Pittsburgh Penguins president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas feels the team he has assembled can be better.
And that team largely has proven it’s difficult to do much worse than what is has offered throughout most of December, as wins have been as rare as sunlight.
That trend continued on Tuesday with a 6-3 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs at Toronto’s Scotiabank Arena.
The result was the Penguins’ ninth defeat in their past 10 games (1-5-4).
“I think we’re capable of more than we’ve shown,” Dubas said in Cranberry on Dec. 12. “That’s my expectation every day. Everyone in the room here has seen it when we’re at our best that we can not only play but carry play against the very best teams in the league. We’ve left points on the table that I think everyone in the room regrets and laments.”
Penguins forward Justin Brazeau appeared to open the scoring 7 minutes, 26 seconds into regulation, but the Maple Leafs issued a coach’s challenge, alleging goaltender interference. Officials reviewed the video and euthanized the would-be score.
Shortly thereafter, Maple Leafs forward William Nylander legally scored, recording his 12th goal at 9:07 of the first period.
From near the right point of Toronto’s zone, Penguins forward Kevin Hayes tried to keep a puck on the right side of the blue line by attempting to throw it off the far boards. But Nylander was right on Hayes’ right hip and picked his pocket, knocked the puck down with his stick and created his own breakaway. Collecting the puck at the center red line, Nylander sped past Hayes and attacked the cage. Upon arrival, Nylander moved forehand to backhand and tucked the puck by the right skate of outstretched goaltender Stuart Skinner. There were no assists.
Penguins forward Bryan Rust responded with his 13th goal on a breakaway only 44 seconds later.
A shot by Maple Leafs forward Bobby McMann from the high slot of the offensive zone was blocked by Penguins defenseman Kris Letang’s right skate. Penguins forward Sidney Crosby claimed the rebound, curled into the right circle and snapped a cross-ice stretch pass to a hustling Rust. As Maple Leafs defenseman Chris Tanev offered a futile pursuit, Rust attacked the cage and lifted a backhander that clunked into the cage off of goaltender Joseph Woll’s right hip. Crosby and Letang had assists.
The hosts restored a lead at 13:34 of the first period when forward Matias Macelli notched his fifth goal through some good fortune.
Nylander gained the offensive zone at the center point and chopped the puck off the left boards. Macelli chased it down, and, just as Penguins rookie forward Ben Kindel thumped him with a shoulder check, Macelli chucked the puck toward the cage. Penguins defenseman Parker Wotherspoon was stationed above the crease and tried to swipe the puck away from an approaching Nylander but wound up inadvertently deflecting the puck with the heel of his stick backward off the inside of Skinner’s right leg and into the cage. Macelli was credited with the goal off assists from Nylander and defenseman Philippe Myers.
Another Penguins turnover led to another breakaway and Maple Leafs forward Steven Lorentz’s fourth goal at 7:38 of the second period.
Controlling the puck at the right point of the offensive zone, Penguins defenseman Erik Karlsson tried to work his way along the blue line to get away from Lorentz’s pressure, only to fall to the ice at the left point and lose the puck. Lorentz accepted the charity and had a breakaway from the defensive blue line in. Arriving at the cage, his attempt at a backhander initially was denied by Skinner’s left leg. But as Skinner’s teammates were tardy in offering support, Lorentz was able to jab two more backhanded shots before putting the second in by a prone Skinner. There were no assists.
Penguins rookie forward Rutger McGroarty’s second goal came at 11:43 of the second frame.
Taking a pass at the right point, Penguins defenseman Ryan Shea lobbed a wrister at the cage, which struck Kindel and dropped him just above the crease. Maple Leafs defenseman Troy Stetcher made a weak attempt of a backhand clear and wound up turning the puck over to McGroarty above the right circle. With a mostly clear look at the cage, McGroarty smoked a wrister by Woll’s glove. There were no assists.
The visitors tied the score 60 seconds into the third period with forward Anthony Mantha’s 11th goal.
Chasing down a loose puck in the left circle of Toronto’s zone, Wotherspoon appeared to consider a shot but opted to deal a pass to the high slot. From there, Mantha stepped up and cracked a one-timer through traffic and through Woll’s five hole. Brazeau (6-foot-6, 232 pounds) supplied a stout screen on the sequence. Assists were earned by Wotherspoon and Brazeau.
Maple Leafs forward Max Domi reclaimed a lead for his team with his fourth goal at 11:35 of the third frame during four-on-four play.
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Taking a simple pass behind Toronto’s net from Maple Leafs defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Domi embarked on a wild adventure. Starting in his own right circle he surged through the neutral zone and across the offensive blue line. He encountered some resistance above the left circle in the form of Penguins defenseman Brett Kulak but simply veered by him in the slot and attacked the cage, snapping a wrister past Skinner’s blocker. It was Domi’s first goal in 23 games. Assists were earned by Ekman-Larsson and Nylander.
McMann got his 10th goal at 17:57 of the final period off an assist by Domi.
Nylander scored again on an empty net at the 18:36 mark. Forwards John Tavares and Matthew Knies had assists.
Skinner’s record fell to 11-11-4 after he unofficially made 25 saves on 29 shots. Since arriving in a trade with the Edmonton Oilers on Dec. 12, Skinner is 0-3-0 with the Penguins.
Notes: Skinner appeared in his 200th career game. … Kulak appeared in his 300th consecutive game. He entered Tuesday with the ninth-longest active streak in the NHL. … Penguins defensemen Connor Clifton and Ryan Graves, as well as forward Danton Heinen, were healthy scratches.