MONTREAL — Pittsburgh is the city known for world-class medical procedures and care, but it was the Montreal Canadiens who performed open heart surgery on a living patient Saturday.
Montreal capitalized on the Penguins’ mistakes and forced more. Montreal played a cleaner, faster game and got some special goaltending from rookie Jacob Fowler in a 4-0 win at Bell Centre Saturday.
And it was in the loss that the very real truth was inescapable, and inside it had to be known, even as some might choose to deny it.
“(Montreal goalie Jacob Fowler) played well. I mean, I still think we’ve got to find ways. You’re playing NHL goalies every night. You need to understand what you would do to make you successful on any given night against any given goalie,” said Sidney Crosby. “So he made some good saves. But, I think we still–couple games in a row–we’ve got to find a way to get in the back of the net. And some of that’s execution, some of that’s bounces.”
Correct. The Penguins did not finish their chances. But the bigger reality is they don’t have enough players really capable of finishing. That’s being proven through trial by fire.
The Pittsburgh Penguins’ current roster, with a giant hole in the middle where Evgeni Malkin should be, just isn’t good enough to win many NHL games. Coach Dan Muse has shuffled around players, juggled lines, and tried to find spots for numerous players to have success.
The little Dutch boy had a better chance at success. Blaming Muse at this point is silliness or pure frustration. The latter is understandable.
Players who had great starts, appearing to seize their chance, have regressed badly. Very badly. The scoreboard is enough proof, but the eyes also show where too many Penguins are shooting from.
And it’s not near the net.
Despite Muse’s effort, the team’s inconsistent effort has yielded an eight-game winless streak, notably all without Malkin and Blake Lizotte. The depleted lineup that was already thin has borne a scoreless streak of 120 minutes and 13 seconds, and the last lead they had was a three-goal advantage that evaporated against the Utah Mammoth on Dec. 14–four games ago.
The Pittsburgh Penguins’ winless slide now seems terminal. We’re back to praising “things to like” and things to build on, rather than results.
Like window shopping for Christmas, the Penguins stared wistfully at a win. They wanted it, but did not have the means. They had more offensive zone time, more scoring chances, but also more mistakes. Ultimately, Montreal did what the Penguins could not: Score.
“They’re a pretty opportunistic team. We gave them some looks, and they buried them. I thought we worked pretty hard. Our effort was there,” Crosby said correctly. “We worked hard, and I think if we execute on a couple of chances we get, maybe it’s a different story. We made some mistakes. They made some. They capitalized. We didn’t.”
It is one thing to lose when submitting a lifeless effort, but the heartbreak only grew Saturday with a lively, intense effort that simply didn’t match their opponent’s ability. In a painful exposition of the Penguins’ fall, Montreal exploited every mistake.
It sure would help the Penguins’ cause to light the lamp when the other teams cough up the puck. But that isn’t happening. Perhaps it’s asking too much of too many players who are not fitted for that sweater.
Just a few mistakes are all it takes.
There was Bryan Rust’s centering pass that missed Sidney Crosby on a second-period power play. That seemingly little mistake became Josh Anderson’s shorthanded breakaway goal.
Parker Wotherspoon stumbled in his crossover at the defensive blue line, and fourth-line center Owen Beck zipped past at full speed for an unabated wrister from inside the dot for a goal.
And Montreal scored the first goal of the game against the Penguins’ flagging penalty kill when Erik Karlsson didn’t get the puck out of the zone after winning a race to it on the left wall. The PK lost its structure, and Juraj Slavkovsky was wide …. WIDE open in the slot. He easily beat a helpless Stuart Skinner, who didn’t have a chance.
Pittsburgh Hockey Now asked defenseman Erik Karlsson a blunt question. Did the Penguins play well enough to win? The lament and optimism, and regret are tangible.
“Yes and no. I think they played better for the most part. You know, if we got a little bit of puck luck and scored on a few opportunities that we got, maybe it could have been different,” Karlsson said. “But we definitely played better (than previous games). I think we felt better about ourselves today than we have in the previous two games.”
