Sergei Gonchar

After a disappointing game 4 against the Flyers for the Pens in which they took a 4-2 loss. The unfortunate player to be reviewed after a bad game for the Pens is that of the Penguins key defender Sergei Gonchar.

After a great regular season in which he was second in points for a defence man behind Lidstrom of the Detroit Red Wings. He was also leading point scorer in the Eastern Conference on the Powerplay. So overall a great season for him. The playoffs thus far have been good for him as well, but not on a attacking front for a change but a defensive one. He has been instrumental in the Pens success this season in the playoffs. That was clearly shown in Game 3 when he made probably one of the best defensive plays you will ever see (shown below)

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Game 4 however was for much a different prospect as Gonchar didn't really have is best game in a Pens jersey. Spending time in the box early for a silly penalty which helped shift the momentum in the direction of the Flyers as they raced to a 3 goal lead in the 1st period. His defensive play after that was a little slack although the Pens as a whole managed to tighten up. His offensive play didn't really come into action until the third period where he was trying to get the Pens first goal and getting it tied in the dying minutes in which he began to look more like a threat to the Flyers having a few shots blocked. It will not be a game Gonchar will remember as it wasn't his strongest and although he looked a little frail i am sure he will bounce back in Game 5 on Sunday.

Thanks for reading the blog please feel free to leave any comments. The next player under the microscope will be Kris Letang for Game 5 if i can watch the Game, due to early start i may be busy. Otherwise it will be the Game after that.