The Penguins began their post-Christmas slate against the Metro rival Islanders on Long Island last night. Unfortunately, they forgot to pack their A-Game for the trip to UBS Arena.
Or their B-Game. Maybe even their C-Game, for that matter.
In fact, the Pens pretty much reverted to their putrid pre-Thanksgiving form, when they had a record of 7-12-4 and were belly-scraping the bottom of the NHL standings.
They didn’t forecheck. They didn’t backcheck. They didn’t slow the Isles down in the neutral zone. Nor did they battle or play with any discernable physicality or intensity, especially around their own net. Indeed, the blue paint surrounding Tristan Jarry was pretty much a safe haven for Islanders forwards like noted Penguin-killer Anders Lee (pictured), who scored two goals.
Our top line, so good of late, was bad. How bad you ask? Rickard Rakell tallied a goal and an assist, yet finished a minus-2. Sidney Crosby, who had a record-breaking assist taken away, was minus-3. Bryan Rust took home the booby-prize at minus-4.
Despite all the negatives, we trailed by only a goal (4-3) heading into the final period, thanks to Rakell’s nifty tip-in with four seconds left in the second period. By all rights, we should’ve come out with guns a blazin’ in the third. Yet we managed to squeeze off just four shots on Ilya Sorokin during a languid final 20 minutes.
To sum up, we got what we deserved.
As for a silver lining? It would be just about impossible for us to play worse than we did last night.
Puckpourri
Our other goal getters were Noel Acciari (!!) and Michael Bunting, who tied the game at 1-1 with a power-play goal at 16:03 of the first period. It was Bunting’s 10th goal of the season (and third in two games) and team-best sixth on the power play.
Marcus Pettersson has resumed on-ice workouts, good news indeed. The Pens had better pray for a speedy return for “the Dragon” and rookie Owen Pickering, because the left side of Pierre-Olivier Joseph, Matt Grzelcyk and Ryan Graves is wincingly vulnerable, especially if our forwards don’t do their job in the neutral zone.
Tell-it-like-it-is color analyst Phil Bourque bemoaned our defense’s lack of physicality, POJ in particular.
Although his numbers weren’t pretty (.848 save percentage on 33 shots), the one guy who showed up last night was Jarry. Left to fend for himself at times, he made several key saves after the Isles went up 4-1 to keep us in the game.
Actually, make that two guys who showed up. On a night when the team badly slacked, Evgeni Malkin stuck out like a sore thumb in a good way, pacing the club in both Corsi (50) and xGF% (68.72).
Lee has 19 goals in 40 career regular season games versus the Pens. Think the fact that we almost exclusively employ non-physical, stick waving “offensemen” may have something to do with it?
The two clubs return to the friendly confines of PPG Paints Arena tonight for the back-end of a home-and-home. The Pens (16-16-5, 37 points) continue to trail Ottawa by a point in the chase for the second Eastern Conference wild card spot.
Hope for the Future (?)
A commenter on another site attended last night’s Baby Pens-Bears game in Hershey (a 3-2 OT loss). He noted (lamented) that while the Bears employed a physical, all-around game, the Baby Pens were all about skill and making pretty plays.
He went on to comment that our organizational mindset needs to be revamped.
I agree.
Frankly, I long for the days when former GM Ray Shero first arrived and instantly set about the task of making us harder to play against. A philosophy embraced by recent Cup winners Florida and Vegas, not to mention the Lightning, Blues and Capitals. Even the Avs, to a degree.
That’s how you win in the NHL these days. Not by playing the Ice Capades brand of hockey our Pens seem to prefer.
Hey Rick,
A couple of things,
– While I agree with you that our Defense is abysmal, even if Pettersson is out there the Pens blue line stinks defensively, the Pens best defensive defenseman would only be a 3rd pairing on any real NHL team. In that same tone, I also agree that this motley crew of keystone kops defenseman, however, none of those Goals were impossible to stop..
* On the 1st GA, Jarry was really slow kicking off his post to get across the crease. If Jarry wasn’t dreaming in a fog, he very well could have gotten to the low post to stuff that shot.
* On the 2nd GA, yes Duclair was alone in front of Jarry but our resident bum was still in a fog. He was way behind the play, leaving the whole far side open – and then never reacted until after the puck was coming back out of the net.
* On 3rd GA, Letang did accidently put it into his own net and POJ was on the wrong side of his Opponent and nowhere near tying up his stick but once again Jarry failed to control a rebound and Lee was able to pounce on it.
* On the 4th GA Grzelcyk was manhandled behind his own net but once again our ersatz Goalie was way behind the play, not tracking the puck at all, the whole far side was wide open when Cizikis tipped the shot and didn’t react until the puck was on the way back out of the net again.
* On the 5th GA, Cizikis was in alone on a break but Jarry was only guessing and not playing Goal – unfortunately he guessed wrong and left the whole short side open for Cizikis to bury our Pens.
So, Jarry was given ample help by the defense in putrid play, but he himself earned all 5 GA.
– 100% agree about our organizational mindset, to paraphrase Jack Napier/Joker in the 1999 Batman movie, “This team needs and Enema!”. I hope someone in FSG is reading this. If you want to put people back in the stands, give us a product we want – a team that has backbone and capable of control both creases, not a bunch of milquetoast Ruth Buzzi s. Unlike some, I am not asking for a team of Broad Street Bullies, I am in no way wanting a return to the 70s, just a team that can actually play hockey and are not a bunch tidily winks rejuects.