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Pittsburgh Penguins: Jake Guentzel is Up for the Playoffs

By Matthew Rodrigopulle

Apr 4, 2017; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins center Jake Guentzel (59) passes the puck against pressure from Columbus Blue Jackets left wing Brandon Saad (20) during the third period at the PPG PAINTS Arena. The Penguins won 4-1. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 4, 2017; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins center Jake Guentzel (59) passes the puck against pressure from Columbus Blue Jackets left wing Brandon Saad (20) during the third period at the PPG PAINTS Arena. The Penguins won 4-1. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Pittsburgh Penguins dominated the Columbus Blue Jackets in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and their victory came with some big help from rookie sensation Jake Guentzel

Jake Guentzel’s performance truly played a major factor in the Pittsburgh Penguins victories. As a player who was supposed to just be a call-up in relief of injuries, he has really shown up.

Guentzel’s playoff performance is elevating him to the ranks of the NHL with the league’s elite talent. His first round performance should not go unnoticed.

Pittsburgh Penguins
Pittsburgh Penguins /

Pittsburgh Penguins

Leading Goal Scorer

As of right now, the leading goal scorer in the playoffs isn’t Sidney Crosby, or Evgeni Malkin, or Connor McDavid, or Alex Ovechkin. It’s Jake Guentzel.

That’s right, the rookie sensation has shown he can really bring the offence in the playoffs by scoring five goals in the first round.

Guentzel really stepped into his own in game three of the Penguins first round series against the Blue Jackets. After being down 2-0 in the first, Guentzel decided to take matters into his own hand. He scored a hat trick that game, and with a little help from Bryan Rust, they led the team’s offence to a victory. Even better, Guentzel completed the hat trick by scoring the game-winning goal in overtime.

Clutch Factor

Just from this game three performance we know that Guentzel has that certain clutch factor that many players wish to have. He wants to dominate, it’s clear to see that Guentzel wants to become the player who takes over games when the pressure is on.

This is the kind of player you want to have on your team. You would expect this from players like Crosby, Malkin, Kessel, but very few depth players show this trait. Let’s keep in mind that Jake Guentze is only a rookie. If Guentzel keeps this up and develops well, we can expect big things from him in the future as a playoff performer.

So Jake Guentzel really has been the surprise of the first round. Let’s hope he can bring it again this round against the Washington Capitals!

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