Quick. When you think of our Pittsburgh Penguins, what’s the first thing that comes to mind?
Scoring goals, right? Star power. Mario Lemieux. Jaromir Jagr. Sidney Crosby. Evgeni Malkin.
Goaltending and defense?
Not so much.
Indeed, during the Pens’ 52 seasons (53 if you count the strike year) the aforementioned quartet combined to capture a staggering 15 Art Ross Trophies (scoring titles) and seven Hart Memorial Trophies (MVPs).
By contrast, we boast only one Norris Trophy winner (Randy Carlyle). And not a single Vezina or Jennings Trophy.
Yet last night before a sellout throng of 18,415 at PPG Paints Arena, our boys clipped those pesky Columbus Blue Jackets by a score of 1-0 on Bryan Rust’s power-play tally at 3:02 of overtime. Our third shutout in the past four games, which surely must be some sort of black-and-gold record. All of them authored by 1A goalie extraordinaire Tristan Jarry, who presently leads all qualifying NHL netminders in save percentage (an astronomical .941) and goals against average (1.76). Shutouts, too.
When was the last time a Penguins goalie led the league in anything? Maybe never? Well, not quite true. Tom Barrasso led the league in wins in 1992-93 and Marc-Andre Fleury in shutouts a few seasons back. But still.
And when was the last time we held an opponent to 17 shots on goal?
To quote Hedy (that’s Hedley) Lamarr’s henchman Taggart from the Mel Brooks comedy classic Blazing Saddles, “What in the wide, wide world of sports is a goin’ on?”
Team defense, that’s what. The Pens are currently ranked fifth in the NHL for the fewest goals allowed. Fifth. Let that sink in for a moment.
“The guys are doing a great job,” Jarry said. “They’re letting me see a lot of pucks so it makes my job easy.”
The astounding thing is, our boys have accomplished this feat with their two best defensive players, Crosby and shut-down rearguard Brian Dumoulin, on the shelf.
Too, they’re doing it with a largely faceless, no-name crew. Anybody outside of the ‘Burgh ever heard of Teddy Blueger, Sam Lafferty or even Dominik Kahun?
Probably not.
Which leads me to the real point of my ramble. I’m hard pressed to recall a black-and-gold team playing this well with so little star power. Back in 2010-11, they skated a huge chunk of the season without Crosby and Malkin, yet still managed 49 wins and an Atlantic Division crown. But aside from that, I don’t remember a Pens team so shorn of stars playing so well.
I mean, we’ve been absolutely slammed by injuries. According to the website NHL Injury Viz, the Pens had 96 man-games lost through December 5, tied for sixth most in the league. Yet there we sit, tied for third place in the ultra-competitive Metropolitan Division with a record of 18-10-4 and 40 points.
Remarkable.
I give everyone in the organization high marks, from general manager Jim Rutherford to coach Mike Sullivan and down through the players, who’ve apparently bought into Sully’s north-south game plan hook, line and sinker.
Last season, I thought we were one of the sloppiest, most disjointed and ill-prepared teams I’ve ever seen. I don’t know if it was a fragmented group in the locker room, but it sure looked that way on the ice. Our guys were constantly on the wrong side of the puck. When opposing teams set up in our zone? It literally looked as if they had a power play.
Then came the disheartening playoff sweep at the hands of the Islanders.
Truly, I thought our window to another Stanley Cup had closed.
I’m stunned by our transformation. Talk about a night-and-day difference. This bunch works. It digs. It hustles. They’re never out of game. They adapt and overcome. Just like last night.
“Pittsburgh just worked,” Blue Jackets captain Nick Foligno said. “I think they knew they were banged up. They just worked extremely hard.”
We grow through adversity and this team has. In spades.
Again, I want to emphasize the word team. Because that’s what this bunch has become in the truest sense.
A team.
