Much to Like About Penguins 3-2 OT Loss to Bruins

As a general rule, Penguins visits to TD Garden go down about as well as a giant gulp of castor oil. Counting last night’s 3-2 overtime loss to the Bruins, our boys haven’t won in their last eight tilts in Beantown (0-7-1).

Still, there were plenty of reasons to feel encouraged by the Pens’ performance. Following a typically sluggish first period (outshot 11-6, trailed 1-0) we got stronger as the game progressed, much like a stud pitcher in baseball. And this against a very good Bruins team. Had it not been for the stellar goaltending of long-time nemesis Tuukka Rask, we would’ve come away with two points. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

The Bruins grabbed the lead at 7:41 of the opening frame on a shorthanded goal by noted fink Brad Marchand, who beat Kris Letang with an inside move and ripped the biscuit past Tristan Jarry.

The Pens nearly knotted the score early in the second period on a rush by the Sidney Crosby line, but Rask stopped Bryan Rust cold. It was a theme that would recur throughout the game…the B’s netminder blunted five shots by the “Rusty Razor”…excellent chances all.

While the Pens struggled to mount any sustained pressure, the Bruins cashed in again on a 5-on-3 power play around the eight-minute mark, courtesy of a phantom tripping penalty to Brandon Tanev. In the process negating a heroic penalty killing effort by Mark Jankowski and company.

At this stage, there was very little to cheer for black-and-gold fans. Then someone threw an invisible switch.

Led by an inspired Evgeni Malkin, who resembled the “Geno” of old, the Pens buzzed like bees around Mike Lange’s hive in the closing minutes of the second period, setting the stage for a barn-burning final period. Our guys would dominate, and without key defenseman Brian Dumoulin, injured while blocking a shot before the horn.

Skating with buzz-saw intensity, Jason Zucker served notice with a crunching check on Chris Wagner along the boards. Midway through the frame the snake-bitten winger struck for his first goal of the season following a furious sequence of sustained pressure by the second power-play unit.

Like a boxer fading in the final rounds, the Bruins couldn’t keep the swarming Pens off. Rask stoned Kasperi Kapanen on a breakaway with five minutes remaining. But the flying Finn would not be denied. Moments later Kapanen gathered in a pretty pass from Malkin, gained a step on the defense and cut in front of Rask. The puck rolled off his stick at the last second but evaded Rask as well, slipping past the goalie’s right skate and into the net. Knotting the score at 2-2 and kapping (pun intended) yet another scintillating Pens comeback.

Overtime was…in a word…thrilling, as the teams exchanged Grade-A scoring chances. Rask stopped Rust early and Jarry returned the favor with an equally huge save on Craig Smith.

Malkin had a glorious chance to end it at 3:37 when he steamed in on a breakaway, but his missile rang off the crossbar. Moments later No. 71 had a chance to redeem himself on a 3-on-0 break. However, instead of shooting, the big Russian dropped the puck off to Letang, who tried an ill-fated return pass, muffing a golden opportunity to cop two big points.

Then the Pens got careless. With Crosby and John Marino scrumming along the wall in the neutral zone and the clock ticking down, Zucker veered toward the attacking zone, leaving the Bruins with a clear-cut 2-on-0 the other way. Smith beat Jarry with 11 seconds remaining to steal the extra point for the B’s.

A deflating end to a very entertaining game.

Puckpourri

Rookie forward Drew O’Connor made his NHL debut and didn’t look the least bit out of place. Skating on the fourth line and second power-play unit, he collected an assist (and a plus-one) in 10:51 of ice time.

The Bruins outshot the Pens, 36-30, and dominated the faceoff circle, winning 70 percent of the draws. Jarry made 33 saves.

Opinyinz

I was very impressed with rookie defenseman Pierre-Olivier Joseph. Taking a regular turn in the final 20 minutes, often next to Letang, he looked cool and poised. He skates well, handles the puck and passes well, possesses a good shot and doesn’t shy away from physical contact. Say what you will about the Phil Kessel trade, but the Pens definitely have something here.

His final misread aside, I thought Zucker played a terrific game. He fairly crackled with energy from start to finish and provided plenty of inspiration, not to mention a goal and an assist, four shots and five hits. Hopefully he can bottle this performance and lather, rinse, repeat.

The second power-play unit featuring Zucker, Kapanen, O’Connor and Jared McCann was dominant at times. Far more effective than our star-studded top unit.

On the flip side, while it’s hard to be critical of a guy who played almost 30 minutes, I thought Letang had one of his “brain-in-his-keister” outings. His defensive reads at times defied logic, and his puck distribution was iffy at best. Maddening.

I focused a little more on Cody Ceci and wasn’t exactly comforted by what I saw. During one sequence in the second period he joined the rush, only to flub a pass from Teddy Blueger. For good measure he bumped into his teammate, nearly knocking him down deep in the Boston zone, before laboring to get back into position. Impeding Jarry in the process. Very Jack Johnson-eque. But like JJ, Ceci’s giving it his all, so I won’t complain too much.

Ron to the Rescue?

Maybe I’m crazy. But if Dumoulin goes down for any length of time, I might be tempted to put in a call to Ron Hainsey. The 39-year-old vet is an unrestricted free agent. Conditioning might be an issue…it’s sure to take some time to knock the rust off his tires. But big Ron played very well for us in 2017, and subsequently for Toronto and even a bad Ottawa team last season. Despite his advanced age, he skated on the top pairing for the Maple Leafs as recently as two seasons ago (and was a plus-30). A left-handed shot, he can play either side with equal ability. I’m sure he could be had on the cheap. Might provide some veteran leadership, too.

Just a thought.