…the more they stay the same.
Last season, in no particular order, our Penguins had difficulty a) playing with and protecting a lead b) finishing foes off c) finishing scoring chances in general d) scoring on the power play e) playing for a full 60 minutes and f) getting timely saves from our goalies.
For good measure, I’ll throw in a penchant for self-destruction and “soff” d-zone coverage.
So we axe our front office and hire Kyle Dubas, who gives the team a vigorous overhaul culminating in his epic blockbuster for superstar defenseman Erik Karlsson.
The result? Last night during a thoroughly deflating 4-2 come-from-in-front loss to the Blackhawks and rookie sensation Connor Bedard, we had trouble with all of the above.
After jumping to a 2-0 lead second period lead on goals by Bryan Rust and Sidney Crosby, we squandered a golden opportunity to put the Hawks away when we failed to cash in on a power play hot on the heels of Sid’s tally.
From that point on, the visitors gradually reeled us in like a bloated channel catfish lounging in the Mon. Taking full advantage of a tired bunch of Pens, Ryan Donato gained position on Marcus Pettersson in the slot and swatted the puck into an open net at 15:37 to ignite the Hawks’ rally.
As for that self-destruct button?
Newcomer Matt Nieto found it (he learns fast), taking a hooking penalty early in the third period. No sooner did we kill that one than Kris Letang gets whistled for a bonehead cross-checking penalty, virtually guaranteeing a flat-line black-and-gold start to the frame. The Hawks discover a soft spot in our coverage in the right circle and exploit it to full measure on goals by Cole Guttman (10:05) and Jason Dickinson (15:29) to grab a 3-2 lead.
Meanwhile, our pop…er…big guns continued to misfire, newcomer Reilly Smith in particular. He’s stoned on a partial breakaway by Petr Mrazek (more on him later) late in the second period and flubs an opportunity to tie the game late on a wide-open look from the side of the net.
Shortly afterward veterans Corey Perry and Nick Foligno team up for an empty netter to let what little air is left out of PPG Paints Arena. For the record, Foligno and Perry are the type of hard-nosed, character players we never seem to employ.
Back to Mrazek. Last spring he stopped 38 of 40 shots in our dismal, playoff-dashing 5-2 loss to the Hawks.
Last night? The 12-year vet stopped 38 of 40 shots.
The more things change for our Penguins, the more they stay the same.
Including our results.
Puckpourri
The Pens dominated the faceoff circle (67.8 percent) and held a slight edge in shots on goal (40-36). The Hawks had the upper hand in shot attempts (73-71) and especially in scoring chances (35-27) and high-danger chances (16-12).
The Hawks dressed three rookie defensemen, including 19-year-old Kevin Korchinski. We still couldn’t exploit ’em.
I’ll stop short of pinning this loss on Tristan Jarry, who made a ton of big saves early. But, man, you sure would like to see him steal a game once in a while.
While Evgeni Malkin’s line flourished (62.96 Corsi, 65.33 expected goals percentage), Sid’s trio floundered (41.94 and 38.17).
A bright spot. We killed off four Hawks power plays. Noel Acciari got in shooting lanes and dished out a game-high five hits.
The power play sputtered (0-for-2). Letang was pulled from the top unit in favor of Jake Guentzel, back in the lineup following right ankle surgery. Karlsson manned an unfamiliar position at times. Maybe we should trade Todd Reirden, who oversees the power play, to the Steelers for maligned offensive coordinator Matt Canada.
Kidding…sort of.
Speaking of coaching inputs (and things staying the same), at what point do we take a hard look at Mike Sullivan and his system?
I miss Jason Zucker.
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We need grit/sandpaper type if player.dont know why Sullivan refuses to employ that type if player??????
First time replying Troy? If so welcome!
You are preaching to the choir here THL. Rick B and I and another one of frequent commenters Mike have been complaining about that for some time.
Hey Mike and Rick,
1. Last night was only 1 game - yes, but haven't we been saying it was only 1 game since 2018? All of those "it was just 1 game"s have morphed into 6 years and counting. Moreover, it was 1 game, 1 game against the team that put a dagger in your playoff streak last season while being one of the worst teams in 2022-23, trying to win the Bedard sweepstakes, at home, in your opening game. And the team did it in the same come from in front defeat that plagued them all last season. It was more than 1 game, it was a bookend humiliation.
