Hot Penguins Snuff Out Flames, 6-2

In hockey, as in life, what a difference a week can make.

Seven short days ago, our Penguins were reeling from the effects of a disastrous loss to Utah on home ice. Frankly, I was ready to shovel dirt over the team…and the season as well.

Can you say, “Hello lottery pick?”

Now our Pens have won three games in a row. Just as important, they seem to have figured out how they need to play in order to be successful.

It sure doesn’t hurt that we received stellar goaltending the past two games. Last night it was Alex Nedeljkovic’s turn to shine. Ned made 30 saves, including a number of the ten-bell variety. None more spectacular than his unconscious glove save on Flames d-man Rasmus Andersson near the 17-minute mark of the first period.

Grand larceny.

As is so often is the case following a big save, the Pens promptly countered, with Anthony Beauvillier scoring on the backhand off a nifty setup by Blake Lizotte.

Once our boys got a whiff of blood in the water it was pretty much all she wrote. The second power-play unit struck twice in the second period, with Michael Bunting (at 2:40) and newcomer Philip Tomasino (9:02) doing the honors.

We proceeded to pour it on in the third. Rickard Rakell notched his team-best 10^th goal of the season at 5:25. The second power play cashed in yet again a couple of minutes later on a Kris Letang laser.

Up 5-0 and with the game virtually in our hip pockets, we let down and yielded a pair of goals to Jonathan Huberdeau and Nazem Kadri just 38 seconds apart. However, Lizotte hammered home the final nail at 18:23 to settle the proceedings once and for all. In the process, securing two big points.

This ‘n’ ‘At

Several Pens enjoyed multi-point games, including Letang and Bunting (a goal and two assists each), Lizotte (a goal and an assist) and Matt Grzelcyk (two assists). Letang earned top-star honors despite finishing a minus-1. Bunting was the second star, Ned the third.

Thanks in no small part to the second unit, our power play is converting at a healthy 22.97 percent clip, well above the league average and last season’s catastrophic showing. By my unofficial count, eight of our 17 goals with the man advantage—nearly half—have come from the second group.

Color analyst Phil Bourque thinks Bunting (three power-play goals) should be on the top unit. I concur. He’d provide a sorely needed net-front element.

Speaking of, Drew O’Connor picked up his second assist in three games. DOC is consistently setting screens and doing the dirty work down low around the other team’s net. It hasn’t gone unnoticed.

Owen Pickering returned to the lineup after missing two games with an illness and was his usual steady self. Rather remarkable considering his rep as an offensive d-man in junior. Jack St. Ivany was a healthy scratch. Originally slated to be on the cutting board, Grzelcyk was granted a reprieve. Like his defense partner, Letang, he finished a minus-1.

To my eye, Gryz is a bit of a mixed bag. On the plus side, he passes the puck really well and sees the ice well. However, he isn’t fleet of skate, a definite drawback for a player of his less-than-imposing dimensions, and he doesn’t defend particularly well, especially at the net-front.

As a tandem, he and Letang are heavily underwater according to most metrics.

Personally, I’d like to see both Pickering and St. Ivany (and Ryan Shea) in the lineup.

Noel Acciari and Matt Nieto were both minus-1, while Jesse Puljujärvi dined on press-box nachos. Just sayin.’

Dubie Doin’ Okay?

I confess, I’m as guilty of focusing on Kyle Dubas’s perceived failures as the next fan, and there certainly are a number of those to mull over. However, almost quietly, he’s had some successes, too.

Among the latter, Lizotte and Beauvillier, who’s scored seven goals and looks like a bargain at $1.25 million, especially when compared to a bigger-ticket free agents like Tyler Bertuzzi and Max Domi (zero goals).

Tomasino appears to be an absolute steal, as PP colleague Caleb DiNatale predicted.

While the jury’s still out on fellow ex-Pred Cody Glass, the former sixth-overall pick compiled some impressive metrics before going on IR. Finds like Shea and Puljujärvi have been serviceable…and cheap.

It’s important to note that no GM, even the good ones, get it right all the time.

And the bad ones? Take a gander at the plight of the Predators (7-12-6) under Barry Trotz. He’s made them older, slower and pricier, while shedding young talents like Tomasino and defenseman Dante Fabbro (plus-11 in eight games for the CBJ).

Unless he’s secretly trying to position his team for a shot at Gavin McKenna?

Woof.