Pittsburgh Penguins vs Tampa Bay Lightning pros and cons

Tonight the Penguins play the Tampa Bay Lightning in Tampa Bay. Gametime 7:30pm. There are quite a few story lines to watch for. For one, they are playing for the lead in points in the Eastern Conference. Tampa Bay has started off 5-3-1 for 11 points. The Pens are also 5-3-1. The Pens are 3-0-1 on the road while Tampa is 2-1-1 at home. Both teams have lost their last game. The Penguins are coming off a great played game however they lost to St Louis 1-0 in OT. The Lightning's last game was Sunday and they lost to Nashville 4-3.

Tampa Bay has several Penguins connections. Of course there is Ryan Malone. Malone has started the season pretty slow. He has 1 goal and 4 assists. Malone will not be wearing the number 12 we are used to. He switched to number 6 after Simon Gagne asked for the number 12 jersey. Other ex Pens on the team are...Dominic Moore and Adam Hall.
The Lightnings coach, Guy Boucher, was an assistant on Crosby's major junior team in Rimousk. 


Tampa has several injuries including Moore and Gagne who are both doubtful. Defenseman Mattias Ohlund (knee), Brett Clark (wrist) and Matt Smaby (illness) are all questionable.


For Pittsburgh, in addition to Staal and Michalek, Eric Godard has an illness and will not play tonight. 


Tampa features several very dangerous forwards to look out for. Steven Stamkos is the real deal. He shared the league leader in goals with Crosby last year. He leads the NHL in points this year. Martin St Louis is always a Penguin killer. Vincent Lacavalier also has had good success against the Pens.


The Pens have not announced a starting goalie for tonight. I have to believe its going to Marc Andre Fleury. For Tampa, most likely Mike Smith. Smith is 4-0 on the season but with a 3.12 GAA. Against the Pens alltime, Smith is 3-3 but has an impressive 1.68 GAA.


Here we go, tonights Pros and Cons....




PROS:

• The Penguins are 5-1 in their last 6 trips to Tampa Bay. 
• Health, Tonight the Pens will get another piece back when Asham makes his regular season debut. He practiced on a 4th line yesterday but will most likely be moved around as the game progresses.
• The Lightning are 26th in the league for Goals Against. 

CONS:

• While the Lightning have been giving up alot of goals, they score even more. They lead the league in goals per game with 3.38
• Whats interesting is that while they are 26th in the league in goals against, they are 5th overall in penalty kill. They also have a dangerous power play that is 4th in the league
• As mentioned above, Stamkos is a real threat. St Louis and Lecavelier also average almost a point per game against the Pens

Should be a great game tonight. I expect alot of wide open play and tons of scoring chances for both teams.