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Shelly Anderson's Penguins chat transcript
Monday, December 21, 2009
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette


Producer: You may submit questions now. Questions will become visible when and if Shelly answers them during the live chat, which begins at 2:30 p.m.


Shelly Anderson: Hello, everyone. We'll start taking your questions in just a minute or two.


ajt123 : Do you know the extent of M. Eaton's injury? Is it his knee again?


Shelly Anderson: The Penguins are not divulging the injury to defenseman Mark Eaton. He won't play tonight. However coach Dan Bylsma seemed pretty optimistic, saying that Eaton will see doctors today but expect that this won't be a long-term injury. I saw Eaton briefly after that, and while he had not seen the doctor yet, he was in good spirits and walking normally. As you might expect, Martin Skoula will be in the lineup.


Larry - KY : Shelly: Do you feel our recent success on the power play traces to the personnel change?


Shelly Anderson: It's not so much the personnel that has changed, but the deployment. Having Evgeni Malkin on the left point has made a big difference, both because it puts him opposite Sidney Crosby and therefore makes the penalty killers scramble more, and also because Malkin now seems to feel comfortable there. He wasn't so much when he was tried there before. The other thing is having two guys -- namely, Bill Guerin and Chris Kunitz -- stacked in the slot. This setup has allowed the Penguins to work the puck around effectively and, really important, to maintain puck possession by getting to rebounds and missed shots.


PGHfaninNJ : Are the Devils the Pens' strongest competition, or do you think it is the Caps?


Shelly Anderson: That's tough to say. The Penguins have lost to the Devils twice, both by 4-1 scores, this season. They haven't played Washington yet. New Jersey has that patient, defensive style. But the Penguins are pretty good at adjusting, and it probably burns them that they have been stymied twice by the Devils. Wsahington, of course, has a much more wide-open style, closer to the Penguins, and presents its own challenges -- with Alex Ovechkin at the top of the list.


King Moonracer : Who votes on the 3-stars for a game? Is is it predominately done by journalists local to the home team? It seems Crosby gets the 1st star over others that may be more deserving a lot of the time, but when the team is in Philly, he rarely gets any star at all. For example on Thursday's game, he had a goal & the shootout winner, and I don't think he got any star.


Shelly Anderson: There is no firm NHL policy for the three-star voting after each game. It is considered the media's gig, but there is nothing official about the three stars (no NHL statistics are kept, for instance). I honestly don't know who votes at Penguins home games. I used to do it frequently years ago when they handed out ballots. I haven't seen those ballots in years. Then again, many of us have had to move to a work room on the lower level by the time the game ends. I think your point, though is well taken. Sidney Crosby would probably have to score four goals, get five assists and save someone's life during an intermission to make it in Philadelphia. And then he would probably be a No. 3. Not that they are biased there or anything.


Jim Calumet : Hi, any news on Gonchar and/or Letang's new contracts?


Shelly Anderson: Nothing yet. Both pretty much put things on hold until after the new year, which is fast approaching. In a casual conversation today with Ray Shero, he seemed relieved that the general managers found out at their recent meetings that the latest reports about the salary cap seem to be true. That is, commissioner Gary Bettman told them that the cap probably won't change by more than $1 million or $2 million for next season. At one time, there was fear there would be a big drop. I didn't get a chance to ask Shero how much of a positive influence that might have on retaining defenseman Sergei Gonchar and/or Kris Letang, but you can imagine it certainly won't hurt. The state of the Canadian dollar against U.S. currency is something to watch in the coming months in terms of the cap, though.


EddieShack : Hi Shelley -- any word as to whether/when Versus and DirecTV will settle the ongoing dispute?


Shelly Anderson: I haven't heard anything in a while. In these days of bitter competition among media near-monopolies, I suppose the holdout could be lengthy. It apparently doesn't bother them that the people hurt are the customers who can't watch the NHL on Versus. Boy, I wish the NHL was on ESPN.


Shelly Anderson: We have the chat equivalent of open lines if you have a question.


ThePanguins : The '09-'10 version of the Penguins looks to be a very solid team. What do you feel is their weakness, if any?


Shelly Anderson: I would have said the power play before the past few games, although you would like to think they would have gotten that straightened out eventually. The Penguins haven't lost any speed or skill from their Cup team. They are probably grittier and more physically punishing. Marc-Andre Fleury hasn't lost anything, and Brent Johnson seems like a good backup goaltender. The penalty killing is fine. They haven't had many off nights such as the one early in the season against Pheonix. So, weaknesses? I guess they are only as weak as their least healthy players at any given moment.


joefromwv : Is it me or does Max Talbot seem not up to 100% yet after his surgery, and does his recent healthy scratches indicate the coaches are seeing that as well?


Shelly Anderson: No, I think Max Talbot is fully recovered from the surgery he had on his left shoulder in July. At the very least, it is a lot more sound than it was before the operation. He had been playing with the problem for some time. It's probably more that he missed so much time, missed training camp, and tried to step in with a club that was polished after so many weeks of playing. Give him some time. He'll get there. In the interim, unfortunatley for Max, his situation makes him the obvious choice to be a scratch on nights when enforcer Eric Godard is in the lineup as long as all 13 forwards are healthy.


Jim Calumet : Since Malkin came back from the shoulder injury early November, the team started to play really good. But he doesn't look like the real Malkin that we seen last year ... it's very scary to think when he'll be back for good ...


Shelly Anderson: There is no indication that Evgeni Malkin is playing hurt. I trust that the Penguins wouldn't have let him come back otherwise -- and he apparently could have kept playing, so his exile in November was precautionary. Malkin hasn't played poorly; he just hasn't been as electric as he sometimes is. It seems to be he's always had a little bit of streakiness to him. You're right, though. When he gets on his next roll, it could be scary.


Shelly Anderson: Thanks, everyone. Have a good holiday. Chat with you next week.


Penguins Plus, a blog by Dave Molinari and Shelly Anderson, is featured exclusively on PG+, a members-only web site from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Our introduction to PG+ gives you all the details.

First published on December 21, 2009 at 3:11 pm