‘Canes Top Crosby (oh…and Penguins too), 4-2

During our ill-fated 1975 playoff series against the Islanders, a potent Penguins team mysteriously stopped scoring. In an effort to shake his snipers out of the doldrums, coach Marc Boileau devoted an entire practice to shooting pucks into an empty net.

Sadly, the tactic didn’t work. The Pens lost Game 7, 1-0, in the process becoming the second team in NHL history to blow a 3-0 series lead. Greasing the skid into receivership and threatening the very survival of the franchise. But I digress.

While the consequences for our current bunch aren’t that dire, our ability to qualify for the playoffs depends a great deal on somebody…anybody…not named Sidney Crosby or Bryan Rust finding the back of the net once in a while. Last night it’s was Sid’s turn to play one-man band, notching both black-and-gold goals during a 4-2 loss at Carolina.

Even the heretofore red-hot combination of Evgeni Malkin and Reilly Smith has cooled. With a goal and three helpers in his last six games, Geno’s been merely mortal following a blazing start to the season. Smith is goalless in six games with a lone assist since his four-point explosion against the Sharks. He missed at least two glorious opportunities to score last night, would-be goals that might have altered the outcome.

Sixteen games, or roughly a fifth of the way through the campaign, four of our regular defensemen have yet to tally a goal. Ditto fourth-liner Noel Acciari, who misfired on a shorthanded breakaway, and erstwhile top-sixer Rickard Rakell, who was bumped down to the third line in favor of Radim Zohorna, to no avail. Three other forwards have netted only a single goal.

Perhaps the Pens could steer around those deficiencies if the power(less) play was producing, which it most assuredly is not. With a paltry seven goals in 16 games, it’s been historically awful.

How bad is it? Even the woebegone Sharks have more man-advantage goals. Last season we scored 63 power-play goals. This season we’re on pace for 36.

To put that in perspective, Mario Lemieux missed 24 games in 1992-93 due to treatments for Hodgkins lymphoma and still scored 31 power-play goals single-handed.

Obviously, something’s gotta give. The sooner the better.

Personally, I vote for starting the power play with whichever of the top two lines is the freshest and go from there. They can’t possibly do any worse.

Another boon or bust change? Move Rakell to Sid’s right flank, where he thrived last season, and drop Rust to Geno’s line, at least for a period or two. If it doesn’t work, you can always switch it back. But we’ve got to at least try to get RikRak going.

As for the game itself? Save for a second-period lull, there was nothing wrong with our collective effort. However, we all-too-willingly allowed ourselves to be drawn into a track meet with the ‘Canes, with typically dire consequence. As usual, when we turned the puck over as we’re wont to do, they pounced.

After staking us to a 1-0 lead midway through the first period, Crosby had a cross-ice outlet pass picked off just over the blue line. In the blink of an eye Sebastien Aho slipped behind our defense and beat Tristan Jarry from point-blank range.

On the sequence leading to the game-winner by Seth Jarvis, Erik Karlsson blatantly gave the puck away not once but twice before wandering off like a lost child. EK65 at his worst.

You live by the sword (or in this case, high-risk hockey) eventually you die by it.

Puckpourri

According to Natural Stat Trick, the shoot-from-anywhere ‘Canes dominated the shot activity (a 65-55 advantage in attempts, 34-28 in actual shots). Scoring chances were dead-even at 34 apiece. The Pens actually held the edge in high-danger chances by a 15-10 margin.

Despite the loss, Jarry made a number of stellar saves and kept us in the game.

With two goals, Sid extended his points streak to 11 games. Karlsson ran his points streak to eight games. Kris Letang registered his 700^th career point. Congrats Tanger!

Acciari played his 400^th career game.

Vinnie Hinostroza exited midway through the contest after crashing into the boards. He appeared to suffer a lower-body injury.

On the plus side, Alex Nedeljkovic is eligible to return from LTIR. “Ned” scored a goal for the Baby Pens the other night, the second of his career if I’m not mistaken.

Let’s Make a Deal?

IMHO, we could desperately use a net-front presence at both ends of the ice. Noted Penguins killer Anders Lee (6’3” 235), a collegiate teammate of Rust’s, is struggling to score for the Isles a la Rakell. Could a deal be struck?

Blue line hammer Nikita Zadorov wants out of Calgary. Might the Flames bite on Pierre-Olivier Joseph, presently lodged in Pens purgatory?

Just thinkin’ out loud…

On Deck

The Pens (8-8) have little time to lick their wounds. We face the Golden Knights (13-3-2), who are liable to have a burr under their collective saddles on the heels of an overtime loss to Philly last night.