After a hard-fought 2-1 shootout loss to the Montreal Canadiens in their pre-season opener on Monday, the Pittsburgh Penguins looked to carry some of that momentum into their tilt against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Wednesday.
Unfortunately, they couldn't get much going for them.
Zach Gallant scored in the first period, but the Penguins allowed four unanswered goals in the aftermath and fell to the Blue Jackets, 4-1. Yegor Chinakhov, Jake Christiansen (PPG), and Kent Johnson filled the net for Columbus, and Dante Fabbro scored into the empty net to seal the deal with three minutes left in regulation.
Penguins goaltender Arturs Silovs surrendered two goals on 14 Columbus shots during the first half of the game, while Filip Larsson allowed one goal on eight shots to close it out for Pittsburgh. Blue Jackets' goaltender Jet Greaves was outstanding, surrendering just one goal on 25 shots.
The game was a tough one, as there were a lot of special teams, and the Penguins spent a lot of time in the box. But they very easily could have gotten a different result if they were able to capitalize on some of the momentum swings that landed in their favor.
"I thought there were some momentum swings both ways," head coach Dan Muse said. "There were some times there where I didn't feel like, you know, we were in our zone a little bit longer than we'd like to be, maybe didn't get the change that we wanted, tired bodies on the ice... but then, I also feel like it was a little bit back-and-forth, and obviously, in the third period, it was a lot of special teams."
He also added that the lack of flow to the game made it hard to create scoring chances.
"It was a game where it did feel like it was a little bit hard to generate," Muse said. "It came a little bit in waves. There would be some shifts where, maybe, you get one or two, and some of those looks, too, they're not connecting. We're trying to do the right thing, we're trying to make the right play, and maybe it just doesn't connect the way that we want to, and maybe it doesn't lead to an actual scoring chance. But, some of the things we were looking for, we saw. And I think this is still a game where we're going to take some positives from."
Penguins Hold Strong, Fall To Canadiens In Pre-Season ShootoutOn Monday, Pittsburgh Penguins' hockey officially kicked off for the 2025 pre-season.
Here are a few thoughts and observations from this one.
- I want to cut right to the chase and talk about the Penguins' best player tonight. And that was Ben Kindel.
No, he wasn't the goal-scorer, and he didn't factor in on the lone goal. But Kindel was everywhere on Wednesday. He got some good looks on the power play, he was helping create offense when the opportunity arose, he had a breakaway opportunity that he failed to capitalize on, and he blew right by opponents on several occasions when skating with the puck and driving the net.
"Just kind of trying to play my game," Kindel said. "Just have confidence in my game, and just leave it all out there. You might not get many opportunities, so whatever opportunity I get, just go out there and do whatever I can."
I do not think Kindel has much of a shot at the opening night NHL roster, especially with some more NHL-ready, seasoned talent ahead of him. But what I will say is that he has exceeded my expectations during this camp. He's one of those guys who you don't notice as much in practice but stands out in a game setting. And I'm particularly impressed by his skating, which is something that a few scouts and analysts knocked him for pre-draft.
Kris Letang’s Hat Trick Highlights Penguins’ First Training Camp ScrimmageThe Pittsburgh Penguins held their first scrimmage of training camp on Wednesday.
Yeah, his skating isn't an issue. Not even a little bit. He's an above-average skater in terms of speed, and his edgework is phenomenal.
I think he's earned himself another pre-season game. We'll see what happens, as some roster cuts may come as early as tomorrow. But he's been impressive through two games.
- Both goaltenders were fine tonight. Neither Silovs or Larsson were forced to make ridiculous saves akin to what Sergei Murashov did on Monday, but they got the job done when they were called upon, and none of the three goals against were really on them.
"I thought there were some big saves in there.," Muse said. "Some plays into the slot there that we'd like to prevent from happening, but he was there when they did."
With Joel Blomqvist out day-to-day, it will be interesting to see how the goaltending battle shakes out. I suspect Silovs has the inside track right now, but don't count out Larsson, either.
'My Goal Is To Take Another Step': Penguins' Goaltender Battles For Positioning In CampGoaltending has been an interesting topic of discussion around Pittsburgh Penguins' training camp this season, and understandably so.
All I know is that it's nice to be talking about the Penguins having excess goaltending depth in their system. It's a refreshing change of pace.
- I thought a few members of the Penguins' defensive corps played a solid game, namely Jack St. Ivany, Alexander Alexeyev, and Caleb Jones. St. Ivany and Alexeyev worked on a pairing together, while Jones - who blocked four shots - was on the left side of Connor Clifton.
St. Ivany and Alexeyev were routinely able to shut down and stymie Columbus's transition game and their breakouts, and they also notched a few in the shot block department. Alexeyev's physicality was also apparent throughout the game.
The defensive battle - once again - is one to watch at camp, and I wouldn't count any of these guys out of the mix, especially on the left side. It will also be interesting to see whether or not Muse is willing to let any of these guys play their off-side.
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