Pittsburgh Penguins Switching Things Up for Game 5

Injuries and sub-par performances in game four of the Eastern Conference Finals sent the Pittsburgh Penguins back to the drawing board. On the morning of a must-win game five, the Pens’ lineup has a new look.

The Pittsburgh Penguins almost managed to pull off a miraculous comeback in game four of the Eastern Conference Finals, bouncing back from an awful first forty minutes to draw within one goal in the third period. However, they just ran out of time and couldn’t make up the whole deficit, dropping the game 4-3 and allowing the Tampa Bay Lightning to even the series at two wins apiece.

That game saw a few mid-game lineup changes, due to injuries and poor performances. Trevor Daley was injured in an awkward hit by Ryan Callahan into the boards, and couldn’t stand up to get off the ice on his own. Understandably, he didn’t return that night.

He left the arena on crutches and with his foot in a boot, and now we know the true extent of his injury. Daley has a broken ankle and will be out for the remainder of the season. That’s a tough break (no pun intended) for both Daley and the Penguins.

Daley’s injury will allow Olli Maatta to come back into the lineup and get a chance to prove himself. Maatta’s been underwhelming this postseason, especially after how well he played in his first couple years with the team. He’s been the weak link in the fast Penguins team, though his conditioning has always been lauded; he’s also made more than a few poor decisions with the puck that have allowed for goals.

Maatta’s been a healthy scratch in the last two games, which put Justin Schultz back in. Schultz had no playoff experience before this year, thanks to being stuck on the dismal Edmonton Oilers, but has stepped up into the spotlight well. Head coach Mike Sullivan has trusted him on the powerplay when he’s in the lineup, even in do-or-die situations like the final few minutes of game four.

Now both Maatta and Schultz will be in – well, most likely. Schultz was rotating on the third defensive pair with Ian Cole and Derrick Pouliot. Personally, I’d prefer to keep both Schultz and Cole in the lineup rather than Pouliot, especially with Olli coming back in.

Of course, Sullivan is evasive as ever and says the lineup will be a game-time decision. So we’ll have to wait and see.

The one part of the lineup that we know now is who’s going to be in net. For the first time of the playoffs, Matt Murray will start the game on the bench rather than in the goal crease. He’s had a rougher series against the Bolts, which culminated in the game four loss. He was pulled between the second and third periods in favor of Marc-Andre Fleury, who will get his first playoff start of the year tonight.