Rick
Agree 1000% – The moves that JR made within the team have been
spot on. We’re the haters now?? lol
And Sullivan finding away to win with this lineup “Jesus” – Guys are
playing balls out for 60min – even when theirs a couple minutes to
go in a game and we’re out of it they still continue to compete.
Awesome to watch.
How about Jarry “wow” great technique and patience in goal and the
way he handles the puck alleviates a ton of unnecessary pressure by
the opposing teams. That’s one thing that always bothered me with
Murray and no one really addressed – controlling rebounds – this
contributes to the on going pressure in your own end and puts your
D-Men in a scramble situation.
Im looking forward to the day we’re 100% healthy. it should be fun to
watch.
I noticed the Other Rick has been ghosting absent from the blog. I’m
sure he doesn’t want to face the music on the job both Sullivan and
Rutherford have done. LOL
Hey Rick & Mike,
On top of everything the team is doing, there are many reports that the locker room has been battling the flu bug. The Penguins looked really out of it against the Habs the other night.
As for the team, I really think Rutherford did an amazing job finding talent that wants to win. I still can’t believe every time I watch Marino play that we got him for a bag of pucks. In the exact opposite corner I see the Maple Leafs who overpaid for their lineup of huge locker room problem players.
Jarry, yeah, wow. I really think Jarry’s stick handling was a major factor in Rust’s goal in OT. He was stopped the puck twice during the Pen’s power-play in OT and kept the Jackets from being able to switch up guys. He sent the winning goal one up to the Jackets blue line with a perfect pass from the side of the net. Penguins scored because Columbus was dead tired.
LOL on tOR, but I think he has just been crazy busy. He’s pretty good about facing the music.
Hey MIke, Rick, and Phil,
Thanks Phil, you are right, I am seriously bogged down right now. I am not getting the time to focus long enough to complete a a cogent article or often reply.
Also, as I once wrote, I am a former goalie and therefore seriously superstitious. There are many things that I simply won’t directly write. To that end, I was mentioning yesterday, in a rather oblique way to Rick B that in 2016-2017 on Dec 13 the Penguins Goaltending situation was MAF had a Sv% of 0.900 a GAA of 3.42 and a HDSv of 0.736 in 18 GP, while Murray had a Sv% of 0.936, GAA of 1.84, a HDSv% of 0.867 in 13GP.
This year by Dec 13 Murray’s Sv% is 0.897 (Statistically identical to MAF), his GAA is 2.85 (significantly lower but that is really a factor of team D that MAF was not afforded), a HDSv% 0.808 (Higher but when both that low who cares) in 21 GP and both MAF and Murray were pulled from 2 games in those respective seasons, in the mean time Jarry now is riding a 0.941 Sv% (look familiar to Murray’s of 2016?), a GAA of 1.76 (lower but as with MAF-Murray, more of a question of team “D” a HDSv% of 0.848 (not quite as good as Murray’s but nothing to sneeze at) in 13 GP.
Think about that in context to a very superstitious Goalie type and extrapolate.
I was going to write a whole article on that but …..
As for facing the music Mike? Facing what music? First of all I have always stated that I would rather do a serious Mea Culpa in Market Square, in front of the whole city, during a Cup parade than be right when I say anything negative about the team’s ability to win the Stanley Cup.
Having said that, let me remind you of Ulysses S. Grant. Say what? Yes, the media didn’t like him because of his serious drinking problem and even Abraham Lincoln didn’t necessarily like him but he was winning the war. Lincoln replied – what kind of whiskey is he drinking, I’ll give it to all my generals.
US Grant got a lot of credit where it may not have been deseerved. Tactically he may have been the worst General the Union had, but he had an over whelming superiority in fire power and didn’t care how he wasted it to win. He drove his armies after a battle to dog a retreating enemy, rather than lick his own wounds, bury his own dead, and give his troops a rest, at a time when every other general did those very things, stunning his enemies that where by this point of the Civil War totally worn down and a fraction of the Armies that earlier Union generals face; worn down by Winfred Scott’s Anaconda Plan that choked off all of the supplies to the confederates.
