NEW JERSEY VS. TORONTO BUFFALO VS. PITTSBURGH COLORADO VS. LOS ANGELES DALLAS VS. ST. LOUIS

Saturday, May 5 Too many penalties hurt Penguins in Game 5 By Brian A. Shactman ESPN.com BUFFALO – Stu Barnes' wicked slap shot from the high slot at 8:34 of overtime officially gave the Sabres a 3-2 win in Saturday's Game 5. But the Sabres had the game in hand long before ... in the second period. Darius Kasparaitis, left, was one of five Pittsburgh players to take a penalty in the second period. Pittsburgh expended significant energy – and shortened its bench even more – to kill off more than seven power-play minutes. "Any time you're going to have to kill six penalties, that's going to hurt," said Ian Moran, who skated for much of what was actually five penalties assessed to the Penguins in the second period. "When you're out there killing a penalty, you're out there for 30-40 seconds, and it's an all-out sprint." Buffalo had 14:08 of power-play time in the game, whereas Pittsburgh had just 5:40. The Penguins weren't thrilled about the disparity in penalties (10-6) between the two teams. "They dumped the puck and we tried to hold them up. Sometimes, it seemed like they fold easy and the referees are reacting right away," Penguins defenseman Darius Kasparaitis said. "We have to be more careful holding them up because if they are going to fall down all the time, we're going to get penalties." And as Game 5 went on, those costly penalties began to wear down Pittsburgh, which eventually squandered a two-goal lead and fell into a 3-2 hole in the best-of-7 series. "It's like doing a fitness test out while you're out there," Moran added. "When you're doing that for 12 minutes out of a period, that's going to take its wear and tear on you." The stats show the difference after the second period. “ It's been a tendency in almost every game where as the game has worn on, we've still skated extremely well. I think the only explanation is that maybe the fact we use more personnel and are just a little bit fresher. ” — Sabres coach Lindy Ruff Pittsburgh had seven giveaways in the first period, compared to Buffalo's 11. In the second, Buffalo turned it over three times to Pittsburgh's five. In the third period, Pittsburgh had three more giveaways than Buffalo, and four more in overtime. The same is true for shots on goal. Pittsburgh had a 10-4 edge in the first period, but the Sabres dominated the remainder of the game. The Sabres outshot the Pens, 30-27, including a 4-1 advantage in overtime. Some of the added shots came on the man advantage, and while the Sabres agreed killing so many penalties can exhaust a team, they credit how coach Lindy Ruff uses his whole bench. "We can definitely roll four lines, and we have faith in everyone," said Buffalo defenseman Rhett Warrener, the only player in the game to be plus-2. "It's been a tendency in almost every game where as the game has worn on, we've still skated extremely well," Ruff said. "I think the only explanation is that maybe the fact we use more personnel and are just a little bit fresher." Pittsburgh continues to say depth isn't an issue, but the pattern in Game 5 wasn't the first instance of the Sabres finishing stronger than the Penguins. "As far as the issue of us playing three lines, we played three lines primarily all year, so we're the team that can do it," Moran said. Pittsburgh's year might come to an end Tuesday night in Game 6 if the Penguins don't stay out of the penalty box. Brian A. Shactman covers the NHL for ESPN.com. He can be reached at brian.shactman@espn.com. Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories

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