As a handful of Pittsburgh penguins dribbled to the ice for an extra morning skate on the team's training facility on Wednesday morning, they found themselves in an unfamiliar and uncomfortable place. It was less than 14 hours after they suffered a crushing loss of 4-3 in Game 3 in the Washington capitals, which are only the second team for so many years to play a series of playoffs over the two defending champions.
Pittsburgh found himself pursuing Washington in Games 1 and 2 after slow starts in each, and now he was in a rare position in the pursuit of the series. It resembles a 2-1 hole that the penguins hit last year's Eastern Conference finals against Ottawa that created a tight game in this series 4. Pittsburgh won this game, 3-2, the main answer, as he survived the senators in seven games before dislodging Nashville in the final of the Stanley Cup. The fourth game 4 against Washington carries similar bets, so on Wednesday for some players there was a chance to work on their shortcomings and find a complete closure after the captains of forward Alex Ovechkin shook them in his own building with a win in the game with 67 seconds left on Tuesday in the evening,
"It's good to be there. I mean, especially after the game, if there are things you want to work on, "said Capt. Penguins Sidney Crosby, who was one of the few payers who skated on Wednesday. "You know, when there are fewer fewer guys that you sometimes do there a little."
Crosby got a lot of work on Wednesday morning, but most other players took a day off to decompose and rest. There were only a few players left in the locker room for Washington's controversial Washington Wilson address on Pittsburgh Zach Aston Rize, who left the game with a broken jaw and a concussion, according to Penguins coach Mike Sullivan.
Although this blow was at the forefront of discussions on Wednesday - the injured Aston-Reese jaw will require surgical intervention - another development was more positive for Pittsburgh. Wounded striker Karl Hagelin can soon return.
Sullivan said that Hagelin, who was injured in the upper body in the first round of the Penguins against Philadelphia, but participated in the morning skateboard on Wednesday, is a solution for playing the game 4. This could be a decisive addition for the team that will be on their veterans, to overcome this rare shortage of the series. Pittsburgh twice hit the 0-1 hole during his championship, which was held two seasons ago, including against Washington - and it was 3-2 against Tampa Bay in the Eastern Conference finals before planning two wins to take the series . But he pulled 2-1 in the series only once before in the last three postseason.
"Now 2: 1. We were at the bottom of 2-1," said Hagelin. "You do not want to be there, but at the same time we're playing at home tomorrow, and we've still done a lot. It's just a question of getting this victory tomorrow. "
This may largely depend on how Pittsburgh starts the game 4. The penguins allowed Washington forward Yevgeny Kuznetsov to score just a few seconds in Game 1, and he noticed that the "Capitals" took 3-0 after another dull start in game 2. Pittsburgh looked more disciplined in the first period in Game 3, using a conservative approach and limiting Washington's opportunities with an unusual person. But Pittsburgh was not able to defend his conclusions, gaining the advantage of 2-1 and 3-2 after the first period. It seemed unsuitable for a team that pursues the third title in a row, which will happen only when the penguins can climb out of this unfamiliar hole.
"We have a lot of experience to build on the circumstances. It's hard to win in the playoffs. You're going to go through emotional highs and emotional lows, "Sullivan said. "Right now, our eyes are on game 4."
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