Sometimes you have to play nice with people you don’t like, like Abe did with Grant. Had Sullivan learned that lesson and not force an Ian Cole, Ryan Reeves for Derick Brassard trade he would have gone down as a 3-peat champion. Unfortunately, Sully couldn’t get along with those players, like he couldn’t get along with the entire NYR team just a few short years earlier.
Had Sully and JR not acted like a bunch of babies this past off season with their pathetic media campaign against Kessel, they could have gotten something significantly better for Kessel. Let’s face it, Galchenyuk is playing like a Dominik Simon (the paragon of offensive ineptitude). He actually has a G/60 lower than Simon (0.24 to 0.27) and a S% lower too (3.13 to 3.70). Galchenyuk is actually below the Simon Line!
My criticisms of the Penguins’ brain trust were and are significantly valid. Sullivan did go to the media to throw his players under the bus rather than handle it in house, then complain about those players when they responded in kind. Sullivan was unable to play nie with players for the good of the team. Sullivan still insists on forcing square peg Simon (great at cycling down low but unable to score….. euphamism ended).
JR did make a couple of good moves this off season and I did acknowledge them. I loved the Maatta for Kahun trade, like everyone else I was ambivalent to Marino’s potential – but was one of the first ones to hail the trade during preseason (However, that trade we are now finding out is due to Velucci more than JR), and all though I was not a fan of the Tanev signing that was because I didn’t want to lose Rust to get Tanev. Fortunately, the Pens didn’t, but that may have been more of a factor of Rust getting injured and sneaking through the final cut to get under the Cap – and where would we be had Rust been sacrificed for Tanev right now.
Yes, the team is still hanging in there in the playoff hunt, mainly due to Tristan Jarry channeling his inner Matt Murray. Also, let’s not forget that the team has had a very favorable schedule, they really haven’t had to play a whole lot of top ranked teams yet and when they did Boston and NYI have beaten them. Furthermore, perhaps the team is hanging in there also because of the injuries and not despite them. We will never know what would be happening right now if the team would have been healthy and Sully couldhave slipped into his same-old-same-old mold but he is being forced to play kids, kids that I have always maintained were the key to winning. Would Lafferty been able to show what he could do or would he be wallowing in WBS right now? Would Bleuger be getting the chance to grow if Bjugstad was getting that ice time?
I have also gone on record (alluded to above here and) several times over the years when criticizing both Sully and JR, that I was for changing the Coach and the GM or changing the Coach and GM – meaning I don’t care how or why the Penguins win, If Sully and JR learn from their mistakes and change great! If they don’t – fire them.
Finally, I will be center stage in June with a Mea Culpa speech, citing you specifically Mike, of the above prerequisite Cup is sitting there, saying how right you were and wrong I was, if I indeed turn out to be wrong and Simon also turns into a reasonable facsimile of a NHL top 6 and Galchenyuk relaxes, let’s himself crawl out from under the long shadow of Kessel etc.
PS Mike,
I didn’t have to the last 2 seasons did I? In fact last playoff’s I called all but the Carolina win. My Bracket was nearly perfect. How was yours?
Perfect as well – easy predictions
That is great MIke, but they weren’t that easy of predictions. There were a lot of what were considered upsets. Most People had TBL beating Columbus, Was beating Car, Nash beating Dal, Win beating StL, and Cal beating Col.
PPS Mike,
Winning the Cup will not elicit a Mea Culpa from me – I have not said this incarnation won’t win the Cup. I may have made some allusions to my thoughts on this team, vague as they may have been, but my inferences certainly would not warrant me to do a Mea Culpa
The Other Rick
Not sure what Grant and Lincoln have to do with the 2019-20
Penguins “but okay”!!
As for Kessel – The Penguins are obviously improved with him
out of the “room”. Addition by subtraction.
