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Two late goals doom Penguins against Canadiens, Pittsburgh opens new arena 0-2

Carey Price

Montreal Canadiens goalie Carey Price (31) replaces teammate Jaroslav Halak in goal dduring the third period of Game 1 of a second-round NHL playoff hockey game against the Pittsburgh Penguins, in Pittsburgh, Friday, April 30, 2010. The Penguins won 6-3. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

AP

Montreal Canadiens 3, Pittsburgh Penguins 2

You really can’t draw too many “big picture” conclusions after only two regular season games, but the Pittsburgh Penguins might have at least a little cause for concern.

The team went ahead 2-1 in the middle of third period thanks to a nice goal by young forward Mark Letestu and it looked like they might get a little revenge (and their first regular season win in their new building, the Consol Energy Center). That was not to be, however, as the Montreal Canadiens scored the game-tying and game-winning goals in rapid succession, as Jeff Halpern scored on a deflection before Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury allowed a soft one against Scott Gomez.

In less than 30 seconds, the Penguins went from winning a grinding game against the team that knocked them out of last season’s playoffs to opening their new building 0-2 with zero points.

Of course, it’s unfair to be too negative to the Penguins because they lost to a determined team in Montreal. Carey Price was probably the star of the game, stopping 36 out of 38 shots as Pittsburgh peppered the net much like they did against Jaroslav Halak in their seven game series. P.K. Subban received a hail of boos every time he touched the puck and with good reason: he got under Crosby’s skin with regularity.

It’s not all bad news for Pittsburgh. Their defense seemed fast and efficient as Paul Martin and Zbynek Michalek already seem nicely integrated into a deep group. Sidney Crosby picked up the primary assist on Evgeni Malkin’s first goal, so their two stars are back on the scoresheet.

Perhaps the critiques regarding their lack of high-end wingers is right, though. They certainly didn’t lack aggressiveness in taking shots or bring defensemen in deep, but all too often it seemed like Malkin and Crosby were setting up fruitful chances that ended up fruitless.

Again, it’s far too early to panic in Pittsburgh, but an 0-2 start at home is disappointing to say the least.