This one is going to be short… as there is not much to say. Following the 2008 Winter Classic, the Penguins brass expected their team to be a bit slow and off the mark for this game. Apparently the Leafs didn’t get the memo.

The first period was fantastic for the Buds. They out-shot the Penguins 11 - 4 and Jason Blake was rewarded with a tally. They were skating circles around the Penguins and the game looked to be a good one for Leaf fans.

This feeling was very short lived. The Penguins were a different team in the second and third periods. They started pushing the Leafs around, using their speed to their advantage. And were there ever goals. Starting at 1:24 of the second, the Penguins scored 5 unanswered goals.

Jason Blake then decided to score his second of the game. But this was then followed by Evgeni Malkin scoring his third of the game, which was his first NHL hat trick.

All in all, a horrible day at the office for the Maple Leafs.

The only bright spot is Jason Blake’s scoring of late. He said that 2008 was going to be different… and so far so good.