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FIRST
Matchstick men
There's undeniably a combustible element present when Columbus coach John Tortorella becomes the primary matchmaker in a game.
Empowered with last-change rights in Game 3, Tortorella took full advantage of his opportunity to send Brandon Dubinsky and his linemates out against Sidney Crosby in five-on-five scenarios. They shared 14 minutes, 25 seconds of even-strength ice time, according to www.naturalstattrick.com.
Whether the Blue Jackets benefitted from such commitment to the matchup is debatable. The Penguins got three goals with Crosby on the ice against Dubinsky, and Columbus scored twice during that 14:25 of action.
The Blue Jackets also held a 16-7 edge in shots on goal and 21-18 advantage in shot attempts, but high-danger scoring chances as defined by Natural Stat Trick went in the Penguins' favor, 6-4.
Over the course of the series, a similar trend has unfolded. Dubinsky, on the ice against Crosby for 23:16 of five-on-five action through three games, has anchored lines that hold their own in terms of creating and preventing shots.
But a draw in that matchup has not hurt the Penguins' offensive production, while Dubinsky and linemates Cam Atkinson and Nick Foligno, who combined as a trio for 73 goals in the regular season, did not find the back of the net until Game 3.
second
Marc's marks
Marc-Andre Fleury's .892 save percentage in Game 3 might not inspire rave reviews, but it represented his best performance in a playoff road win since May 5, 2014, when he earned a shutout in New York against the Rangers.
“We've got guys that can put the puck in the net,” Fleury said Sunday. “I just thought if I can just stop the next one, (I'll) keep the guys in the game.”
Somewhat inexplicably, Fleury's best save percentages on the road in recent years came in losses.
He finished with marks of .944 and .947 in 2015 in a pair of setbacks at Madison Square Garden and had a .885 percentage in the Penguins' one road win.
Prior to a shutout win in 2014, Fleury last earned a win when posting a save percentage above .900 on the road in 2011 against Tampa Bay.
Between 2011 and Sunday, he earned playoff wins with save percentages of .880, .889, .850, .889, .867, .885 and the shutout in 2014. In that same span, he took losses with marks of .786, .818, .750, .913, .897, .947 and .944.
third
busying bob
Coach Mike Sullivan said before Game 3 he wanted the Penguins to improve their efforts to hold the offensive zone and make the Blue Jackets expend energy defending.
The Penguins more than accomplished that mission.
After finishing Game 1 and 2 with shot attempt totals right around their season average, they tallied 94 shot attempts on Sunday. That total represented the most in a game since the start of Sullivan's tenure by 11 attempts. For comparison's sake, the Penguins had 55 and 47 in Game 2 and 1, respectively.
OVERTIME
name game
Bryan Rust's surname creates little need or urgency for a nickname, but his performances in the playoffs — eight goals in 26 game appearances — continues to invite the possibility of another label.
So how might “Big-Game Bryan Rust” sit with the winger, who turns 25 in less than a month?
“I wouldn't call myself that, ever,” he said.
“I try and just stay even-keel. When things go poorly, I try to forget about it. When things go well, I try to forget about it.”
Bill West is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at wwest@tribweb.com or via Twitter @BWest_Trib.