Stop Worrying, The Pittsburgh Penguins Will Be Fine
Oct 26, 2013; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby (87) and Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender James Reimer (34) and defenseman Dion Phaneuf (3) follow the play during the third period at the Air Canada Centre. Toronto defeated Pittsburgh 4-1. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
While it’s somewhat concerning that the Pittsburgh Penguins have lost three-in-a-row, fans’ know that the team always seems to go on these sort of streaks throughout the duration of the regular-season.
There’s no real explanation as to why the team does this, but for some reason when they can’t bury the biscuit, the problem will persist into the next game thereafter.
It’s no secret that Pittsburgh thrives on scoring in bunches, and it’s no surprise neither considering they have two of the top-3 players in the National Hockey League (NHL), along with some other dynamic offensive talents.
Even though the Penguins are having a rough time getting the puck in the net, chances are, the complication will soon subside, and the team will once again go on to win consecutive games.
When Pittsburgh starts losing, everyone wants to start guessing as to what’s wrong with the team; however, when they win like they know how to, critics commence to ask who can stop them.
It’s a long season people. Not to mention it’s still the beginning of the season.
Pittsburgh always seems to either win a lot, or lose a lot. They have these peculiar hot-and-cold streaks that’s hard to configure because of how talented the team is — but that’s just their m.o.
With that being said, the team has got to find a way to not only score goals, but prevent opposing offenses’ from building big leads. In the past three contests, Pittsburgh has given up nine goals, which isn’t good at all. And in that stretch they’ve registered just four tallies, which is also un-Pittsburgh-like.
The loss of forward James Neal was a heavy one — considering how prolific of a scorer he is and his chemistry with center Evgeni Malkin — but the injury to forward Beau Bennett was also detrimental given his scoring ability.
Performing without Bennett and Neal, Malkin has seen his productivity slide because he’s lining up with skaters he doesn’t normally play with. Yes, forward Jussi Jokinen is still there and has been paired with Malkin since the start of the season, but he’s seen various other skaters fill-in as his other winger throughout recent games.
Trying to stimulate the scoring, head coach Dan Bylsma has paired Malkin with captain Sidney Crosby more than often, yet he’s still having a hard time finding the twine. Not knowing how long both Bennett and Neal will be shelved, Malkin is going to have to find some sort of offensive consistency to alleviate the pressure of the first-line to score, because when Pittsburgh is winning they’re receiving contributions from all across the board.
As far as the defense goes, puck management hasn’t been what the team probably would like in the three games they lost, and communication towards picking up the right player on odd-man rushes has been sloppier than usual. The loss of defenseman Rob Scuderi, who’s an excellent defensive blueliner, is certainly going to make the rest of the group’s job that much more imperative now.
You can point the finger at what’s wrong and was isn’t, but as a whole, they’ve got to regroup and get back to doing what they do best — winning.
The team is going to have a shot at breaking their current losing streak tonight against the Carolina Hurricanes, who they already dismantled once this season. They’re most likely facing Canes’ backup goaltender Justin Peters, and looking to avoid suffering their fourth consecutive loss, the Penguins must score.
The game can be seen on the ROOT network, and is set to start at 7 p.m.