The Penguins first period in this game was disappointing however, their big names in Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby didn't show and looked like they were trudging through mud at times. Connor Sheary was one of the more impressive players in the first 20 minutes. The Penguins were lucky in a way as the Rangers scored on a rush but Skjei's pass to Miller was offside, the Penguins got a lucky break.
Although the Rangers seemed to control the puck most in the game they didn't make the most and failed to really test Matt Murray, finishing with just 17 shots on goal through the whole 60 minutes. That wouldn't be good enough in a regular season game, let alone a playoff one.
The Rangers did get the lead first though on a short-handed breakaway goal by Rick Nash after Chris Kreider spotted him making a break through an open slot. The Penguins continued to chip away at Lundqvist in net and for a long time it did look like they were returning to the team that we saw last year that struggled to score. However, the Penguins got a timely goal by tying it up with just 42 seconds left in the second period on the powerplay.
Yet again this season Matt Cullen contributed a key goal as he stripped the defence of the puck and stormed through to score on Lundqvist's five hole unassisted to break the tie in the third period. The Penguins qualities on the penalty kill were evident throughout the whole game and that confidence in chance suppression was clear as they restricted the Rangers to just four shots in the third period.
Kris Letang wrapped it up with a timely empty net goal and secured a key win for Pittsburgh. Game 4 is on Thursday night and it would be fantastic to win it and go back to Pittsburgh with the chance to close the season out on Saturday night.
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