Pittsburg, PA
Penguins Rookies Shine; Avery Hayes & Ben Kindel Fill the Net in Win
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Tommy Novak shoveled Egor Chinakhov’s rebound for a hard-fought goal, and frustrations over officiating and scoring chances denied melted away. Novak was the only Pittsburgh Penguins (29-15-12) goal scorer who was not a rookie.
And the Penguins hit the Olympic break with a well-earned 5-2 win over the Buffalo Sabres (32-19-6) at Key Bank Center.
Avery Hayes scored a pair of impressive goals. Important ones, too.
Second shift. First career shot. First NHL goal. The perfect storm of Penguins’ injury (Rickard Rakell), illness (Noel Acciari), and personal absence (Blake Lizotte) created a need for the Penguins to make a recall just hours before the game. The organization chose the scrappy Hayes to make his NHL debut, and they were handsomely rewarded.
Midway through the first period, Hayes chased a bouncing puck in the offensive zone and zipped past defenseman Jacob Bryson for a short breakaway. Hayes (1) showed a healthy burst of speed past Bryson for the puck and whipped it past Buffalo goalie Alex Lyon at 9:17 of the first period for a 1-1 tie.
The goal changed the game as the sputtering Penguins sprang to life.
Hayes had unfinished business. Second career shot, second career goal.
Later in the first period, Hayes flashed more speed by chipping the puck into the offensive zone and racing past everyone to take possession. He worked the puck behind the net for Anthony Mantha, who snapped a pass back to Hayes, who was charging toward the net.
Hayes (2) roofed a tight-angle one-timer past Lyon at 18:47 for a 2-1 Penguins lead.
Ben Kindel also scored a pair of goals.
The Penguins’ goals were exclusively from rookies through the first 40 minutes. Early in the second period, Kindel stole the puck at the defensive blue line, launching himself on a two-on-one with Justin Brazeau.
Kindel (13) unleashed a particularly wicked wrister for the near post and past Lyon at 7:44 of the second period for the unassisted goal and a 3-1 lead.
Kindel (14) also scored the empty-netter with 13 seconds remaining.
The Penguins started well, but one little mistake quickly turned into an early deficit. Penguins winger Egor Chinakhov carried the puck too long and was stripped of possession at the red line. Buffalo quickly countered, and former Penguins winger Jason Zucker (15) sniped a far-corner shot over Penguins goalie Arturs Silovs at 1:46 of the first period.
However, the Buffalo power plays continued, and Buffalo made their fourth chance count when Tage Thompson put a quarter in the piggy bank, snapping a tight-angle shot into the small space above Silovs’s shoulder and beneath the crossbar at 1:55 of the third to cut the Penguins’ lead to 3-2.
At the time, it was Buffalo’s fourth power play, compared to just one for the Penguins, despite some opportunities for referees Mike Sullivan and Jake Brenk to even the chances.
The Penguins ended with three power play chances after Peyton Krebs ran over Silovs in the third period, an act for which he received a minor penalty and some heavy right hands from defenseman Connor Clifton after the pair dropped the gloves.
Buffalo ended with five power plays, including an advantage in the final 90 seconds when Anthony Mantha was called for hooking.
Silovs stopped 25 of 27. Lyon stopped 27 of 31 before being pulled for the extra attacked.
Penguins Notes
The team played without Rakell and Blake Lizotte. Rakell was out with a lower-body injury, which coach Dan Muse termed day-to-day. Lizotte is with his wife, attending the birth of their first child.
Avery Hayes was the 12th rookie to play for the Penguins this season. That figure leads the NHL.
Since the Sabres fired GM Kevyn Adams, the team was 20-3-1 entering the game Thursday.
Categorized:Penguins Postgame
Pittsburg, PA
Get PFL Pittsburgh results for the Eblen vs. Battle event Saturday night.
MMA Fighting has PFL Pittsburgh results for the Eblen vs. Battle fight card and more from UPMC Events Center in Pittsburgh on Saturday night.
In the main event, former Bellator middleweight champion Johnny Eblen tries to earn another title shot with a win over Bryan Battle, who makes his PFL debut. Eblen (16-1) suffered his first career loss against Costello van Steenis in a PFL title bout in his most recent outing.
