The game began with Sidney Crosby fighting back tears in a pregame ceremony and ended with the Pittsburgh Penguins breathing a big sigh of relief.
The Penguins began the game with a five-game winning streak and points in eight straight. Their opponent, the New York Rangers, began under a continuing cloud of trade rumors and had lost 10 of 12.
In the first period, it was obvious the Penguins were the team on the hot streak, and the Rangers were the beleaguered roster grinding through a stretch that challenges even the best’s confidence.
It was tense at the end after the Rangers scored four goals in 11 minutes, and the Penguins avoided a near-catastrophic collapse to win their sixth game in a row and 14th in 18 games (14-2-2) since the holiday break, 6-5 at PPG Paints Arena.
“Yeah, I mean it’s closer than we would have liked, but you know, sometimes you have to win games like that,” said Sidney Crosby. “It was entertaining for the fans and for the guys that were in attendance. So yeah, we’ll take the two points and try to learn from it.”
Those “guys” in attendance were much of the 2016 Penguins championship team, including luminaries Patric Hornqvist, Marc-Andre Fleury, and Chris Kunitz. The Penguins honored that team, including current team members Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, and Bryan Rust, before the game with a ceremony and tribute video.
To the game, the Penguins’ win was two parts. It was a show of offensive force, then a display of character.
In the brief inflection points that decide a game, the Penguins won those little moments while the Rangers stared at the ceiling, the weight of weeks of frustration increasing. The Penguins created their opportunities and seized them, though the Rangers flashed potential as the Penguins thought the game was over. The Rangers scored four third-period goals, including three in the final 4:45, but the Penguins’ advantage was too great.
Despite the furious comeback, the Rangers were even more frustrated after falling just short of an extraordinary comeback, or an extraordinary Penguins collapse.
“Maybe a month ago or so, we lose that game in overtime, or they come back and take us to overtime,” said Noel Acciari. “We’ll learn from it and move forward.”
Very true.
The Penguins have indeed learned from their own meltdowns and failures that filled the month of December like lumps of coal in their stockings.
Five Penguins had multi-point games Saturday, and in keeping with more recent themes, all three members of the Penguins’ fourth line had two points. Acciari had two goals. Connor Dewar and Blake Lizotte had two assists.
Anthony Mantha had a pair of goals, and Rickard Rakell had one goal and one assist.
Most of the analysis leans heavily toward the Penguins, who were dominating the Rangers so thoroughly that they eased up rather than blow them out, and that was the Penguins’ biggest mistake Saturday.
“There were definitely some things we’re going to look at, clean up. I didn’t think it was one thing in particular. It’s a combination of things,” said coach Dan Muse. “So, yeah, sometimes it’s like, you know, it’s something in the D-zone. Something on the rush. I thought tonight, we gave some chances, and the second part of the third period, more than we needed to. But, you know, in the end, you find a way. Dig in. Big faceoff win at the end. Take the two points.”
Penguins Analysis
Which part of the game should be analyzed, the first 54 minutes, or the last six? The last few minutes gave the Penguins a good scare, and pending their acceptance of their failures in the final minutes, could be a good awakening, or a harbinger of a coming downturn following a big win streak.
Let’s skip the last six, since it was a victory, and the Penguins relaxed. Also, having lost 10 of their last 12, the Rangers finally got desperate.
The Penguins’ game was dominant but not necessarily crisp. Like their 6-2 win over Chicago on Thursday, the Penguins were a bit disjointed and not playing their best, connected, speed game, but they battled to even until they found their legs.
The first big difference, especially in the first period, was the Penguins’ forecheck and puck pressure. The shots ended at 11-9 for the Penguins, but the scoring chances were lopsided in the Penguins’ favor (despite the public analytics) because they had a body or a stick on every puck, thwarting or disrupting the Rangers’ breakouts.
The Penguins’ first goal was Ben Kindel pouncing on defenseman Scott Morrow deep in the Rangers’ zone. Kindel created an errant pass, which Rutger McGroarty immediately snapped toward the net, hitting Mantha, creating the first goal.
**Perhaps it’s time to start referring to the Penguins’ fourth line as the best in hockey, with Lizotte centering Dewar and Acciari. If it’s not the best, there aren’t many better.
