Penguins: Oops, let’s try this again!

Before this playoff series started, many people suggested that Kris Letang was going to be the key factor in the Penguins play-off run. Most of the articles I read proselytized Letang’s offense as the marker to watch. At the time, I partially agreed with them, I agreed and still agree that Letang is the key. Where I differ is in my belief as to what part of Letang’s game is the key. It will not be Letang’s offense that will determine the outcome of the Flyer series or the Penguins’ playoff fortunes but his defense and not his defensive strengths but his defensive liabilities that will be the key factor.

Many times I have heard media talking heads compare Letang to the old Rover position in hockey back in the late 19th century. That peculiar position disappeared from the forerunner to the NHL, the National Hockey Association (NHA) in 1910, from, and the NHL in 1917. The position survived a few more years in the Pacific Coast Hockey league (PCHL) and the Western Canada Hockey League (WCHL) and even was used during the 1920 Winter Olympics. However, by 1923 all leagues decided that the extra player per team on the ice crowded the ice and slowed the play down, so the position was eliminated.

Even when the position existed, there were still 2-Defensemen on the ice, responsible for playing defense. Unfortunately, when Letang goes off acting like the old time Rover, he leaves his defensive partner as the only defenseman and thereby leaves the Goalie hanging out on a limb. Wednesday night in Philadelphia he played a fairly strong, defensively responsible game and the Penguins won; not only won but had a shut out.

Unfortunately, that Kris Letang didn’t show up last night. The Kris Letang that showed up last night look much more like a 6 year old learning how to play soccer, following the puck rather than playing his position. The Letang that showed up last night roved far and wide across the ice, often to the detriment of the team.

Watching the Flyers’ first goal in real time and on replay (many times now), I cringedand still cringe watching Letang go behind the net to join Brian Dumoulin and Jake Guentzel to try and triple team a Flyer, only to get in the way of the Penguins already there and leave Claude Giroux wide open at the bottom of the face-off circle. No goalie, ever born, can react fast enough to stop a one time slap shot from the bottom of the face-off circle.

As frustrating as watching the Flyers’ first goal was, watching Valterri Filpula get in behind Letang to not only get to the Jori Lehtera rebound and get one extra shot off, but a third crack at the puck to knock it in behind, Matt Murray was sheer torture. Our own Phil Krundle found a great picture of Letang and Dumoulin boxing out Flyers’ defensemen in game 4 to add to some of my post after that game. I am left wondering how they could play such positional solid one game and then do a 180 the next game.

Letang may not have really been the main culprit on the Flyers’ 3rd goal but he was on the ice for that one too. The breakout looked more like the Keystone Kops rather than an NHL team. Granted, the team has looked really solid with its breakouts so far this post season and this breakout was more of an anomaly. However, looking at that 3rd goal, even though it didn’t matter, the puck deflected off of Dumounlin, Scott Laughton was in behind the Penguins’ Defense and if you watch the replay, Letang wanders into the picture off of the left wing wall. Even if Dumoulin hadn’t deflected the puck past Murray, Letang would never have been able to prevent Laughton from getting at least 1 if not 2 rebound cracks.

Finally, on the Flyers, 4th, and empty net goal, Letang nonchalantly skated the puck to the Penguins’ blue-line, no speed, no urgency, giving the Flyers time to set up their wall. It really didn’t surprise me any when the Flyers stepped up, hit him, and forced him to cough up the puck. To cap off the night of futility, Letang then watched Matt Read jump all over the puck and rip it into the empty net.

It is doubtful that Letang will turn in 2 more flat tire performances so I am not yet panic stricken. I still 3elieve.

Odds and Sods

Unfortunately, our Baby Penguins also blew a tire too. They lost 3 – 2 in OT to Charlotte. On the plus side, Andrey Pedan scored the Baby Penguins’ first goal on the power play to give them the lead. Ryan Haggerty and Lukas Bengtsson had the assists. Daniel Sprong extended the lead with his first AHL playoff goal, with the help of Garrett Wilson and Jean-Sebastien Dea. Unfortunately Charlotte rattled off 3 straight goals and the Baby Penguins lost. Former Penguin Greg McKegg got on the score sheet for Charlotte while the player the Penguins traded McKegg for, Josh Jooris was a -2 in the game.