Pittsburgh Penguins lose 2 – 1 to Colorado Avalanche

The Pittsburgh Penguins fell 2 – 1 to the Colorado Avalanche on Monday night.

The shots were not indicative of the Pittsburgh Penguins performance. The Pens posted 40 shots on net. Jonathan Bernier stopped 39 of them.

Defensive lapses and 16 registered giveaways led to an underwhelming performance by the Pens. The Avs put up better scoring chances, but Tristan Jarry stood on his head. The young tender made saves and ultimately kept the Pens in it through three periods.

It was a case of the Pens playing at the level of their opponents. On paper, the Colorado Avalanche are not a threatening team. However, the pushed the pace, and made the Pens look lazy. The Pens didn’t lock into a sense of urgency until very late in the game, and Bernier was up to the challenge all night long.

Highlights were hard to come by, as the Penguins didn’t score until 19:49 into the third period.

In the first period, after his shot was blocked in the Avs zone, Matt Hunwick made a nifty diving play to prevent a 2 on 1 opportunity. The score was 0’s after the first.

Later in the second, the ice tilted in the Av’s favor. Even though the above play was called back on an offside, it was a sign of things to come. Letang got absolutely walked here, and ended the night with 3 giveaways.

In the third period, Mark Barbierio blasted a rocket from the point. The shot had eyes, as it ricocheted off Riley Sheahan’s skate and up over the shoulder of Jarry. This late tally seemed to be a dagger.

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Above is just one of Tristan Jarry’s 26 saves. Although he robs Blake Comeau here, the Colorado

forward would go on to bury an empty netter, putting the Avs up 2 – 0.

Phil Kessel would end Jonathan Bernier’s shutout streak with 11 seconds left in regulation, but it was too little too late.

Notable Stats

• Phil Kessel scored his 15th goal of the season. The forward has a 5 game point streak.
• Dominik Simon led the Penguins with 4 hits.
• Kris Letang registered 27: 39 TOI.