Lizotte’s forechecked created another puck to nowhere in the Rangers’ zone, which defenseman Connor Clifton was easily able to keep in the zone and push back toward the net. The Penguins’ fourth-line grinders did the rest, ending in Acciari’s one-timer from the left circle.
The Rangers were relegated to skating the puck to the neutral zone and playing from there.
**The second big difference was the Penguins getting pucks and traffic to the goal and winning those battles.
“I think it’s probably been a little bit more consistent (lately) than maybe earlier in the year, guys just getting there and finding those (pucks),” Muse said.
Overall, the Penguins’ game still felt a bit forced as they again played without Bryan Rust, who served the second of his three-game suspension. The team just doesn’t have the same hop or chemistry without him in the lineup.
In fact, five of the six Penguins’ goals were from the “bottom six” with Mantha, Kindel, and that special fourth line.
Tactically, the Penguins finally found a rhythm in the second period. Rushes and a speed game put the Rangers on their back foot. The Penguins did not allow a shot on goal in the middle period until a power play goal with just 1:32 remaining.
The Rangers’ attack was very much Mike Sullivan’s system, with big stretch passes and three-wide, emphasis on wide, rushes. It was quite the contrast to the Penguins’ small group play.
One separating factor was the Penguins’ track back. They made plenty of mistakes and got too aggressive in the offensive zone, but invariably, one Penguin was able to race back to neutralize an odd-man rush or an uncovered player, just in the nick of time.
“It’s pretty amazing. I mean, you’ve got to look at our lineup, top to bottom, first line, the fourth line, the way that we play. We play a very consistent, connected game out there,” Skinner said. “We do a really good job at staying within our structure, especially when things do get a little bouncy out there. Our third and fourth line, how they get on the forecheck, how they play. Such a strong game defensively. I mean, all those little things, those are the type of players and lines that you need in order to win.”
Penguins Report Card
Team: B-
It wasn’t their best, but it should have been more than good enough. The collapse was jarring. It was over. It should have stayed over at 5-1 or 6-2, later in the third period.
The Penguins overcommitted against the seemingly lackluster Rangers. Still, the Blueshirts were often able to disrupt the final pass or shot and counterattack with superior numbers because the Penguins were pressing forward.
Plenty to clean up for Monday and the Ottawa Senators’ visit.
Stuart Skinner: B
“Yeah, it’s funny, I felt terrible in warmup, and then as the game got going, I felt amazing. You know, I felt good all the way through,” Skinner said. “Sometimes you just have that night where they shoot a puck, and it goes off a guy’s stick, and it goes right through the paint to a guy that’s wide open. Sometimes that happens, but again, you know it’s not, not really about stats. It’s about the two points at the end of the day.”
It’s not often that a goalie who gives up five gets a B from us, but Skinner was very good. There was nary a soft goal in the five, and in fact, the Penguins left Skinner in the shooting gallery for the final 10 minutes. He must have felt like he was back in Edmonton.
“It’s about the stats, it’s about getting those two points,” Skinner said.
Penalty Kill: A
The Penguins’ PK domination ended with Alexis Lafreniere’s power play goal late in the second, but the PK was more aggressive than the Rangers’ power play. In fact, the Penguins had a pair of breakaways (Acciari, Kindel) and had several more moments of offense. They attacked the Rangers’ power play, easily killing off two of three.
It was almost like the Penguins had seen Rangers coach Mike Sullivan’s special teams schematic before.
Fourth Line: A+
Acciari preserved the win with a defensive zone faceoff with three seconds remaining. After a couple of goals, it was just the icing on the cake for their impactful performance.
Lizotte played 14 minutes, Dewar over 13, and Acciari over 11. Always look at the ice time. The coaches knew they were on their toes.
Ben Kindel: A
He’s really blossoming. His penalty kill was on point Saturday. He was in lanes and aggressive at the top. He had one breakaway and one near breakaway. At 5v5, his line is creating real chances and zone time, in part because he is leading the rush, carving the ice around neutral zone traffic and into the zone.
**Kindel is not wearing out. He is getting stronger.
Connor Clifton: B+
I’m loath to grade defensemen in a 6-5 game, but Clifton performed to his best Saturday. He had three hits, and he visibly made an effort to play with the puck and join the play in the offensive zone.
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