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Before the match
The Penguins mix it up in Game 1, Cody This takes a seat and Chad Ruhwedel cycles. D-pairs are adjusted to place the top four players over the top two pairs. Innovative concept!
First period
For a team that lost 3-0, the Pens actually started off pretty decently against the Flyers. The shots were 5-0 early. Then Pittsburgh was called up for their second too many call-up in as many games this season. The PK was even fine, but Chad Ruhwedel was called in for a trip as he was dying, giving the Flyers another chance. This time, Philly pulled off a great passing game from Claude Giroux to Jakub Voracek quickly to Travis Konecny. How that escaped Brian Dumoulin’s bat is beyond me. 1-0.
Two minutes later, Konecny strikes again. Tristan Jarry can’t keep the puck up front and spins back (it never works) and the Flyers put it in. 2-0.
Then barely two minutes later, the floodgates open. Jarry breaks his stick, is totally beside himself and Ivan Provorov blows a puck next to him. 3-0 and it’s the end of the night for Jarry. 3-0 at just 11:30 am to go.
Luckily for pens, they turn the tide. After getting his first power play, Sidney Crosby conceded with a backhand goal.
Next shift, the Pens’ best line of the season so far hits. Jared McCann does well to shoot Carter Hart. Hart hits the rebound, but unfortunately for him he’s right to charge Brandon Tanev. Tanev has an open net to shoot in and it’s 3-2 with Pittsburgh engaged and on the return track.
Casey DeSmith, in the cold game, sees Kevin Hayes beat him to a breakaway for his first NHL shot since March 16, 2019. DeSmith stones him. Great moment to keep the match at 3-2.
The pens have two other power sets, but don’t do much with them. For shame!
Crazy donkey period. The shots are 14-9 Pittsburgh. 5v5 Corsi% is 54.2% in the edge of the pens. The odds of scoring 5v5 are equal (8-8), as are the odds of high danger (4-4).
Second period
Sean Couturier left the match in the first period and did not return for the second.
Kris Letang takes an early penalty to cancel the power play. Pittsburgh is killing him.
John Marino throws Jason Zucker on a clean breakaway but the backhand shot is stopped.
Mike Matheson goes to the box to trip. Tanev takes a slapper straight to the foot but of course it’s too hard to put down and comes back soon.
The Pens get another power play when Scott Laughton hits Crosby, they don’t make a ton of it, and then McCann walks over to the box for a very misguided way to stick his arm out and ram his elbow into his head. ‘a Flyers. . Not good. All the penalties follow one another.
Great time for the pens, despite being on the PK for 5 minutes (just 1+ on the PP) the hits are 10-4 in the second frame for PIT. Overall, they are 24-13 PIT. 5v5 CF% for the game is 60% Pens. SCF% and HDSCF% are respectively 56.0% and 57.1% for Pittsburgh over two periods. All is well, except they haven’t put any Hart beyond that time.
Third period
Not much happened in the third, the Pens got a power play in the middle of the third when Mike Matheson was crushed on the boards from behind. Lots of quality zone time and watch the net, but they can’t fix Hart.
The referees equalized him by sending Zucker for a slash shortly after. The Pens kill him, but soon after, the Flyers rush the other way, make a few cross passes on the ice and Konency is mostly fans, but still has enough to put him in the net for a lead of 4-2 for his club with just over 7 minutes remaining.
Oskar Lindblom made a turn on an empty net with 2:08 to the left to clear all doubts and bring the score to 5-2.
Some ideas
- When we were little ones and couldn’t cheat anyone’s little brother by playing keeper (sorry Trevor), we would put an old briefcase or a trash can or an obstacle in the net. It wouldn’t really offer much resistance, but it would just be there a little. For some reason, that’s what Jarry reminded me of on that second base, where a weak shot went through him and he slipped straight out of the net for an easy fuss for the Flyers. The Pens aren’t very strong defensively (can’t blame the goalie for a point blank t slam dunk on first base), but their goalie didn’t really help the cause either.
- Jankowski finished 2nd in the NHL in 2018-19 with five SHGs. It’s easy to see why. He clings to the puck, takes it into the zone and it’s just a treat to watch the kill penalties.
- Guentzel and Zucker had glorious chances in the second from straight ahead, but just couldn’t cash. Ditto even Ruhwedel and Evan Rodrigues. Hart was good, but the pens were a bit bitten too.
- The pens came out very physical. McCann checked Couturier’s body (and Coots wouldn’t be coming back after that early shift). Sam Lafferty has bloodied Laughton. Tanev was flying like a maniac as usual, pulling out anything with a pulse. The total strokes in the match were 30 to 24 pens.
- Letang was on the ice for all 5 goals against. Not great! All of Konecny’s goals were also scored within breathing distance of the goalkeeper.
- DeSmith wasn’t asked to do a lot of things, but he provided a settlement game by keeping the puck out of the net for 41 minutes. For what we’ve seen this season, that’s a positive point.
- On the other hand, Hart was very good. Especially in this second period, the Pens tested him intensely and he had all the answers. Hard to endure in a short season, but that’s how it goes sometimes.
Unlock game keys (from preview)
# 1: “Pens need more of the Malkin Line (and more defense against the Hayes Line).”
50% credit here, I guess. The Hayes line did nothing, but sadly the bigger story again was a silent line from Malkin and his line. The pens won’t do much when that line doesn’t click, and it didn’t.
# 2: “How does Jarry bounce back for the second game?”
Jarry was bounced back after just 11:30 into the game, seeing only 6 shots but having 3 of them end up behind him. It’s fair to debate what slice of the pie to take, but Jarry has allowed nine goals in 71 minutes this season with a 0.758% saving. It’s Niemi-esque. It just can’t happen, the goalie has to find a way to keep the puck out of the net more than that. No one can be happier to be out of Philly tonight than Tristan Jarry. Next.
# 3: “Win the Special Teams Battle.”
I can’t say the pens did. The power play went 1/5, OK, but had a chance for more. PK went 5/6 which was good, but gave up another goal shortly after the end. Going to the club six times is also a problem in itself, as is taking another call from too many men.
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