The NHL Closer is written by Greg Wyshynski, of The FanHouse and The Fourth Period. He is also the author of Glow Pucks And 10-Cent Beer. Enjoy.

Pittsburgh 4, NY Rangers 1. The Penguins built a 3-0 lead -- thanks, in part, to Evgeni Malkin getting out his All-Star snub aggressions -- at home last night when the Rangers unleashed hell in the second period to the tune of a 17-2 shot advantage. Unfortunately, they forgot one thing: They were no match for Pittsburgh's strong, turgid and unyielding Conk. Ty Conklin stopped 43 shots to remain undefeated in regulation through 11 starts, achieving a level of awesomeness that brings out pseudo-emo puck bunnies with homemade signs, curmudgeonly columnists who believe the bubble will burst at any moment, and what I'm sure will be an inevitable e-mail forward in which the name "Ty Conklin" is inserted into several dozen moldy Chuck Norris jokes.

For the last few weeks, I've been following Conklin like one might follow a novelty song up the singles charts. And while I've waited for the general public to wake up to the general awfulness of "Axel F" by Crazy Frog or "The Doggie Bounce," Conklin keeps. On. Winning. Only it's not some "insert mediocre goalie behind trap-happy defense" horseshit: Conklin has faced more than 35 shots in six of his wins and his one overtime loss.

But just as I'm starting to believe in the power of the Conk, some columnist who once lost a WCW wrestling match to...

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