All of a sudden, the Pittsburgh Penguins are starting to win hockey games again.
They beat Montreal before a bit of a dud prior to the holiday break, then they came out of the break with a 7-3 rout of the Chicago Blackhawks and a statement 5-1 win against the Metropolitan Division-leading Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday.
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At times, it didn’t look like the Penguins were going to come away with yet another win against the Atlantic Division-leading Detroit Red Wings on Thursday. They shot themselves in the foot by taking penalties, and Detroit appeared to score a third-period goal to take the lead that got called back.
But, they perservered – and it was a big night for defenseman Kris Letang.
Playing in his 1,200th career game, Letang took an overtime feed from Sidney Crosby in the slot and put it home to give the Penguins a 4-3 victory over the Red Wings. Crosby notched two first-period goals and had three points, while Blake Lizotte scored in the third period after a hard-working shift by the fourth line.
Goaltender Arturs Silovs was solid, stopping 24 of 27 Detroit shots, and with two assists, Erik Karlsson earned his 900th career point, which puts him in rarified air in NHL history.
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The Penguins didn’t make things easy for themselves in this game, but they were the better five-on-five team throughout, and they had a way of responding when things didn’t go their way.
Crosby opened the scoring a little more than four minutes into the first period when he clapped one from the point on the power play for his 22nd of the season. And just a minute and a half later, Crosby was all over a turnover near the offensive blue line, deked around Moritz Seider, carried the puck into the slot, and fired it home for his second of the game and 23rd of the season, which now puts him on pace for 48 goals.
Then, a string of penalties eventually cost the Penguins. Late in the period, Tommy Novak took a double-minor for high-sticking, and James van Riemsdyk capitalized during the first part of the double-minor to cut the lead to 2-1.
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The Penguins killed off the remainder of the penalty leaking into the second period, but shortly after that – just a minute into the middle frame – Detroit dumped the puck into the Pittsburgh zone along the boards. Silovs went behind the net in preparation of playing the puck, but the puck took a crazy bounce off the wall in the left corner and squirted right out to the net front, where Andrew Copp was waiting. He buried the puck in the empty net and tied the game, and the game remained tied until late in the third.
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With around seven minutes remaining in the third, Lucas Raymond appeared to break the tie off a two-on-one tap-in opportunity for Detroit. However, the play was deemed offside, and the goal was called back, giving the Penguins an opportunity to respond.
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And Lizotte did respond with his fourth of the season after Karlsson shot one from the point, it rebounded near Lizotte at the net-front, and he just chopped the puck toward the net, where it hit off a Detroit defender and in. But, unfortunately, defenseman Jack St. Ivany took a delay of game penalty just 23 seconds later when he flipped a puck over the glass, and Alex DeBrincat tied the game late to force overtime, where Letang ended it less than a minute in.
Penalties aside, it was a solid team win for the Penguins, who are looking more like the team from earlier this season in recent games – even if there is room for improvement in their five-on-five game, which has been generally positive in the last couple of games.
“We’re getting in the offensive zone a fair amount, and every game’s been a little bit different if you’re talking about those games so far coming out of the break,” head coach Dan Muse said. “I still think that there’s some layers there that we’ve got to add in regards to just some of the details within the offensive zone and creating quality. But I do like the fact that we’re there more, and for the most part, in order to get there, you’ve got to be doing the right things – exiting your zone, coming throughout, making sure that you’re not spending too much time in the d-zone. Those are things that we’ve talked about and will look to continue to improve.
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“And I think it’s taking steps, but at the same time, there’s plenty of room there that we can continue to work with.”
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Here are some takeaways and thoughts from this one:
– Regardless of the result on Thursday – or what folks thought of the officiating – the Penguins spent way, way too much time in the box against the Red Wings, and it burned them.
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Crosby took an offensive zone penalty 20 seconds into the game. Novak’s double-minor cost them in the first period. St. Ivany’s delay of game cost them late. They were shooting themselves in the foot by continuously finding themselves in the box – eight times, to be exact – and they kept allowing Detroit to regain momentum in this game.
