Pittsburgh Penguins: Lessons learned vs. L.A.
By Rob Joncas
The Pittsburgh Penguins carry a record of 5-4-1 in their last 10 games, including a three game skid from losses to Toronto, Buffalo and Washington last week.
A strong dose of California sun may be just what the doctored ordered for the Pittsburgh Penguins to get back in the win column starting tonight with a three-game road swing, that has stops in Los Angeles, Anaheim and San Jose .
Following some weak showings last week, the Penguins need to grind out some points if they want to stay in the mix for the Metropolitan Division title.
While we prepare for the future, let’s look to the past, with another Penguins history lesson.
Last Five Games
The Penguins are 4-1-0 in their last five games vs. Kings dating back to 2018, with Pittsburgh earning a 5-4 shootout win on Dec. 14, 2019 in their only other match up of the season.
Old Friends and New Allies
Deadline acquisitions, Patrick Marleau, Conor Sheary and Evan Rodrigues are all expected to make their debut in the Peguins lineup Wed. night and should provide some energy to an ailing lineup.
Some good news alo developed on the injury front for Pittsburgh, as both Brian Dumoulin and John Marino took practice with Pittsburgh. While no timetable have been disclosed for either player’s return, its certainly encouraging to see them making progress.
Season Series
The Penguins and Kings have met 161 times since 1967. Pittsburgh is presently on the losing end of the series with a record of 67-72-18-4. Their first match up was held on Oct. 28, 1967, a 5-3 L.A. win.
Leading Scorers
Sidney Crosby (9G, 7A) and Evgeni Malkin (4G, 12A) are currently tied for first with 16 points in 15 games played. Kris Letang holds third place with 2 goals and 9 points in 9 games played. Jake Guentzel and Bryan Rust round out the top five scorers with 6 points each.
Leading Goaltenders
Matt Murray leads the trio of current Penguins goaltenders vs. the Kings. Murray is 2-0-1 in three games played with a goals-against-average of 1.62. Casey DeSmith ranks second with a record of 1-1 in two games played, with a goals-against-average of 2.53. Tristan Jarry presently sits in third place with one win in one game played and a goals-against-average of 3.69.
Feeding Frenzy
On Jan. 21, 1987, Penguins goaltenders Roberto Romano and Gilles Meloche combined to allow 10 goals from Kings scorers. Over the course of the 161 series L.A. have scored 8 goals, six times and 7 goals, four times.
Pittsburgh has scored 8 goals twice during the season series, an 8-4 victory on Mar. 26, 1969 and a 8-1 win on Oct. 20, 1971.
No Trade Backs?
On Aug. 27, 1993, Pittsburgh and L.A. executed a trade. The Penguins acquired Marty McSorley in exchange for Shawn McEachern. Pittsburgh brought McSorley in to act as a deterrent for teams looking to take liberties with superstars Mario Lemieux, Jaromir Jagr.
On Feb. 15, 1994, the two teams essentially reversed the trade with a couple of additional pieces added to the mix. The Kings received McSorley and defencemen Jim Paek and the Penguins received McEachern and forward Tomas Sandstrom.
Sandstrom was vastly underrated during his time with the Penguins. He accumulated 71 goals and 155 points in 172 games played with Pittsburgh.
Do you have any memories from the Penguins season series with the Kings? Drop a line in the comment section below.