The crowd of white waved their white towels frantically as they welcomed their hometown heroes onto the ice for the very first ever postseason game at Consol Energy Center last night.
Among them was the (my) hero of the night, # 29.
The Pittsburgh Penguins pulled off a win in Game 1 of Round 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs with a shutout, 3-0. The whole team deserves a slap on the back but I think the win is, in large, thanks to Marc-Andre Fleury.
Fleury made 32 saves against the Lightning. He was under fire for the better part of the first period as Tampa continued to take shots and crash his net, but St. Louis, Stamkos and former Penguin, Malone had nothing on the Flower.
But Fleury doesn't get caught up in the hoopla surrounding his crazy skills, "I just try to stop the next puck."
His MVP caliber in the regular season has unsurprisingly carried over to the postseason. Fleury continues to be the backbone of this team, allowing them to stay on top of the race. His usual acrobatic shenanigans proved to be even riskier than usual as he denied the Lightning every opportunity they created. Fortunately, lady luck was on his side, especially as he left the net wide open and quickly flew back, Fleury-style, just in time to stop the puck with his outstretched body.
"He battles for every puck, and no matter if he's out of position or not, he's going to try to make the save. And he comes up big every time. It's great to have a guy like that back there," James Neal described his appreciation for his goaltender.
Even Tampa Bay's coach, Guy Boucher was amazed by Fleury's performance, "I still can’t believe he made some of those saves. He’s done it in the past, and it’s certainly going to be tough to beat him."
I agree. With instincts like his and an incredible team in front of him, it certainly will be.
written by Lori Pometo
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