On Saturday, when the Pittsburgh Penguins went up 5-1 against the San Jose Sharks with less than 15 minutes to go in regulation, it felt like the kind of game in which the Penguins would continue to pile on. They were dominating in pretty much every facet, had three power play goals, and were outshooting the Sharks by a very hefty margin.
Of course, holding third-period leads has been a problem for the Penguins since the beginning of November. Their most recent blunder came Tuesday against the Anaheim Ducks, when they had a 3-2 lead going into the final second of the game and somehow lost 4-3 in overtime.
That loss was the kind of loss that could kill a season. But if one thing has rung true about these Penguins this season, they have had the ability to bounce back after tough losses.
That didn't happen. They followed it up with a loss to the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday, which was an underwhelming effort until the final five minutes of the game, when it was too late.
Then came Saturday's tilt against the Sharks. And - despite having a four-goal lead in the third - they somehow managed to upstage arguably their worst loss of the season against Anaheim with an even more gut-wrenching, shocking ending.
Beginning with a John Klingberg power play goal seven and a half minutes into the final frame, the Sharks scored four unanswered goals within 11 minutes and sent the game to overtime, where Klingberg scored the game-winner to hand the Penguins their worst defeat of the season and their fourth straight loss.
The air in the locker room was dead in the aftermath. A few veteran players lingered in their stalls and stared into the abyss. Head coach Dan Muse could barely find the words to field questions during his press conference.
Normally after losses where the Penguins control play for most of the game, there is discussion about some positives to take away from the performances despite the undesirable outcome.
Saturday, there was no such thing. When asked if it was getting tougher and tougher to pull positives after losses like this, a couple players were candid:
"Yeah," Rust said. "Not much after that."
"For sure," goaltender Arturs Silovs said. "Like, you're winning the game, and then you just manage to somehow lose it. Yeah, it's not the best feeling. And you just have to keep going."
'It Just Made Sense For Us To Do It At This Time': Penguins' GM Kyle Dubas Gives Insight On Jarry TradeIt's safe to say that <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/pittsburgh-penguins/latest-news/breaking-penguins-deal-tristan-jarry-to-edmonton-oilers">the trade sending Pittsburgh Penguins' goaltender Tristan Jarry and forward Sam Poulin to the Edmonton Oilers on Friday</a> - which returned goaltender Stuart Skinner, defenseman Brett Kulak, and a 2029 second-round pick - surprised a whole lot of people, fans and players alike.
And, make no mistake: This one was about as ugly and back-breaking a loss as it can get.
The Sharks did open the scoring in this one, as Tyler Toffoli threw a shot at the net from the blue line that floated past Silovs to make it 1-0 midway through the first. But, a few minutes later on the power play, Sidney Crosby pounced on a rebound in the low slot and put it past Sharks goaltender Yaroslav Askarov to tie the game.
Then, the second period was all Pittsburgh. Rutger McGroarty - who has been putting pucks on net with frequency - finally broke through with a snipe from the slot to put the Penguins ahead, 2-1, just 19 seconds into the middle frame. Approaching the midway point, Kevin Hayes added his third of the season, then Rust - again, on the power play - scored with seven seconds left in the period to extend the Penguins' lead to 4-1. Sidney Crosby's assist on the play marked his second point of the afternoon, putting him just three shy of breaking Mario Lemieux's franchise points record.
For the first part of the third, the Penguins did carry over momentum. Anthony Mantha scored his second goal in as many games - and his 10th of the season - on the man advantage for the Penguins' third power play goal of the game to make it 5-1.
And it all unraveled from there in epic fashion.
First, it was Klingberg at 7:33. Then, it was William Eklund at 14:19. Then Macklin Celebrini at 17:33. Then Toffoli again at 18:22. 5-5.
Then, overtime, where the Penguins have struggled. Klingberg. 6-5 final.
What has been happening to the Penguins is inexplicable. And Muse knows that his team is capable of better, even if there is, really, one common thread with all these tough losses piling up.
"It's clearly - and you can go back not just this recent stretch, but to other games earlier in the year - like, obviously, we have to be better about closing out games. That doesn't need to be stated," Muse said. "I think it's something different every time. I don't think it's always the exact same thing.