2. The only thing I don't like about Acciari is his age. He is 32 but I will address that systemic beef a little later in a full blown post.
3. Maybe Guentzel and Smith start finishing, and let's hope so, I would hate to think that their lack of finish was a sign of things to come.
4. I had to be up at 3 am, yesterday for a day that kept me out of the house until 7 pm, so I didn't get a chance to see the game, but I would suspect that it wasn't you, I would suspect that the team was flat. They finished their preseason flat, deflating themselves by dumping all of their youthful enthusiasm for business as usual veterans.
5. I don't like either Pettersson or POJ. those PPs would never be on a team I Coached or GMed. Both spend way to much time trying to avoid getting hit rather than taking a hit to make a play.
6. Rick - sorry but this team has never recovered from their loss of a Right-Handed sniper on the PP. Look back at the stats I showed just a couple of days ago on how dismal the PP has been without Kessel. Sullivan's hatred of our hot dog loving ex-RW blinded him and the team to a proper exit strategy and the PP has suffered. Our Coach cut off his nose to spite his face. I am not saying that Karlsson should play the half wall rather than the top of the umbrella, nor am I saying that it was the smartest attempt to address the glaring weakness of a Right-Handed sniper, all I am saying is that I understand the motivation and suggest that the Coach's poorly thought out attempt to finally address the problem is just one of many examples of his lack of coaching acumen.
Also Rick,
The other day, you said that you thought Boston was going to be worse than us this season, they would fall lower than us. the beat Bedard, not only didn't we beat them, but we once again blew a lead. It was only 1 game, but they missed the playoffs by 1 game last year.
Hey all,
I usually don't do stuff like this, but there were some great comments to Dave Molinari's Penguins Notebook article over on Pittsburgh Hockey Now. One very astute comment by Sam about Mike Sullivan and another by Mighty Quin about moving Erik Karlsson to the left-half wall on the power play.
And yet another hilarious one by Brian concerning Jeff Carter's ice time.
https://pittsburghhockeynow.com/pittsburgh-penguins-notebook-connor-bedard-guentzel-graves/
Rick
Rick & The Other Rick
It's only one game but I've always had an issue with Sullivan's system, but I do think as
fan's and the amount of new faces on the roster we need to be patient. The one thing
that always bothered me is our in zone defensive coverage - opponents always seem
to be open in quality scoring area's.
Couple of observations:
1) I like Acciari and the way he impacts the game with his physicality.
2) Guentzel and Smith had numerous opportunities to put the Hawks away -
hopefully as the season progresses the puck will be in the back of the net.
3) Is it me or for an opening night game I thought we were a little flat at times.
4) I've made this statement in prior posts that Pettersson and POJ can't be
in the lineup on the same nights. "To Weak" light in the caboose. On the
Hawks 1st goal Donato literally drove Pettersson out of the crease to score.
GO PENS - I look forward to your feedback.
Hey Mike,
I hear ya' about it being one game. I guess it's the fact that we were making the very same mistakes with a very different lineup that both surprised and disturbed me. And, yes, I thought the Pens flattened out, especially in the third period after the Hawks tied it up and then took the lead.
Because we lack the necessary physicality (aside from Acciari) we rely almost soley on scoring goals to provide a spark. And with the team aging and not finishing as well these days? Not a good recipe.
I only saw bits and pieces of our power plays, but someone noted we had Karlsson on the left half wall (a la Kessel) instead of at the top of the umbrella. In essence trying fix the one thing on the power play that isn't broken. Sheesh!
I don't mind Pettersson, although he got owned on the Donato goal. But Joseph? I started focusing on him more in the second half last season and was appalled by how bad he is in the battle areas and around the net. This was reinforced by his JFresh WAR chart (11 percent on even strength defense). If Ludvig winds up displacing POJ I will absolutely not shed a tear.
Rick
Hey Rick,
Seems to me somebody posted an article on this site talking about the very same subject in foresight. The faces and names changed as the team got older, shorter, and heavier, playing the same old system that never worked (again look at the numbers, the only time the team played with real speed was before Sully could install his system and could only say "just go out there and play."
Are you ready to start listening?