Penguins Analysis
Tactically, the Penguins were Montreal’s equal. They had more offensive zone time. More rush chances. More scoring chances.
Yet they also seemed to be playing catch-up for most of the game. There is one flaw in the Penguins’ game that has been consistent through the slide, and even before the mounting losses: Losing the net-front battle at both ends.
Connor Clifton discussed it with PHN Saturday morning. Karlsson broached the topic postgame. The Penguins simply aren’t getting in the goaltender’s way (we’ll try not to comment on the botched goaltender interference call on Rickard Rakell Thursday).
Coach Dan Muse went into detail Saturday morning and lamented the deficiency Saturday night.
“The traffic for sure. I think that’s an area–that’ not to say it was on Fowler. Fowler player well–I think we can generate more quality for sure,” said Muse. “So I think the traffic at the net front (is one factor). Some of it’s the execution.”
However, while Clifton, Karlsson, and Muse can cite the shortcomings, what exactly can the Penguins do about it?
The team has some big bodies on the second line, but Anthony Mantha and Justin Brazeau have regressed to perimeter players. One or both of the 6-foot-5 wingers could take a lot of sunlight away from goalies, yet Montreal’s Jacob Fowler, as did Linus Ullmark in the game before, saw every shot.
It’s a lot easier to make tough saves when a goalie can see the puck off the stick.
The basic analysis is very simple. It’s not about tactical wrinkles any longer. It’s not even about heart or desire. It’s simply a lack of players able or willing to win space where it counts and a lack of players capable of consistently finishing good chances.
Penguins Report Card
Team: B-
The good things can’t be ignored, but they shouldn’t be praised in a shutout loss. The Penguins created 15 high-danger chances and 26 scoring chances, both better than Montreal’s game.
Stuart Skinner: B
A breakaway goal, an uncovered player within 20 feet and dead center, and a good young player in full stride with no defender to contest the shot. Those were the goals scored. Skinner lamented not being able to take away one of them, but that’s wishful thinking for a goalie who otherwise played quite well. Montreal had a bevy of Grade A scoring chances, especially in the first period.
“It’s tough. Obviously, two nights where we haven’t been able to get a goal,” said Skinner. “For me, if I’m able to keep one less goal from going in, maybe it gives the guys a touch more juice going in the second and third period.”
Kevin Hayes: B+
He took the first-period penalty that led to Montreal’s first goal, but otherwise, he was very good Saturday. He had several of the Penguins’ best scoring chances, including a breakaway and a nice little move around the defenseman near the net for a good backhand chip against Fowler.
Mantha-Rakell-Brazeau: ??
Eye test? C. Puck possession, but not nearly enough done with the puck. Rakell played well in the middle, but the wingers remained … on the wings.
The advanced metrics show a great game for the line with four high-danger chances against none allowed. A 10-1 shot attempt advantage and a 90% expected goals-for ratio. We’re using the eye test here, but there are two sides to the story.
Kris Letang: B
It was his best game in some time. He moved the puck, joined the play, and generally defended well. He was on the ice for the empty net goal, which counts as a minus, but shouldn’t.
Perhaps playing in Montreal was the elixir he needed.
Erik Karlsson: Yes
Did Karlsson play well? Yes. Did he make numerous slick little breakout plays and carry the puck with confidence? Yep.
Was he all over the ice and dangerously out of position a bit too often? Also yes. The PK clear was a mark against him. He just has to get that puck out.
Kids Line: Continued Inconsistency
Ville Koivunen’s game is consistently a tale of inconsistency. The line had poor advanced statistics, but they also had numerous eye-catching shifts and chances.
For Koivunen, he’s playing a touch slow. He’s got to let his shots go quicker. The line had enough good moments to keep it together, but they have to do more than play on the rush. They need a few more good shifts of low, grinding possession that keeps the puck in the zone rather than drive-by chances.
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