This is one instance where I agree with you on Sullivan. For
Galchenyuk to bust out and score some goals for the Pen’s Sully
has to make a better effort to get him on the ice especially in
3 on 3 overtime period. He puts Simon and Ashton Reese out in OT
before Gally. Head scratcher
Just for the record – after watching Galchenyuk closely the last 5 or 6
games whoever compared him to Kessel defensively is delusional.
Some early season stats for you to chew on. I’m not a numbers guy
at all as Rick B can verify but I know you like to use stats when
looking to validate your position.
Kessel – 17:53 (TOI), 7G, 12A, 19PTS and a -18 after 34 games played.
he has (1) goal at even strength and 23 gv.
Gally – 12:54 (TOI), 2G, 8A, 10PTS and a -2 after 24 games played. One
other note – Galchenyuk fought thru several early season injuries that
I’m sure have contributed to his early season struggles.
Also, looking at the big picture – Kessel is 32yrs old while Gally is 25.
Arizona is on the hook for 3 more years with Kessel at 6.8mil while
the Pens can cut ties with Gally’s 4.9mil after just one season and
we picked up another young Defenseman. To me this was a no-brainer
Not to mention the team chemistry has drastically improved with the
departure of “Phil the Thrill” – for the record I’m not placing the blame
entirely on his shoulders.
Okay – I’m done ranting. Great to see you back on the blog. After
reading your post I had to laugh – you remind me of a kid i grew
up with – they used to say he could come out of a bank holding the
bags and swear he didn’t do it. Lol
Have a great Holiday – Go Pen’s
PS – The Other Rick
Only thing Pen’s are missing right now is a player that
can Keep guys like Wilson (Cap) in line. This could
definitely come back to bite them at Playoff time.
If JR and Sully hadn’t tossed aside Reaves and Gudbranson we really wouldn’t be having this discussion (keeping goon of the decade, Wilson, in line) – would we?
Hey Mike,
1) if you want to argue with me that Galchenyuk may still break out and do something for the team, you won’t get an argument, I agree, give him a chance to sink or swim.
2) If you want to argue that the locker room is better off, again no argument; that is plain to see. The jump in the teams legs is obvious, but the same could have been accomplished getting rid of Sullivan. It takes 2 to tango or create a toxic environment. Both have bad track records.
3) If you want to argue with me that Galchenyuk is better than Kessel because of the stats you posted, let me post these;
The players Kessel has been deployed with average the following (per 60min 5 on 5 TOI);
CF 54.23, CA 57.7, SF 30.3, SA 31.1, GF 2.05, GA 1.95
Galchenyuk,
CF 54.7, CA 49.24, SF 32.15, SA 27.77, GF 2.84, GA 2.15
Out side of GA the statistics show that GAlchenyuk has been deployed with far better players.
now looking at the players Kessel has had to play against with his lesser teammates.
CF 55.71, CA 56.44, SF 30.44, SA 30.84, GF 2.45 GA 2.51
While Galchenyuk with the better teammates has been deployed against
CF 54.11, CA 56.54, SF 29.87, SA 30.92, GF 2.22, GA 2.36
Although not as pronouced Galchenyuk is deployed against lesser opponents. He gets better linemates and plays against softer opponents.
Statistics don’t lie, but unless you try to understand them in context, they can confuse the issue. To put it in extreme cases to illustrate my point, if a player is playing with McDavid and Marchand with Carlson and Hedman against Valtteri Filppula, Jujhar Khaira, Kevin Lebanc, Oscar Klefbom, and Madison Bowery he had better have better numbers than Lebanc or Khaira.
Arizona may be playing better hockey, but Kessel isn’t getting the same quality ice time that Galchenyuk is getting.
