The Penguins snapped their three-game winless streak last night with a 2-1 shootout victory over Dallas at PPG Paints Arena.
Unlike the previous three contests, our guys tightened things up quite a bit and generally gave a good account of themselves in what proved to be a low-event affair in terms of offense.
Connor Dewar broke a scoreless tie at 1:57 of the third period with a nice individual effort. After lugging the puck through the neutral zone, the plucky Pens forward sliced across the high slot in the Stars’ zone. With no clear-cut passing options, Connor flung a backhander that glanced off the stick of hulking defender Liam Bischel and fluttered over the blocker pad of Stars netminder Jake Oettinger.
The Pens came within 30 seconds of making the lead stand up. However, with Oettinger pulled for an extra attacker, Tyler Seguin deflected a Jason Robertson blast past Arturs Šilovs to force overtime.
I’m not gonna lie. When the game went to a shootout, I pretty much lost all hope, given not only our goalie’s sorry track record in such affairs but those of our shooters as well. But much to my amazement, Šilovs managed to thwart two of the Stars’ four attempts, while Ben Kindel, Sidney Crosby and Rickard Rakell converted. In the process, allowing us to snag a crucial second point.
PUCKPOURRI
The Pens enjoyed a 68-54 advantage in shot attempts while the Stars held a 25-20 edge in shots on goal, according to Natural Stat Trick.
Šilovs made 24 saves and narrowly missed posting his second shutout of the young season. Just a guess, but perhaps Sergei Murashov’s dazzling performance against the CBJ may serve to inspire Šilovs to greater heights. Nothing like a little friendly competition to bring out a player’s best.
Dewar’s marker, his first of the campaign, snapped Oettinger’s streak of eight-consecutive shutout periods. Seguin’s goal was his first since suffering a torn ACL last December.
Coach Dan Muse made two substitutions. Newcomer Spencer Stastney replaced injured (and struggling) Trevor van Riemsdyk on the third defense pairing. Hulking Elmer Söderblom took Ville Koivunen’s spot on the third line.
Both performed admirably. Putting his wheels and accurate outlet passing to good use, Stastney helped drive play to the tune of a 64.71 Corsi and excellent xGF% of 80 in 12:58 of ice time. Söderblom used his considerable size and reach to control the puck and win board battles. His metrics? A 66.67 Corsi and a perfect 100 xGF%.
Just my opinion, but I’d rather see Söderblom and Koivunen in the lineup than Hendrix Lapierre. FYI, Koivunen has been on the ice for five 5v5 goals versus none against. Lapierre? Three for and five against.
I’m guessing the former Cap will be afforded an extra long runway due to the fact that Kyle Dubas acquired him, not to mention the former first-round pick’s previous ties to black-and-gold assistant Todd Nelson in Hershey.
While Tommy Novak, Evgeni Malkin and Egor Chinakhov have consistently been our best line, our top unit has struggled. Sid, in particular, is off to the worst start of his career (no goals, two assists and a minus-4 in six games). Hopefully, the shootout tally will help our captain escape the doldrums.
After converting on four of eight opportunities against the Flyers and Canadiens to start the season, the power play has turned stone cold (0-for-12). Shades of the 2023-24 season under Todd Reirden. Fortunately, the penalty killers have been exemplary. Our 94.1 percent success rate is tied for second-best in the league.
UP NEXT
The load gets considerably heavier as the Pens (3-2-1) embark on a four-game road trip. First up, the struggling, Connor Bedard-less Blackhawks (1-5) on Tuesday night. Then, it’s on to Colorado, Vegas and Utah, who have a combined record of 12-5.
Yikes.
