Penguins Must Use Olympic Break as Gut-Check Time

The Olympic break is here leaving 20 games in the regular season for the Penguins.  Here’s hoping it gives each player plenty of time to look in the mirror and come to the conclusion that ‘I must play better’.   These last three games before the break have definitely been a microcosm of the season.   The players continue to give lip service to effort and detail, and again fail to do either.  Getting outshot 15-8 in the second period by Nashville was another of a long string of time in games where the Pens play as if the points aren’t important.  Looking at my favorite telltale statistic, giveaways and takeaways, the Pens are once again a big disappointment.  8 giveaways and O takeaways against the Predators – proof of yet another lackluster effort. 

Heading into the last three home games before the break, the mantra was a continual ‘We must be better at home’, ‘We must beat the lesser teams’, ‘We must play 60 minutes’, ‘We must be more consistent’.  The problem is everyone is saying this, but most of them are not hearing it.  This last fourth of the season will set up the playoff run for the Pens.  They need to get a good seed and get some momentum built up heading into April.  Here’s hoping they start building that momentum at home on March 2nd against Buffalo.  Three of their first four games after the break are at home.  That will be a good time to start listening to what everyone was saying before the break.   That’s the view from E-11. 

Note — Steigy and Errey’s amusement with each other plus Errey’s high-pitched girl-y voice inflections continue to be irritating.  After listening to Mears and Grove call some of the Islander game, one can see that a professional replacement team is already here.