I can sum up in four words how our Penguins defeated the Panthers at FLA Live Arena last night. Tristan Jarry. And special teams.
Okay…maybe six. I’ll throw in Jake Guentzel, too.
Jarry was outstanding, especially during the latter stages of a second period that saw our hosts launch 18 shots on goal. In particular, his 10-bell, spread-eagled pad save on Sam Bennett from point-blank range near the 16-minute mark defies description. How anyone can move like that in goalie pads is beyond my understanding.
The special teams were, indeed, special. We killed off three Panther power plays and notched a shorthanded goal to boot. And our power play, suddenly lethal, converted on two of three opportunities.
Following an opening burst by the Pens, the Panthers grabbed the early lead at 5:30 of the first period on a tally by mucker Ryan Lomberg. The lead stood up through the remainder of the first period and through the early stages of the second period thanks largely to the twine tending of oft-maligned Sergei Bobrovsky, who aggressively challenged the Pens’ shooters.
Then came the shorty. Just past the four-minute mark, Ryan Poehling made a strong play to sweep the puck ahead to Bryan Rust. Breaking into the Panthers’ zone on a 2-on-1, Rust sold shot, then slipped a beautiful backhand pass through prime Florida real estate to Kris Letang. Tanger chipped the biscuit over Bobrovsky to knot the score at 1-1.
Whether incidental or with malice aforethought, the Panthers seem to have targeted Guentzel for abuse. Marc Staal flattened the plucky winger with a hard (and late) hit in the first period. At 11:52 of the second, Carter Verhaeghe took him down, can-opener style. But No. 59 made ‘em pay. Parked in front of the net on the ensuing power play, Jake…uh…accidentally on purpose got a skate on an Evgeni Malkin drive from the high slot to nudge the puck past Bobrovsky. Drawing an immediate protest from the Panthers’ goalie.
Two-one Pens.
The Panthers responded, dominating the closing minutes of the period. When Jan Rutta took his second penalty of the night 56 seconds before the buzzer, I held my breath. But Jarry and the PK held serve.
Following an early push by Florida to open the third period we took over, piling up a 17-5 edge in shots on goal over the final 20 minutes. With Aaron Ekblad off for delay of game, the Pens again cashed in on the power play…albeit painfully. With Malkin dutifully planted to the right of the cage, Sidney Crosby cut loose a wicked blast from the top of the left circle. The puck rocketed in off an exposed part of Geno’s right leg, just above the shin pad, causing the big center to crumple to the ice in pain.
Watching No. 71 writhe on the ice made my stomach do summersaults.
With Geno off to the dressing room, the Panthers clawed back mid-period on a slick setup from Verhaeghe to Sam Reinhart, paring our lead to a goal with plenty of time left. Compounding matters, Danton Heinen was tagged with a questionable interference penalty at 11:57. But Brock McGinn led a heroic penalty kill, and the Pens dodged a would-be bullet.
With 78 ticks left Guentzel got his final measure of revenge with an empty netter. Giving us a well-earned seventh win in a row.
Puckpourri
Of course the million-dollar question following the game is, “How’s Geno?” According to coach Mike Sullivan, “the preliminary prognosis is positive.” I’m praying that’s the case. We can ill-afford to lose the all-world center.
Stats-wise, the game was even-steven. Despite a big Panthers push mid-game, the Pens held the edge in shot attempts (58-57), shots on goal (39-34) and scoring chances (33-29). Florida had a slight advantage in high-danger chances (18-17), more pronounced at 5v5 (17-11).
Sid’s line enjoyed a strong game, possession-wise (Corsi 58.06), but Jeff Carter’s unit continues to lag (29.41). Jeff’s age (soon to be 38) is beginning to show, although he remains a force in the faceoff circle, winning 58.9 percent of his draws.
The Pens have killed off 19-straight penalties. Entering last night’s contest, we had the best penalty kill in the league since Nov. 15 with a 92.1 percent success-rate. Letang’s shorty was the fifth of his career, tops among black-and-gold blueliners all-time.
What a job Sullivan and his staff have done. Following our ghastly 0-6-1 funk, we’re 14-2-2.
Storm Clouds Brewing?
Injuries are part of hockey. No team is immune. For the most part, we’ve been very fortunate if not downright blessed with comparative good health to date. However, at the risk of making another Captain Obvious statement, we’re really going to miss Jeff Petry and Jason Zucker, especially in the physical play department. With all hands on deck, we pretty much had the perfect blend of skill and sand. Wish we had players of their ilk to replace them. I have a feeling we’re going to need some physical reinforcement before this next stretch is done.
Along those lines, I was watching Pierre-Olivier Joseph more closely last night. While the kid shines in a lot of areas, especially open ice, he’s not as effective in close quarters and defending the net front. Too much stick and not enough body.
Up Next
The Pens (18-8-4, 40 points) have moved into a tie for second in the Metro with Carolina. As fate would have it, we visit the Hurricanes (17-6-6, 40 points) for a matinee matchup Sunday afternoon.
Speaking of the Metro, the previously unbeatable Devils have fallen back to earth with an 0-3-1 thud, including a 2-1 loss to Philly last night.
