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 On thin ice Penguins' playoff, NHL future in doubt entering Game 6
Posted: Sunday May 16, 1999 07:46 PM
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- This may not be a good omen for a team facing elimination from the Stanley Cup playoffs: The Zamboni at the Pittsburgh Penguins' practice rink broke down Sunday afternoon, scrubbing plans for a formal practice. One of the Zambonis at the training facility is already disabled, and the functioning machine stalled and spewed smoke as the driver tried to resurface the ice so the Penguins could practice. Some of the players skated on the choppy ice but most of the afternoon was devoted to meetings as the Penguins prepare for Monday night's home game against the Toronto Maple Leafs. If they win, they go back to Toronto for a deciding seventh game in the Eastern Conference series on Wednesday. If they lose, they go home and wonder if the franchise will survive its bankruptcy to return next season. Because of those all-or-nothing circumstances, Toronto has surpassed Hawaii or the Bahamas as a preferred destination. "I like Toronto too much," Penguins captain Jaromir Jagr said. "I want to come back for game seven." The Maple Leafs took a 3-2 lead in games with Saturday's 4-1 win in Toronto. The Penguins were in the same spot in their first-round series against New Jersey. They rallied to win the last two games. "If you've done something once, you can do it again," Penguins coach Kevin Constantine said. "You can re-create anything that's happened once."
The circumstances are a little different this time. Toronto has stepped up its defense, holding the Penguins to a total of 30 shots in the last two games. Where New Jersey wilted as the series dragged on, Toronto seems to be improving. "They've been getting better and better with each game." Pittsburgh defenseman Jiri Slegr said. The Maple Leafs have also found a way to bother Jagr, the NHL's scoring leader. Toronto's Dimitri Yuskevich is drawing most of the checking duties against Jagr. Jagr's frustration was evident Saturday. When he picked up a slashing penalty, he slammed his stick into the glass when he went to the penalty box. Jagr has been slowed by a nagging groin injury through the entire series. He's also had less supporting help since forwards German Titov and Alexei Kovalev have missed games due to injuries. Titov returned on Saturday but Kovalev missed his second game. "Jagr might be injured but to me he's healthy as a horse," Yuskevich said. The Penguins are not using the possibility of the franchise's extinction as a motivating issue. The Penguins currently are in bankruptcy proceedings. "All of us want to stay in Pittsburgh," Constantine said. "But what we need to rally around is what we can control, so I don't think that's where our heads should be." Slegr agreed. "You don't want to think that this might be the last game because that brings you down," he said. Constantine said Kovalev's availability wouldn't be known until game time. Kovalev has a bruised foot.
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