Penguins Slog to Seventh Win in a Row

The script was decidedly different from the norm for our Penguins last night at the Prudential Center in beautiful downtown Newark. For starters, contrary to our usual high-flying ways, our guys seemed to be skating in slush for portions of the game. Second, we handed New Jersey five power plays in what was a surprisingly edgy affair, which also served to suppress our usually burgeoning shot totals.

No matter. We overcame both our sluggishness and lack of discipline…not to mention the Devils…to grind out a 3-2 victory, our seventh win in a row.

Our boys grabbed the lead midway through the first period with Sidney Crosby cooling his heels in the sin bin. Teddy Blueger picked off an ill-advised point-to-point pass from Jack Hughes, flew in on a breakaway and snapped the puck under goalie Jon Gillies’ right pad following some nifty shake-and-bake.

The Pens opened up a two-goal lead 63 ticks into the second frame. Jeff Carter rambled to the net as he is wont to do, taking Devils defenseman Kevin Bahl with him and clearing out space behind the play. Marcus Pettersson hit Danton Heinen in the right circle with a pretty cross-ice pass and No. 43 did the rest, lasering the puck in off the far post for his ninth goal of the season.

However, any thoughts of an easy victory were quickly dispelled. Following a neutral zone turnover moments later the Devils countered, with Janne Kuokkanen deflecting home a center-point rocket from Ty Smith. At 7:01 Tristan Jarry drew a double-minor for butt-ending Devils tough guy Mason Geertsen during a TV timeout, setting the stage for more chippy play.

The score remained 2-1, Pens, until the 9:31 mark of the final period. With Sam Lafferty providing an almost perfect screen in the paint, Mike Matheson took a pretty setup from Dominik Simon in full stride and beat Gillies with a long-range blast from the left point.

Again the Devils countered, again on a deflection in front, this time by hulking forward Nathan Bastian. This time on the power play, snapping our streak of 39 consecutive kills over 15 games. It made for some tense moments down the stretch, but the Pens hung tough and pocketed the win.

“It wasn’t pretty,” Blueger said afterward. “I don’t think we had our best. We were pretty good at times but it just seemed like there wasn’t a whole lot of rhythm, especially offensively for us. It was just kind of digging in deep and finding a way to get it done.”

Puckpourri

In many ways it was a tale of two games. The Pens dominated 5v5, with 38 shot attempts to the Devils’ 24 and a 20-7 edge in shots on goal. However, in all other situations the Devils ruled, with a whopping 23-4 advantage in shot attempts and a 12-2 edge in shots on goal. We managed just four shots on goal during a somnambulant first period.

Jason Zucker assisted on Heinen’s goal, only his second point (both assists) since he last tickled the twine against Winnipeg on November 22. Pettersson, Simon and Chad Ruhwedel also picked up assists. With his helper, Simon snapped an 18-game pointless drought dating back to October 23. Despite his scoring struggles, the Czech Republic native continues to drive possession. He’s tied with Evan Rodrigues for the club lead in Corsi (60.9).

Blueger’s shorty was the fifth of his career and first of the campaign. With seven goals, he’s tied his output from last season. I’ve written this before but it bears repeating. Heinen possesses some serious skill, not to mention excellent anticipation and hockey smarts.

The fourth-place Pens (17-8-5, 39 points) have opened up a 10-point bulge over Columbus and Philadelphia in the Metro. We’re six points up on Detroit in the race for the top wild card spot.

Next up, a return match with the Devils at the Paint Can on Tuesday night.

BULLETIN

The NHL has postponed Tuesday night’s game with the Devils due to Covid concerns.