Pittsburgh Penguins need to repeat Game 1 formula against Boston Bruins

Jun 1, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Boston Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask (40) slides across the crease to make a save against Pittsburgh Penguins left wing Chris Kunitz (14) during the second period in game one of the Eastern Conference finals of the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the CONSOL Energy Center. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

The Pittsburgh Penguins were fast, physical and emotionally engaged in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference final against the Boston Bruins. They generated high-quality offensive opportunities and limited Boston’s, at least for the first two periods.

So what if they couldn’t put the puck in the net?

Not to be Pollyannaish, but the fact that the Penguins were shut out for the first time in 16 months Saturday night has absolutely no bearing on my previously-stated belief that Pittsburgh will ultimately prevail.

Yes, the Bruins won the shots-on-goal battle (30-29) and total shot attempts (52-49) were just slightly in favor of the Penguins. By those indicators, Game 1 at Consol Energy Center was a tight, competitive battle, more so than the 3-0 final would suggest. However, I’m here to tell you the Penguins were the better team for the majority of the 60 minutes, especially for the first 40.

I won’t quarrel with the postgame assessments of Dan Bylsma and Sidney Crosby, as the coach and the captain agreed that the Pens got careless and a bit ahead of themselves in the third period, certainly after the Bruins’ David Krejci made it 2-0 early in the frame.

Jun 1, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Boston Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask (40) makes a save as Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby (87) looks for a rebound and defenseman Zdeno Chara (33) and left wing Daniel Paille (20) defend during the first period in game one of the Eastern Conference finals of the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the CONSOL Energy Center. The Boston Bruins won 3-0. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Before that, though, Pittsburgh dictated terms to Boston, earning four power plays and slamming puck after puck in the direction of the Bruins net. A combination of poor aim, goal posts, bad luck and good goaltending from Tuukka Rask stymied the prolific Penguins offense. Even after putting up a zero in Game 1, Pittsburgh is averaging nearly four goals per playoff game, by far the best output in the tournament.

While that rate projects to decrease a bit – the Pens scored a league-best 3.38 per contest in the 48-game regular season – there were enough glorious Pittsburgh scoring chances Saturday to believe the East’s No. 1 seed will dent Rask and Bruins enough to advance to the Stanley Cup Final.

The Bruins will make adjustments, as they weren’t pleased with how many point-blank attempts on their net the Pens got. Boston also revealed leaks in the veneer of Penguins netminder Tomas Vokoun, making Game 2 critical for the 36-year-old former backup to reassert himself, assuming Marc-Andre Fleury doesn’t return to the crease.

Those concerns aside, the Penguins’ chances of evening the series are great if they come close to matching the volume of good looks they got in the opener. This team is built to score, and while they are capable of winning a 2-1 game, something along the lines of 4-2 would be more in their comfort zone.

The Pens don’t have to be airtight to win this matchup, but they do need more of a finishing touch. That was the Pittsburgh’s biggest missing piece in Game 1.