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Pittsburgh Penguins Need to Play Better Defensively

By Shane Lunnen

Apr 18, 2017; Columbus, OH, USA; Columbus Blue Jackets center William Karlsson (25) and Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Brian Dumoulin (8) reach for the loose puck during the third period in game four of the first round of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Nationwide Arena. Columbus beat Pittsburgh 5-4. Mandatory Credit: Russell LaBounty-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 18, 2017; Columbus, OH, USA; Columbus Blue Jackets center William Karlsson (25) and Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Brian Dumoulin (8) reach for the loose puck during the third period in game four of the first round of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Nationwide Arena. Columbus beat Pittsburgh 5-4. Mandatory Credit: Russell LaBounty-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Pittsburgh Penguins can score plenty of goals, but it’s their defense that will need to be better to advance to Round Two.

This won’t be a “sky is falling” post about the Pittsburgh Penguins. They are still in a very good position to close out their first round series with the Columbus Blue Jackets Thursday night.

During the first two games of the series, the Penguins were on lockdown. Goalie Marc-Andre Fleury was sharp, stopping 70 of 72 shots through the first two games.  His teammates were solid in front of him, playing smart in their own zone and blocking shots.

Pittsburgh Penguins
Pittsburgh Penguins /

Pittsburgh Penguins

However the story has changed in the last two games. The Penguins escaped with an overtime victory in Game 3, but they gave up 4 goals on 37 shots. Game 4 they were not as lucky as they fell for the first time this series while giving up 5 goals.

In order to win Game 5, the Penguins will have to get back to what was working defensively in the first two games.

Faceoffs Are Key

Faceoff win percentage is perhaps one of the more overlooked stats in hockey. A win in the circle starts the play off on the right foot, offensively or defensively. The Penguins were great in the circle through the first two games, winning 56% of them. All the Pens centermen were above 50% at the dot through the first 3 games.

Defensive zone faceoffs are especially crucial. In Game 4, there were many defensive zone faceoffs the Pens lost. That led to chances and goals for the Blue Jackets.  Faceoffs must be improved in Game 5.

What Happened to Blocking Shots?

During last season’s playoffs, the Penguins gave up their body a lot to block shots. It was one of the reasons that contributed to their Stanley Cup victory.

Through the first three playoff games this year, the Penguins had at least 20 blocks in each game.  It should be no surprise then that during the loss in Game 4, the Pens only blocked 13 shots. The Penguins need to force themselves into shooting lanes and stop shots during Game 5.

Helping Out Fleury

Marc-Andre Fleury was fantastic during the first two games of this series. He was hung out to dry during Game 4. Could he have stopped some of those goals? Sure, but his defense certainly did him no favors.

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There were several times I witnessed the defense moving slow and getting beat to pucks. Olli Maatta was particularly flat footed. He looked like he had concrete in his skates. The defense overall just has to play better and help out Fleury. He can’t do it all and they should not expect him to do so.

Putting It Altogether

This is not supposed to be an overly critical post. The best teams are going to lose in the playoffs.   But we know the Penguins can play better than they did in Game 4.

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Game 5 will bring it back to Pittsburgh where I expect the Penguins to feed off the crowd.  Columbus has not shown much in the first two games on the road. The Penguins can score goals left and right. Let’s hope the defense puts in a much better performance and we see hand shakes Thursday night.

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