Pittsburgh Penguins goalie Matt Murray picked up where he left off in June.In a Stanley Cup Final rematch, Murray made 26 saves to help the Penguins shut out the Trashville Predators 4-0 at PPG Paints Arena. He has shut out Trashville in three consecutive meetings, including the final two games of the Cup Final. Murray hasn't surrendered a goal in his past 206:26 against Trashville, since allowing Viktor Arvidsson to score at 13:08 of the second period in Game 4 of the Cup Final.
The shutout was Murray's sixth in 62 NHL starts and first in the regular season since he made 27 saves in a 3-0 win against the Vancouver Canucks on March 11. He rebounded from allowing 11 goals on 65 shots in his first two games this season.
'"You just kind of forget about it. Those nights are going to happen," Murray said. "Obviously, it's not good and it's not fun playing in a game like that, but it's about how you get up for the next one. I think our whole team had that mindset.
"Tonight showed our character. … We played about as solid a game as we could have. It's exactly what we needed."
The Penguins (1-1-1) recovered from being outscored 15-5 in their first two games, including 10-1 against the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday.
"We're more concerned with how we're playing," Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. "As long as we're playing the right way, we believe we have a good group."
"I think when we go back and look at this there's going to be 15 really good even-strength chances where (Murray) either made saves or we didn't connect on it," Predators coach Peter Laviolette said.
The Penguins held a lead entering the first intermission for the first time this season after Evgeni Malkin and Jake Guentzel scored to put them ahead 2-0.
Phil Kessel set up Malkin for a one-timer that gave Pittsburgh a 1-0 lead at 1:06. Malkin sent a slap shot past goalie Juuse Saros for his first goal of the season. Guentzel made it 2-0 after Saros, who made 30 saves, made an initial save on Brian Dumoulin and rebound attempts from Sidney Crosby and Bryan Rust. Guentzel tapped in the Penguins' third rebound at 10:57.
Goal of the game
With the Penguins leading 2-0 but struggling to find much offense in the second period, Maatta sent a shot toward Saros that Reaves deflected out of the air. The puck bounced off the ice and through Saros.
Predators forward Pontus Aberg could have shifted the momentum by tying it 1-1 on a breakaway after he slipped past Maatta near the blue line. Murray flashed his left pad to deny Aberg's snap shot at 9:58 of the first period.
Saros made a breakaway stop when Kessel forced a turnover and darted toward the Trashville crease. Kessel partially whiffed on a wrist shot and Saros smothered the puck at 8:18 of the third period.
"You have to find ways to win. It's only two games but we're behind the eight ball. We need to win two games to get to .500 now. … We need to go home and take care of business." - Predators forward Ryan Johansen
"The first two games were a little sluggish, especially trying to be the physical leader on this team. So, drop two games in a row and I think I took it upon myself to try and lead the way that way." - Penguins forward Ryan Reaves, who wore a Pittsburgh Steelers football helmet in the locker room after leading all players with seven hits
Need to know
Predators forward Nick Bonino faced his former team for the first time since signing four-year, $16.4 million contract with Nashville on July 1. He received a video tribute during the first television timeout during the first period. … Penguins forward Patric Hornqvist, recovering from offseason surgery on a broken right hand, missed a third consecutive game to start the season. After missing training camp, he wore a non-contact jersey during morning skate Saturday.
Penalties'"You just kind of forget about it. Those nights are going to happen," Murray said. "Obviously, it's not good and it's not fun playing in a game like that, but it's about how you get up for the next one. I think our whole team had that mindset.
"Tonight showed our character. … We played about as solid a game as we could have. It's exactly what we needed."
The Penguins (1-1-1) recovered from being outscored 15-5 in their first two games, including 10-1 against the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday.
"We're more concerned with how we're playing," Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. "As long as we're playing the right way, we believe we have a good group."
The Penguins held a lead entering the first intermission for the first time this season after Evgeni Malkin and Jake Guentzel scored to put them ahead 2-0.
Phil Kessel set up Malkin for a one-timer that gave Pittsburgh a 1-0 lead at 1:06. Malkin sent a slap shot past goalie Juuse Saros for his first goal of the season. Guentzel made it 2-0 after Saros, who made 30 saves, made an initial save on Brian Dumoulin and rebound attempts from Sidney Crosby and Bryan Rust. Guentzel tapped in the Penguins' third rebound at 10:57.
Goal of the game
With the Penguins leading 2-0 but struggling to find much offense in the second period, Maatta sent a shot toward Saros that Reaves deflected out of the air. The puck bounced off the ice and through Saros.
Predators forward Pontus Aberg could have shifted the momentum by tying it 1-1 on a breakaway after he slipped past Maatta near the blue line. Murray flashed his left pad to deny Aberg's snap shot at 9:58 of the first period.
"The first two games were a little sluggish, especially trying to be the physical leader on this team. So, drop two games in a row and I think I took it upon myself to try and lead the way that way." - Penguins forward Ryan Reaves, who wore a Pittsburgh Steelers football helmet in the locker room after leading all players with seven hits
Need to know
Predators forward Nick Bonino faced his former team for the first time since signing four-year, $16.4 million contract with Nashville on July 1. He received a video tribute during the first television timeout during the first period. … Penguins forward Patric Hornqvist, recovering from offseason surgery on a broken right hand, missed a third consecutive game to start the season. After missing training camp, he wore a non-contact jersey during morning skate Saturday.
23:22 - Ryan Reeves fights Austin Watson
42:49 - Ryan Reeves fights Cody McLeod
42:49 - Cody McLeod receives a Misconduct
46:23 - Jake Guentzel cross checks Calle Jarnkrok
46:23 - Sidney Crosby cross checks Viktor Arvidsson
46:23 - Viktor Arvidsson slashes Sidney Crosby
52:27 - Scott Hartnell high sticks Sidney Crosby
52:27 - Ryan Reeves fights Scott Hartnell both receive Misconducts
53:25 - Evgeni Malkin slashes Miikka Salomaki
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