Penguins
Inside Penguins Locker Room: Malkin 1 on 1, Blomqvist 1st Win Relief (+)
DETROIT — The Pittsburgh Penguins flirted with disaster in the first period. Their defensive coverage was, politely, haphazard and their scoring touch had a doctor’s ice-cold hands. There was one person between the Penguins and getting blown out for a second consecutive night.
The player between the Penguins and “uh oh, this season is off to a really bad start” was rookie goalie Joel Blomqvist, who was pressed into duty on the second of back-to-back games because 1A goalie Alex Nedeljkovic remains on the injured list.
Nedeljkovic, like the Penguins, watched in the first period as the kid moved sharply from post to post, denying a few would-be goals. Perhaps most importantly, Blomqvist didn’t over-commit or lose his place. And he didn’t serve juicy rebounds for his defensemen to clean up, which was a good thing because the Penguins’ defensemen were not in clean-up mode, especially during the first period.
By the very late end of Thursday evening, which bordered on 11 p.m. because of the late start time, goals, and choppy play, Blomqvist was all smiles because he won his first NHL game and did so in front of his parents, who made the trip from Finland; Evgeni Malkin turned back time to flash those dangerous skills that made him one of the best players of the generation, and at least for a night, the fears of a catastrophic start were eased.
The Penguins even scored a power-play goal.
And perhaps lost in the shuffle, the Detroit Red Wings have some serious flaws, including a marshmallow defense. Detroit does not appear to be better than the Penguins, which bodes well for a playoff chase.
For another season, we’re happy to present the Penguins locker room feature after (almost) every game with the sights, sounds, and raw video.
Inside the Penguins Locker Room
Joel Blomqvist
Blomqvist is just 22 years old and has been in North America for only one season. His English is passable and improving, but the Finnish lad is not a big talker. In fact, he uses as few words as possible and keeps his media interviews simple.
Read More: Penguins Report Card: Blomqvist Rescues Pens for 1st Win; Malkin Dances
However, Thursday, despite using few words, the relief and joy of not only making his NHL debut but winning it with a tremendous performance, was visible. He couldn’t hide his happiness, which was immediately noticeable on his face and obvious in his voice. He tried to downplay it, but that was impossible.
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