After defeating the Capitals in one of hockey's all-time upsets the Montreal Canadians' season is starting to look like it might be shorter than they had hoped.
Halak can only do so much in this Cinderella story and the Canadians are wearing down under the constant pressure of the Penguins' mix of solid defence and an opportunistic offense. By the third period they were clearly worn out.
Not to be outdone by Halak, Marc-Andre Fleury was brilliant at his end of the rink and came up huge when needed. Fleury kept the score at zeros until Evgeni Malkin got one past Halak.
Pascual Dupuis finished off a strong night by popping in an empty netter to put the stake in the heart of the Canadians fans.
Mike Cammalleri was once again Montreal's top offensive threat but he couldn't put one past Fleury. The Canadians' defence was solid as usual but they were unable to create any sustained pressure on offense.
Montreal is putting Sidney Crosby's leadership skills to the test much like they did to Alex Ovechkin in the first round. The result is a feistier Crosby who is a bit off his game but can break out at any moment.
Tyler Kennedy looked shaky in his return to the Penguin's lineup but simply having his energy in the line-up is bound to help a team. Craig Adams picked up some of Kennedy's slack made his presence known on the ice a number of times. Mark Eaton lost too many battles and was the Pens' weakest D-man. Jordan Leopold also returned from injury and did his part in limited ice-time. Leopold's return should ease some of the burden on Eaton and Eaton's play should improve as a result.
With so many strong players to step up when needed the Penguins are displaying true championship form. Playing against a stronger all-around team the Canadians will need more than just their goalie playing role of the fairy god mother in this tale.
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