Dalton Rosta and Impa Kasanganay clash in a middleweight contest in the co-main event.
Check out PFL Pittsburgh results below.
Main Card (ESPN2 at 10 p.m. ET)
Johnny Eblen vs. Bryan Battle
Dalton Rosta vs. Impa Kasanganay
Ariane Lipski da Silva vs. Sumiko Inaba
Alexei Pergande vs. Julio Arce
Lazaro Dayron vs. Jacob Thrall
Prelims (ESPN+ at 7 p.m. ET)
Allan Begosso vs. Jack Cartwright
Natan Schulte vs. Jakub Kaszuba
Robert Watley vs. Dakota Bush
Ernesto Rodriguez vs. Masayuki Kikuiri
Tatiana Postarnakova vs. Elora Dana
Josh Fremd vs. Jarrah Al Salawi
Ethan Goss vs. Fred Dupras
Pittsburg, PA
Pittsburgh has rainiest March in nearly 60 years as flooding causes issues across area
Several areas across western Pennsylvania were hit by flooding as overnight rainfall pushed Pittsburgh past a nearly 60-year-old record.
Pittsburgh has recorded 6.18 inches of rain in March, breaking the record of 6.10 inches, which was set in 1967. The rain caused issues in several communities on Friday, including some in Washington and Westmoreland counties.
Major road flooded in Washington County
Communities across Washington County spent Friday cleaning up after flooding from Thursday night’s storms.
Roads were closed, and ballfields were wrecked because of the rain. Ponds that aren’t supposed to be there could be found all over the county.
“As long as it rains and the creek is flooded, then the road is flooded,” Ruth Mahoney, the owner of The Glass Place in Cecil Township, said.
Georgetown Road in Cecil Township turned into a lake at the bottom of a hill and underpass. Dispatchers said the driver of a car stuck in the water didn’t have to be rescued or taken to the hospital. The flooding ties up the area as the road connects Interstate 79 to Route 19.
“It’s a main artery,” Mahoney said. “Tons of cars come down here every day.”
North Strabane Township saw more of the same. The Lindenwood Golf Club had some new water hazards on the course on Friday. As the water receded into the Linden Creek, a mess was left behind.
It was the same story in Houston.
“When I looked out the window, I was like, ‘woah.’ It’s just rising fast,” said Rogelio Esteris. “My daughter was here playing baseball yesterday because she’s on the softball team and now the field is ruined.”
South Strabane Township had a landslide on Locust Road as well. Mother Nature didn’t take it easy on Washington County. Mahoney said it’s affecting her business.
“When people call, they want to know how to get here,” she said. “You have to tell them, you can’t come because it’s closed today or there’s a backroad, but they don’t understand how to come on the backroad.”
Mahoney said the water should take about a day to recede. Officers told KDKA the car would have to wait to be towed until the water goes down.
Loyalhanna Creek rises, flooding yards
As dawn broke on Friday morning and the rain from the previous night began to cease, some residents of Westmoreland County who live close to the Loyalhanna Creek saw flooding around their homes and along their local roads.
Paul Faust, who lives in the Darlington area of Ligonier Township, has a small tributary to the Loyalhanna Creek in his backyard, but on Friday, that run was acting less like a stream and more like a moat.
“I was up probably about 5 a.m., and it was high,” Faust said. “But it wasn’t over the bank like this and then the next following two hours it started going up. But that is always how it is after it rains.”
Faust says that he and his wife have a system for when their area floods, including tying down outdoor furniture and moving their cars to the top of their driveway.
Many people that KDKA spoke with in Ligonier Township on Friday who live in low-lying areas said they are used to this type of thing and while this flash flood was unexpected, it was not out of the ordinary.
Some water had already begun to recede by Friday afternoon, but Ligonier Valley Police Chief Michael Matrunics still wanted to urge caution, especially for people driving on side roads that may still be flooded around the township.
“It might not look it, but it could be deeper than you expect,” Matrunics said. “And keep in mind, if you go past signs that are posted here, you could be cited for that. Also, if emergency services have to come out and rescue you or tow companies, you’re responsible for the cost. And your safety. Let’s put that at number one. So don’t drive through standing water on these bad weather dates.”
Pittsburg, PA
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