Penguins Grades: Frustration & Realizing a Bigger Picture

The Pittsburgh Penguins put three rookies, four reclamation projects, and a few superstars on the ice against the LA Kings. The spunky Penguins were poised for an uplifting win, but it was the veteran stars who ultimately were the letdown.

Defensive mistakes by Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, and Erik Karlsson were more than rookie goalie Sergei Murashov could bear in his much-anticipated NHL debut, and the LA Kings prevented the Penguins from becoming the sixth member of this season’s 10-win club with a 3-2 win at PPG Paints Arena.

A month ago, playoff talk or thoughts of success would have been wide-eyed optimism, if not silly, unfounded hope. But through disappointment and squandered chances like Sunday’s whiff, those beliefs of what is possible are emerging. And so, too, is a bit of anger at those wasted chances.

For the second consecutive day, the Penguins were a few less bewildering mistakes away from a win.

“I’m not at the point where I’m thinking it has to do with necessarily just the third period. I think we got away from some of the defensive details that are important,” said coach Dan Muse with a bit of an edge. “I’m not just going to look at goals. I mean, you look at the chances that we gave up. We can do a better job. We need to do a better job of generating more five-on-five. It’s both sides of it.”

It’s not that the Penguins played poorly, which merely added to some of the disgust. Well, they didn’t play poorly for most of the game, anyway. They played quite well in the first period, were the better team in the second, but their zombified performance in the third period was befitting a football city the morning after a primetime game.

The Penguins’ goals were pretty hockey plays. Tommy Novak held his ground near the crease to redirect Malkin’s highlight reel rush and pass. Anthony Mantha unleashed a picturesque give-and-go on the power play in the second period.

But a defenseman and star center not adjusting to a turnover in the offensive zone, thus getting beaten back to the defensive zone after multiple dangerous passes near the blue line, it was like watching a horror movie when one character leaves the group to check out the noise in the woods.

Yep, you knew exactly what was about to happen.

Those aforementioned stars, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang, were out of sync and careless at the blue line, leading to Corey Perry finishing a three-on-two rush at 4:49 of the third.

Erik Karlsson has been quite good this season, and his play in the defensive end has been markedly better than his first two seasons with the Penguins. Yet as he guarded Kevin Fiala midway through the third period, he rested just as Fiala jump-started his drive to the net.

Karlsson could only wave as Fiala raced by him for the winner.

“I just don’t think we played well enough. Simple as that,” said Bryan Rust. No, a back-to-back had nothing to do with it.”

Penguins Analysis — Playoffs?

Context is important. It was a tough loss, and Muse was the most dour he’s been this season. There was an obvious undertone of an angry coach who wanted to flambe his team for so lackadaisically giving away another winnable game.

They dropkicked away the game in New Jersey by not finishing their chances and faceplanting in the shootout. And the mistakes Sunday could generously be termed careless, if not casual indifference.

Afterward, they weren’t happy, though only Tommy Novak, Bryan Rust, and Sergei Murashov were available to the media.

In this case, the bellwether is Rust, who echoed the frustration of his coach.

No, this team does not care if you want a top draft pick. They are starting to think about the playoffs. They have not yet used the word, but in the last week, they have lamented lost points and the need for them later in the season.

They’re not thinking of Gavin McKenna in June. Bite your tongue. They are thinking playoffs in April. And May.

In the postgame media, a league reporter lobbed a softball question to the Penguins coach about the fun of the impending trip to Sweden, for which the Penguins depart Monday. Muse didn’t bite.

“No. 1, we need to win games. We need points. And so we’ve got an opportunity right now to get a couple of practices in, and we need to get points,” said Muse with a heavy tone. “This is a trip where it’s a great opportunity for the team to be together, to go on a trip like this, to go over to Sweden, but at the end, we need points. And so we need to make sure that it’s an opportunity to win, and to go out there and to get points, No. 1.”

Tactically, the Penguins’ puck possession was born of patience and hard work in the first period and larger parts of the second. For the first time this season, they kept the puck on their stick, wearing out the defense and changing on the fly while maintaining zone possession.

The SELLOUT crowd at PPG roared, too–almost as loud as they did for the wildly popular Donut races (I kid, I kid).

The Penguins didn’t play on the rush with drive-by offense, but used speed to enter the zone, typically on the strong side, and used their superior speed to get to loose pucks.

They had LA down and out, but didn’t finish them before their mistakes caught up with them.

“If you look at the last couple of games, I think we’re doing a lot of things that are trending in a good direction,” Muse said. “The consistency, we need to make sure that it is there all the time. And there’s clearly still room for improvement there. The last two games–no points tonight, one point yesterday.”

One note, the Penguins’ top line with Sidney Crosby, Ben Kindel, and Bryan Rust struggled to generate chances, though they had some zone time. The LA Kings didn’t use Anze Kopitar to blanket Crosby, but used young Quinton Byfield’s line to match up against Crosby.

Byfield, Alex Lafferiere, and Kevin Fiala outchanced the Crosby line, outshot them, and won all statistical categories.

Penguins Report Card

Team: B-

It should have been an A+ game. They were tracking that way after 40 minutes with a 2-1 lead. The mistakes were so obvious, too often repeated, and exasperating even for a new coach that no grade above a B- could be delivered.

Letang and Malkin are 38 and 39, respectively. This is who they are–you take the good, you take the bad, you take them both…

There were plenty of good performances, but there isn’t enough mouthwash to wash away the taste of a 3-2 loss on a big day in which the team held a third period lead.

Anthony Mantha: A

His goal was a thing of beauty, and his play was otherwise standout. He’s not only moving well (despite missing most of last season with a torn ACL and knee surgery), but he’s also playing stiff on the walls and getting to the net. The extra battle in his game is opening up space for linemates and himself.

He has eight goals this season and is on pace for a career year. His chemistry with Malkin means his production can continue indefinitely.

Ryan Graves-Connor Clifton: A

Care to guess who led the Penguins in shots? Yep, Ryan Graves. His deft little move in the first period opened a shooting lane and scoring chances for the Penguins’ forwards.

He spoke with PHN on Saturday, and his explanation for his newfound game was insightful.

“I was playing 25-plus minutes a night, playing on the first power play,” he said of his time in Wilkes-Barre. “I’m not going to do that here. I don’t expect to.”

It seems to have worked. Graves is a different player.

Sergei Murashov: B

He had some nerves and was a little shaky in the early minutes, but you saw his best in the second and third periods. He made some tough saves, such as a glove save on Trevor Moore in the slot, that looked mundane.

Murashov’s glove is a particular point of strength. There’s a bit of American street goalie in him–relying on the glove in particular moments. Perhaps Novak said it best:

“He’s so good. You can tell just from watching him practice. It’s cool to be a part of his debut,” said Novak. “I’m no goalie expert, but there is not much not to like there. So athletic and so poised, an impressive young goalie. I’m sure you all will be watching him for a long time.”

Evgeni Malkin: B

Malkin was having an A+ game until the third period. That third period. He is playing sharp, creating chances for his linemates, and even defending well.

Malkin’s line was the only Penguins line finished with the most scoring chances (7), and the highest expected goals-for. The line was the only one to score a goal.

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