Pittsburgh Penguins Running on Empty

Thanks partly to bad luck, and partly to the NHL’s bad playoff format, the Pittsburgh Penguins are having a tough time.

They seem to be running out of gas in the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

A Good Start

In the opening round, the Pens dispatched the overly physical Columbus Blue Jackets in 6 games. After that, they defeated the Washington Capitals in a grueling series. Looking tired at times, the Pens finished off the Caps with a convincing game seven win. Beating the two best teams in the East not from Pittsburgh put them in the Stanley Cup driver’s seat.

Pittsburgh Penguins

Trouble is Brewing

However, after three games of the Eastern Conference Finals, the Penguins look to be in trouble. They dropped a low-scoring game one, and pulled out a strong game two effort to manage a split. Then came a game three meltdown. Ottawa scored in the first minute of play and ended the first period up 4-0. Ottawa came hard and fast, and Pittsburgh seemed unprepared and on their heels for almost half the game. By the time they settled down, Matt Murray had replaced Fleury, and they trailed 5-0. What happened?

We Are Way Low on Gas, Mav.

Although injuries played a part, the Penguins are simply running out of steam. In a previous article, I talked about the difficulty of repeating as champions in the NHL. One of the biggest problems is fatigue built up over two seasons with a short off-season. Let’s look at how fatigue hurts the Penguins.

It Takes Energy to Fly

It is obvious they are having a problem putting pucks past Ottawa goalie Craig Anderson. The Pens only scored one goal in the three games so far. Even after falling behind 5-0 in game 3, they could still only manage a single goal.

More from Pens Labyrinth

The sight of Pens pucks hitting posts and goalie pads looks depressingly similar to the playoff loss against the Boston Bruins a few years ago. Back then, as now, the solution isn’t just getting more shots to the net. The Penguins also need to have bodies in front of the net. And that takes energy and durability. A lot of it. Just ask injured Patric Hornqvist.

The Pens perimeter shooting will not get the job done against Anderson. All of Ottawa’s goals and Crosby’s lone goal in game 3 were from less than 6 feet away from the net. It’s playoff hockey and it’s hard.

It gets worse too – one of the Pens secrets to dominating puck possession is a frenzied backcheck. That disrupts opposing team’s rushes, and allows the Pens to regain possession quickly. Over time, this keeps other teams on defense, and tilts the ice for the Penguins. That demanding style of play has disappeared as the playoffs have progressed. An empty gas tank is causing the Penguins warp engines to misfire, and they are now on impulse power only (apologies to Trekkies).

The Last Mile

After losing game 3 in convincing fashion, the Pens are in a desperate situation. Call it a virtual must-win situation. They need a confidence-boosting victory – complete with an offensive explosion – with no new injuries. Such a win could rejuvenate the team and add a little gas to the tank.

So can they do it? The answer is coming up quickly in game 4. If you are a Pens fan, you are hoping that injuries to Hornqvist, Schultz, and Rust are minor. If they get some rest out of missing a game, it might even be a good thing. Even typing that out sounds a bit desperate – but that’s where we are right now.

The Right Goalie

To the elephant in the room – which goalie should start game four? My opinion is unchanged from when the playoffs began. It’s not that Fleury has been bad – if not for him, we might already be gone from these playoffs. It is just a fact that the Pens need a slower game right now.

Next: Phil Kessel is the Heart and Soul of This Team

To keep energy levels up, they need lots of whistles and line changes in-game. That is something that Murray’s puck-absorbing style can bring. He has shown a consistent ability to calm the game down, and that may be just what the Pens need to refill the tank in this series.