When the Penguins are on their game, which they decidedly weren’t during last night’s Game 1 loss to Philly, they’re truly a sight to behold.

Fast. Connected. Able to score goals in bunches with blitzkrieg suddenness. Wildly entertaining, too.

Yet as potent as our quick-strike game was during the regular season (third in the league in goals), I wonder how effective it will be in the postseason?

Saturday night it wasn’t. Our Pens had grave difficulty getting up to speed against Philly’s neutral-zone clogging 1-1-3, which later seemed to morph into a 1-4 trap. We alternately tried to pass or carry the puck through the orange-and-black mine field, with little success. Leading to a passel of turnovers, which in turn led to a plethora of odd-man breaks against.

Still, the Pens seemed to reluctant to play a chip ‘n’ chase game that might have enabled them to bust the trap and apply more pressure to the Flyers’ defense and goalie Dan Vladar.

Is it simply a matter of sticking to our guns and doing what we usually do, only better? Which was sorta, kinda our approach when we got knocked out in the opening round four-straight years under Mike Sullivan.

Continue reading Can the Penguins Style Lead to Postseason Success? at Pittsburgh Penguins - PenguinPoop Blog.

I don’t claim to prescient. And I’m sure as heck not right all the time. But I saw this one coming.

All of my pre-series concerns pretty much came to pass during our 3-2 loss to the Flyers in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference Quarterfinal set Saturday night.

Chief among them, the Flyers would be more ready to engage in playoff-style hockey. Something they’ve pretty much been practicing for the past six weeks and change during their charge from the depths of the Metro.

Like celluloid native son Rocky Balboa, the Flyers came right at us from the opening bell. Per Rick Tocchet’s plan, the orange-and-black hit us hard and often, which seemed to fluster our guys a bit. Their buttoned-down style made it difficult for us to muster any sustained pressure while inducing more turnovers than a bakery, forcing goalie Stuart Skinner to stare down myriad odd-man rushes and breakaways.

We just never really got to our game while Philly executed theirs to perfection.

As Erik Karlsson offered in a postgame interview, “They just played better than us from start to finish.”

After softening us up through the first period, the Flyers got the jump on a surprise wrister by Jamie Drysdale from the right dot at 9:19 of the second period.

Continue reading Game 1 Recap: Philly Downs Penguins, 3-2 at Pittsburgh Penguins - PenguinPoop Blog.

Over the past couple of days, I’ve expressed my concerns about the Penguins’ upcoming first-round matchup with the Flyers. Specifically, our goaltending, which has taken a tumble over the past month.

Well, today I thought I’d flip the script and share why I think the Pens might prevail. A special shoutout to PP reader and commenter, Keeger, for planting the seed.

The Pens couldn’t have received better news when injured foot soldiers Connor Dewar and Blake Lizotte were full participants in Thursday’s practice. Although no announcement was forthcoming from official channels, both pronounced themselves good to go for Saturday night’s series opener against Philly.

Along with sidekick Noel Acciari, Dewar and Lizotte formed arguably the best fourth line in hockey this season. Certainly the best in these parts since the back-to-back Cup winners of a decade ago.

The scrappy trio clicked from the moment they were united. Perhaps due in no small part to their overlapping common traits (sled-dog tenacity, diligence, sand in abundance), they displayed an innate feel for each other, not to mention loads of chemistry.

Their collective effectiveness not only met the eye test in a plethora of greasy goals, puck battles won, opposing scorers frustrated and shots blocked, but it registered statistically as well.

Continue reading Could the Penguins’ Fourth Line Tip the Series? at Pittsburgh Penguins - PenguinPoop Blog.

No, that’s not a trick question. A Captain Obvious one?

Perhaps.

As we approach our first playoff series since 2022, I’ve become increasingly concerned with the quality of our goaltending, or lack of. Following solid pre-Olympic showings, both Stuart Skinner and Arturs Šilovs have faltered since we resumed play in late February.

Through 14 appearances dating back to the return from the Olympic break, Skinner’s posted an .884 save percentage (SV%). Take away two strong performances at the front of that stretch? Stu’s got an .877 SV% in his last 12 outings.

We’re seeing the same from Šilovs. In 13 appearances since the Olympic break, he has an .871 SV%. Again, take away two strong outings at the beginning of that stretch, including a 22-save shutout against Vegas on March 1, Arturs’ SV% plummets to .850 in his last 11 appearances.

For perspective, the league average is .896 according to Hockey Reference. Let that sink in for a moment.

You can certainly argue that there were extenuating circumstances. A murderous March schedule, rated as the toughest in the league.

Continue reading Penguins Playoff Update: How Important is Goaltending? at Pittsburgh Penguins - PenguinPoop Blog.

I’m worried.

When you compare us to the Flyers, our first-round playoff foe, we stack up as the superior team in most statistical categories (as well as on paper). We have a far better regulation record (35-24-23 vs. 27-27-28). A far superior goal differential (+25 vs. +7).

Five-on-five, we’ve outscored our opponents 201-173, for a goals for percentage of 53.74, as opposed to the Flyers’ 51.94 percent (161-149).

A better power-play? Yes. A 24.14 percent conversion rate vs. the Flyers’ anemic 15.74 percent. Penalty-killing? Despite our recent slide, you betcha (81.43 percent vs 77.55 percent).

Star power?

Same deal. The Pens can trot out still-potent former Hart, Ross and Smythe Trophy winners Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, along with three-time Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson. To say nothing of All-Star caliber players Kris Letang, Rickard Rakell and Bryan Rust. Thirty-three goal-man Anthony Mantha and sniper Egor Chinakhov, too.

In particular, our ability to roll four solid lines is a huge plus.

The Flyers boast a good young core of Jamie Drysdale, Travis Konecny, Trevor Zegras, Matvei Michkov, Owen Tippett and 19-year-old Porter Martone.

Continue reading Penguins Playoff Preview: The Battle of Pennsylvania at Pittsburgh Penguins - PenguinPoop Blog.

Way back in the day (I’m talkin’ late ‘60s and early ‘70s) the Penguins and Blues were protagonists in one of the fiercest rivalries in hockey. Games between the non-kissin’ expansion cousins were often wild ‘n’ woolly affairs, the Pens’ 10-4 thrashing of the Blues on November 22, 1972, a prime example.

Well, Bugsy Watson and the Plager Brothers have nothing on the present day Pens and Blues.

During last night’s season finale at the Enterprise Center, the Pens rocketed out to leads of 3-0 and 4-1, only to watch them evaporate in the face of a stinging Blues onslaught.

The silver lining? Our goal-getters included kids Rutger McGroarty and Avery Hayes (who got two), as well as hulking Elmer Söderblom, who made road kill of Blues defender Tyler Tucker before beating Jordan Binnington with an extraordinary power move.

The bad news? Some deplorable defensive play by our bottom two pairings. In fairness, at least some of their struggles were likely due to unfamiliarity with each other. However, if he hadn’t already done so, Ryan Graves seemed to permanently punch his ticket to Palookaville with a series of misreads (and misdeeds).

Continue reading Blues Charge, Topple Penguins, 7-5, in Finale at Pittsburgh Penguins - PenguinPoop Blog.