3) if you want to argue that the Penguins won the trade, yes you get an argument. Not only has Galchenyuk proven that he is an asset to the team, the supposed gem of the trade the 6’4 168lb defenseman is far from the NHL. He has 3 pnts and is a -3 in 17 GP. Not horrible (Warsovsky is that guy) but certainly not a gem either. Again had Sully and JR not been so unprofessional as to wage their anti-Kessel campaign in the media, the team could certainly have traded a guy coming off a 70, 92, and 82 for far more than Galchenyuk and Joseph.
5) The Abe – USG comment is certainly germain on many levels. I am not spoon feeding at the moment though. SOme things are better worked for.
The Other Rick
I disagree on several accounts. First Kessel is proving he needed Malkin and Crosby to have success.
Galchenyuk on the other hand is playing alongside of
players that can’t create and I think like Kessel he
needs that.
Third – Galchenyuk along with our other new additions
has elevated the Pen’s chemistry by leaps and bounds.
Whether they let Sully go on not Kessel would still of
been a problem. It does take two to tango but as a
player the Coach is the boss and you either buy in or
you have to go.
i don’t have anything to base my thoughts on Kessel
except the eye test and how little pride he took in
defending his wing. I’m sure Sullivan just wanted him
to show a little urgency defensively. Look at his plus
minus already with Arizona – 34 games and a -18 / that’s
absurd.
Personally I’ll take Galchenyuk’s work ethic right now
and lack of production over Kessel’s unwillingness to
make an effort defensively.
I just think every team has to make a crucial decision at
some point to trade one of there better players before
his play regresses to the point he’s un-tradeable. It was
the right time to move Phil. Again it was addition by
subtraction.
GO PENS
Mike,
I agree 1000%, trade players before their stock goes to nil. I have argued that very point with several other players, including D-men that seem to have worse defensive acumen then Kessel’s lack of desire to clean up his end. My biggest problem with the Kessel trade isn’t that he was traded, it was the unprofessional way Sullivan and JR handled it.
If you recall, 2 yrs ago, after the Caps bounced the Pens, it was Sullivan who immediately ran to the media and whined that Kessel was dogging it, even when JR was saying that Kessel played injured. Sully and JR weren’t even on the same page. Kessel remained silent (at least in the press).
In the offseason Kessel worked his tail off and came into camp in the best shape of his life. He and Malkin started the season off like Gang-Busters. It wasn;t until after being around Sully for a month that Kessel started to fall apart again.
Then there was Dupuis gate and Sullivan and JR whining about Dupuis airing dirty laundry in the media even though Sully started it in the off season.
The once again after another bounce from the playoffs, this time a sweep, Sully and JR went at it again, whining that the players quit on them.
Big Surprise, when your Coach whines to the media, Sullivan is lucky the Pens afren’t run like NYR, as an Org they are far more professional than Sully and JR or the the entire team may have mutinied like NYR.
Now with all of the stuff coming out about abusive coaches elsewhere, I wonder if anything will eventually surface here?
The JR postured about trading Malkin, Kessel, and Rust.
Malkin? he could buy him out but not move him in any other way, that was asinine! And if he did, where would have been?
Rust? aagain, where would we be?
Kessel? Well, it may have been time to move him. But Sully and JR totally destroyed his value themselves and appear to have gotten nothing in return. Maybe Galchenyuk can turn it around. Maybe he just needs to relax. He is only 25. But then again, maybe his best value is in trading him the way Brassard brought in McCann.
Like you, I don’t dislike the roster as it stands now. Once/if Crosby, Malkin, Hornqvist, and Dumoulin get back, theu will start really lighting it up and chase Was (Bjugstad to me may not have room on the roster now though). However, I also will not argue against those that say it is best to acknowledge the mistake of Galchenyuk and try and salvage it. If Buf is that desoarate and the team can get something, even if it has to be a 3 team deal, then go for it. WIth Schultz going UFA this offcoming offseason and if the team doesn’t want to resign him, then dish him and see if you can’t get assets that would then bring you Ristolainen