Penguins: 9-1-0

The Penguins managed to escape with a shootout win against the woeful Florida Pathers. And Brent Johnson got his first win as a Penguin.

The Game's Three Stars
1) Sidney Crosby
2) Evgeni Malkin
3) Tomas Vokoun

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Thoughts on the game
-Nice rebound by the Penguins after a woeful 1st period. They allowed 25 shots in the first period alone (12 on net, 13 blocked), only managing 10 (8 on net, 2 blocked) themselves, but ended up with over 40 shots and held the panthers under 30 (both not including blocks).
-Every year I find myself expecting the Panthers to finally contend, but they perennially wait until the end of the season to play. Maybe playing a good team like the Penguins so early will get them going.
-Tomas Vokoun is a standup goaltender...AND good. I really didn't think standup style could work nowadays. But a game like that goes a long way towards silencing his critics.
-Speaking of which, I like how the Penguins people don't just go with homer picks for the 3 stars. Good to see Vokoun get one.
-However, I don't understand how Brent Johnson did't get one. He was stellar, I'd put him at two rather than Malkin for his mask alone.
-As much good as I've said about the Panthers, they are a team in disarray. Two goaltender interference penalties? David Booth playing football with a puck? Come on.
-Special recognition to Chris Kunitz. He dropped to gloves after getting pushed around, and really seemed to give the Pens some much needed energy.
-Little known fact: Pascal Dupuis was on the PP and PK last night, but I have to ask if they wanted an award for missing the net, or something.
-Crosby seems to have discovered a touch for goalscoring. Just another reason he's better than Ovie. Incidentally, both of Crosby's goals were special teams...one PP, one SH.
-Steve Reinprecht scored both the Panthers' goals with only 13:38 time on ice.
-Finally, the Panthers are better than their record suggests...why don't they play like that every game? They'd make the playoffs easy

Enemy of the (Penguins') State: It's hard to pick an enemy when there's no bruiser in the lineup, but let's go with Nathan Horton for tacking Brent Johnson. Pretty classless, but I guess it's something you have to try when you need to score.