PITTSBURGH — Aside from a historic night by an iconic duo — and even then, well, kind of — the Pittsburgh Penguins season had been all about goaltending.
Not on Friday night.
Tristan Jarry didn’t start so he couldn’t get yanked. Joel Blomqvist took the net, but it didn’t matter.
It’s never about goaltending when the Penguins play the Carolina Hurricanes, whose adherence to coach Rod Brind’Amour’s system has a Kryptonite-like effect on Pittsburgh’s superheroes. And if Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin couldn’t so much as register a shot, no wonder their Penguins lost, 4-1, at PPG Paints Arena.
“When you know you’re in your building against that team, you know you have to set the tone — play with pace, because you know it’s going to be a grind,” Kris Letang said.
“They just play a north-south game. They win battles. They chip pucks.”
Letang signed.
“Yeah,” he said, “as a team, we just got out-worked, and that’s it.”
Lars Eller had harsher words to offer. But a player who has been with an organization for a cup of coffee — at least compared to Letang, Malkin, and Crosby, the longest-tenured trio of teammates in North American sports history — shouldn’t speak on behalf of the Penguins’ futility against the Hurricanes since Brind’Amour became coach in 2018-19.
The Penguins are 5-6-5 against the Hurricanes over that span. They have scored 38 goals.
Surprised it’s that many? You wouldn’t be alone.
It seems as though the Hurricanes, under Brind’Amour, have thoroughly handled the Penguins. It’s not quite as bad as that perception.
Even at home, where games such as the one Friday took on a wash-rinse-repeat feel, the Penguins are 4-5-2 against the Brind’Amour-coached Hurricanes.
Not good. Not awful, either.
Not helpful, however, considering the Hurricanes have finished no lower than second in the Metropolitan Division the past three seasons.
The Penguins’ highest finish in those seasons was third in 2021-21.
Do a bit better against one of the division’s bullies, and the Penguins probably wouldn’t be looking to end a two-year postseason absence. Certainly, they’ll need a better showing in the remaining games this season.
Coach Mike Sullivan suggested Friday night the Penguins’ 3-3-0 record probably accurately reflects their performances over the first couple of weeks.
Whereas the sample size is too small to draw big conclusions, it’s worth noting the Penguins’ three wins have all come against opponents that failed to make the Stanley Cup playoffs last season. Their three losses — at home to the Hurricanes and New York Rangers, and in Toronto against the Maple Leafs — were by a combined 14-3 score.
So while it’s fair to focus on the ongoing goalie saga in Pittsburgh, perhaps more talk should focus on the Penguins’ struggles against the NHL’s presumed contenders. Facing four consecutive road games, three of which are against teams that were participants in the last postseason, figures to determine what shape the Penguins are in by the end of the opening month.
Often, players view a swing through western Canada, such as the one the Penguins are about to embark upon, as a good thing. That is especially true early in the season when new players can bond with holdovers during long flights and team meals — away from the distractions of family and friends.
How often have you watched the Penguins play in Winnipeg or against the Alberta teams and thought they looked more dialed in than when on home ice?
Letang shrugged at that prospect.
“We need to bring the same game every single time,” he said. “I don’t know if the road does anything more or if guys play more simple. I have no idea. But I don’t think it’s like that, to be honest.”
Honestly, there wasn’t much to this loss to the Hurricanes.
Drew O’Connor’s top-corner goal gave the Penguins a lead about eight minutes into the first period on Friday night. The Hurricanes needed just over a minute to pull even, then took control over the final 45 minutes.
With three goals so far this season, Drew O’Connor is taking off! 🚀 pic.twitter.com/BOFGjA1KTr
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) October 18, 2024
About halfway through the game, the Penguins had six shots, and it didn’t feel like they’d had that many.
Blomqvist was fine. He stopped 35 shots, and afterward shot down questions about whether his unexpected heavy workload as a rookie might become a factor.
Two goalies the Penguins figure to count on during the road trip played Friday night: Blomqvist for the Penguins, and Alex Nedeljkovic for their AHL affiliate, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, on a conditioning assignment.
Nedeljkovic stopped 33 of 36 shots faced in that start. He’ll likely accompany the Penguins to Winnipeg after practice on Saturday afternoon or meet up with them there on Sunday.
Going back to Jarry, whose slide from last season has carried over into this one, is something Sullivan figures to do at some point. The question is when.
Carrying three goalies on the trip is an option president of hockey operations/general manager Kyle Dubas at least has to consider, right?
The Penguins have a roster spot to spare, meaning they could split the four games between a healthy Nedeljkovic and Blomqvist, and allow Jarry to work on his game in practices and after morning skates.
Sending Blomqvist to the AHL might irk a veteran-laden team, especially a leadership group that has known the pain of postseason near-misses the last two years. Points in October matter as much as ones in March, or so goes the adage.
The Hurricanes would have won Friday night had the Penguins been allowed to play prime-era Tom Barrasso, Marc-Andre Fleury and Matt Murray in each period. The loss wasn’t about how their goalie played, rather it was about how the skaters executed.
Poorly. Which is typical for the Penguins against this particular opponent.
Of course, it isn’t like the Hurricanes were the first opponent to be gifted bountiful scoring chances by the Penguins. All six have, and if that continues over the next week — well, it’s possible the Penguins will need each of Blomqvist, Nedeljkovic and Jarry to play.
Again, it’s been a small sample size, but through six games the Penguins have looked like a team that might break any of their goalies eventually. Their defensive-zone coverage is lacking, their play away from the puck is spotty and their most skilled players are a couple of ticks about too careless.
It won’t matter which goalie is between the pipes if all of those elements are improved upon — and soon.
As Friday night proved, Malkin and Crosby can’t put on a cowl and cape every game. They’re still great, but they’re human hockey players, not actual superheroes.
(Photo: Charles LeClaire / Imagn Images)