"The common thread is we play one way for the great majority of the game, and then sometimes, it's a one-goal lead, two-goal lead, it's been different situations - but the common thread is we get away from what works. Sometimes, structurally, we get away from what works. Sometimes, we just put ourselves in bad positions. Sometimes, we've taken poor penalties at inopportune times, giving them momentum. And we haven't done nearly a good enough job of gaining that momentum back. And, we then look like a different team.
"I'll take responsibility on this, too... believe me, it's all of us. We have to be better with it on the ice. I have to clearly be better because it's happened a number of times now, and we'll find a way to. It's just cost us too many points already. So, obviously, it has to stop. And there's not one thing other than we fall away from what works in those critical moments."
Here are some thoughts and takeaways from this one:
- Hate to keep saying it over and over, but it really is a shame that the game had this turnout. Especially since the Penguins almost put it away with the empty net.
Rust got the puck in the neutral zone, and he shot it toward the empty cage. Unfortunately, it hit the post and went back the other way, resulting in Celebrini's goal. And the tying goal felt inevitable after that.
I've ever seen a player hit so many posts on an empty net as Rust. And had he potted that one, the game may well have had a much different result.
- I don't even know what else to say about this team and its inability to hold leads. The crazy thing is that - after the first month - I went on and on about how the Penguins DID manage to shut down the opposition when they were playing ahead.
What Brett Kulak Brings To The Penguins After Trade From EdmontonThe Pittsburgh Penguins got Brett Kulak back in the Tristan Jarry deal, and he has the tools to help this team. That all went out the window on Nov. 3 against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Sure, they have had some pretty bad ones since then, but that game was the point in which the Penguins started playing like a bit of a different team. I still think that loss largely derailed everything because, all of a sudden, the Penguins were losing games they should have won and not the opposite.
Something in them broke that night. This is a good hockey team - the team has outplayed enough higher-level opponents to suggest they are. But they are fragile, and the only way to go about fixing that is by sending some kind of message.
- This one was a tough one to assess goaltending in. Silovs made some spectacular saves on two breakaways and a couple of high-danger chances around the net-front.
But the end was shaky for him, as it was for everyone else. He has now lost six decisions in a row.
- Rakell was activated from IR on Friday, and it was definitely noticeable that he was back in the fold. There were a few instances of him just shaking off some rust, but for the most part, he fit right in.
He didn't register a point, but his presence on the power play was especially noticeable. I think having Rakell on tha unit helps a lot because teams are aware of his lethal shot, and it makes them more wary about making sure he's covered and that the Penguins can't get the puck to him for a one-timer. It also opens up a little bit more space for Crosby.
The Penguins really needed Rakell back. And he made an impact Saturday.
- Speaking of the power play, that is the one undeniable positive from this game.
The Penguins' man advantage hadn't looked this lethal in a couple of weeks, and it showed three times why it is still the league's very best unit at a 32.9 percent conversion rate. The puck movement was insane. The player movement was there. The scoring chances were piling up. Their passing was throwing the Sharks' PK out of structure.
It was clicking on all cylinders Saturday, and it's a huge reason the Penguins are where they are in the playoff race.
- Now, let's talk about that playoff race.
With the OT loss, the Penguins fell out of a playoff spot by one point. There is plenty of season left for this team to pull itself out of the funk it's mired in and compete for the postseason.
But that is going to start with the team's veterans, who need to be a whole lot better late in games and are largely responsible for what has happened. Crosby was on the ice for five goals against on Saturday, including the overtime winner that was a not-so-great defensive effort against Klingberg. Letang has been guilty of far too many costly mistakes this season, and especially as of late.
Rust is in a similar boat to Crosby. Karlsson hasn't been terrible, but he's still not playing good enough defense at five-on-five late in games to help his team.
The Penguins have lost all four games since Evgeni Malkin and Blake Lizotte went down with injuries. But they need to find a way to close out games late, and it starts with their best players showing out when the stakes are highest and when it matters most.
Penguins Waive Veteran Defenseman After Jarry TradeWhen the <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/pittsburgh-penguins">Pittsburgh Penguins</a> traded goaltender Tristan Jarry and forward Sam Poulin to the <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/edmonton-oilers/">Edmonton Oilers</a> on Friday morning, the deal caused a ripple effect for the rest of the roster.
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