Chipped Ice A.M.: Hornqvist's full-bodied effort powers Penguins
Patric Hornqvist used every body part at his disposal to help the Penguins beat the Washington Capitals in a seven-game Eastern Conference semifinals series that ended Wednesday night.
First, he used his guts.
Hornqvist blocked a John Carlson shot with his lower leg in Game 2 and spent most of the night off the ice getting medical attention, then returned to the lineup for Game 3 like nothing ever happened.
In Game 4, after scoring a highlight-reel breakaway goal less than five minutes into the first period, Hornqvist took a Brooks Orpik shot to the same lower-leg location and spent much of the game walking it off up and down the runway that leads to the Penguins locker room.
In Game 6, Hornqvist dove head-first to the ice after a puck and caught Matt Niskanen's skate right in his face, leaving cuts and bruises around his right eye. By the third period of Game 7, he was backhanding a puck past Braden Holtby to score another critical goal.
The glorification of playing through pain can be a dangerous part of hockey culture, but putting that issue aside for the moment, there's no doubt Hornqvist's guts were an inspiration to his teammates in the series.
Hornqvist also used his legs.
Throughout most of the first six games of the series, the Capitals were able to cleanly break out of their defensive zone much more often than not. The relentless puck pursuit the Penguins used to harass defensemen during a Stanley Cup run last season was mostly missing.
In a key moment in Game 7, that changed. A few minutes into the third period, with the Penguins up 1-0, Hornqvist badgered defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk and winger Alex Ovechkin into a bad exchange in the defensive zone. Hornqvist's goal soon followed.
"The last three or four games, it felt like we were running down," Hornqvist said. "Then tonight, we get that pressure over and over, and that's why we take over the third and come out as winners."
Finally, Hornqvist used his mouth.
Part of that had to do with his vociferousness on the ice during practices.
When the series got tight and nerves began to fray after the Penguins lost Games 5 and 6, Hornqvist was front and center in practice Tuesday and at morning skate Wednesday, hooting and hollering as he usually does. It was the kind of energy his Penguins teammates needed a jolt of.
Part of it also had to do with his dealings with the media.
The deeper the Penguins get into the playoffs, the national and international media presence in their locker room will increase. Generally speaking, those large newsgathering organizations will want to stick their cameras in the faces of the biggest names possible.
When dealing with a broad audience whose hockey interest might be more casual, it makes sense to talk to Sidney Crosby rather than Carter Rowney.
Circumstances in the Capitals series often put a wrench in those plans, however. Crosby was dealing with a concussion he suffered in Game 3. Kris Letang is out with a neck injury. Marc-Andre Fleury, Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel have adopted policies where they don't talk to reporters after morning skate on game days.
In the face of that, Hornqvist emerged as a bit of a spokesman in the Penguins locker room.
On Wednesday morning, in between joking with a reporter whose cell phone rang during the interview, Hornqvist spoke eloquently about the challenges his team faced in Game 7.
"This part of the season, it's all about your heart," he said. "Both teams are probably tired. It's will instead of skill out there. We have to make sure we bring the effort. If we do that, I like our chances."
After the Penguins secured a 2-0 victory in Game 7, Hornqvist again stepped in front of the microphones and summed up the effort of himself and his teammates with flair.
"We've been through so much the last two years here," Hornqvist said. "There have been injuries up and down. Almost not making the playoffs and then we go and win the Cup. Then we have our backs against the wall again and we come up with the best game so far of the season. It's a lot of character. We trust in ourselves in here. We know we have a great group of guys."
THE SERIES: Penguins win, 4-3.
LAST GAME: Bryan Rust's second-period goal was all the run support Marc-Andre Fleury needed to knock off the top-seeded Capitals 2-0 in Game 7 Wednesday night.
NEXT GAME: It will be a quick turnaround to the Eastern Conference finals for the Penguins, who host the Ottawa Senators at 7 p.m. Saturday.
A NOTE: Justin Williams, who came into Wednesday's game with seven goals, seven assists and seven victories in seven career Game 7 appearances, was much of a factor for the Capitals. He had no points and two shots in about 20 minutes of ice time.
A QUOTE: "I think as a group, we made an attitude adjustment and decided to go at them instead of sitting back. We found ourselves ahead in this series, and I think that we found ourselves sitting back a little bit, trying to protect a lead or protect a series as opposed to just going after it. … For us to be successful, that's what we need more of." – Penguins center Matt Cullen
A NUMBER: 6 – career Game 7 appearances for Cullen. His team has won all six games.
