and had a hell of a game to keep the Pens in it. We all chanted "Fleury, Fleury, Fleury" in the crowd and couldn't wait to see where this kid's future would go. He struggled over the next couple of years as any young player can, but this year he turned the corner. The future is here. The crowd in today's game repeated the Fleury chant and it reminded me of that first game and seeing something special from him.

Since then the Pens have drastically changed the scenery around Fleury and the team is currently soaring, probably better than us at The Wheelhouse had expected in the playoffs. And it's not just Fleury stepping up...the defense is playing another level of hockey I haven't seen in a while in the 'Burgh. The defense has been the Achilles heal to the Pens over the past couple of years, but not anymore. I've never seen so many blocked shots by Penguin defenders than in today's game against the Rangers. Gonchar, Gill, Orpik, Letang, Whitney...hell even Scuderi is playing good D.

With the defense playing great and Fleury playing the best hockey of his life to go along with the high-scoring offense, the Pens have the ability and confidence to make a run at the Cup after all. It's been a long time coming for Pittsburgh.