And this isn’t new, either. There have been several instances this season where the Penguins piled on penalties in a game. Playing shorthanded for a large amount of time does no one any favors, it shifts momentum, and it doesn’t allow the Penguins to ice their best players nearly enough.
The Penguins were the better five-on-five team in this one. But they have to be more disciplined if they expect to string together some wins.
– I feel like a broken record at this point, but the Penguins’ fourth line with Lizotte, Noel Acciari, and Connor Dewar on it has truly been a difference-maker this season for the Penguins.
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There were several energy shifts after Detroit’s fluke goal from the fourth line that gave the Penguins some momentum, which paved the way for them to respond well to that moment of adversity – a moment that may have buried them during their eight-game losing streak in December.
This line has been rock-solid for the Penguins this season, and when they can contribute on the scoresheet, it amplifies their value even more. If I’m the Penguins, I’m not touching that line – regardless of who comes in and out of the lineup.
– Good for Kris Letang. What a moment that was.
A lot of people – myself included – have put a heavy emphasis on the negative with Letang this season. He’s made a lot of mistakes, and that’s no secret. Even if he can still be an effective player on the offensive side of the puck, his defensive miscues have largely outshone that.
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But he was good in this game, and that goes for both sides of the puck. Still, he needed this one. And it was a big one.
I can honestly say I haven’t seen Letang as happy as he was post-game in a long time. Games played milestones mean a lot to him given all he’s been through, and scoring the overtime winner in his 1,200th game is a nice cherry on top.
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– Don’t overlook Karlsson’s milestone, either.
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By earning his 900th point, he became the ninth-fastest defenseman in NHL history to reach the mark and only the 14th NHL defenseman, period, to hit it. He also made a key defensive play in overtime to stymie a two-on-one for Detroit early on.
Even if he hit a bit of a rough patch during the Penguins’ eight-game losing streak, he has largely been a very good player for the Penguins this season. He has four points in his last two games and 30 points on the season, which puts him on a 63-point pace. And – given how he hit a rough patch – there’s a good chance he can surpass that if he can sustain his level of play.
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– Muse said that it was a tough game to assess Yegor Chinakhov – who was playing in his first game as a Penguin – because of the Penguins being shorthanded so much.
Chinakhov only got a little more than 10 minutes of ice time. But I thought he made it count.
There were several plays where his skill and his speed were on display. He is crafty with the puck and is able to stickhandle in tight spaces. His shot has jump. He was able to beat some guys to loose pucks on a few occasions. And he also didn’t shy away from physicality, as he had a team-leading three hits in this game.
It’s a small sample, and it’s too early to make any kind of determination on what kind of player he’s going to be for the Penguins. But I can see why Kyle Dubas and the Penguins’ front office coveted his services. There is some serious puck skill there, and I look forward to seeing him get more ice time.
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– I’d like to see a bit more from Rickard Rakell right now. This was his 10th game back from a broken hand that kept him out more than a month and a half, so it’s understandable if he’s still shaking off the rust. And he did tie for the team lead in shots Thursday with four.
All that said, he’s a bit too trigger-shy right now, and I haven’t loved his play away from the puck, which is usually a strength in his game. He also hasn’t been particularly good defensively, which isn’t the norm for him.
He has one goal and five points in these 10 games. There is a lot of lineup competition right now, and if he wants to hold his spot on that top line, the production needs to come sooner rather than later. But, I’ll give it a few more games before the concern starts to set in.
– This was a big win for the Penguins. Suddenly, they’ve won four out of their last five games, and they’re just one point out of a playoff spot with games in hand on most teams ahead of them.
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They have won two consecutive games against division-leading opponents. They’re controlling large stretches of five-on-five play. And they’re doing all of this without Evgeni Malkin.
The Penguins – right now – look like the team we saw in October. If they can keep this up heading into the Olympic break, it should make things very interesting for Dubas and company at the trade deadline this year.
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