Penguins Game 81, Two to Go; Lines, Notes, & How to Watch vs. Bruins

Just two more games are remaining in the Pittsburgh Penguins’ (33-35-12) season, and with a couple of wins, they have a chance to reach .500. It’s a very modest accomplishment and nothing close to the goals set forth before the season, but the other big moment will be getting Ville Koivunen his first NHL goal. The final two games of fun begin Sunday when the Penguins host the Boston Bruins at PPG Paints Arena before a national TV audience.

The puck drops just after 3:30 p.m. today.

Coach Mike Sullivan will announce his starting goalie and Philip Tomasino’s injury status around 1:30 p.m. Tomasino was a full participant in practice on Saturday and is a game-time decision.

Sullivan has been riding goalie Tristan Jarry, who has won four of his last five starts. Setting aside a pair of disastrous games against Buffalo and Tampa Bay, Jarry has been rolling since he claimed the Penguins’ net on March 9.

Read More: Inside the Jarry Comeback; An Audition, Outside Help, & the Personal Side (a PHN Exclusive)

Jarry’s stats are modest—he’s posted a mere .904 save percentage—but those who watch the Penguins understand the number of breakaways, odd-man rushes, and point-blank chances their goalies face.

The Penguins are looking to get rookie Ville Koivunen his first NHL goal. The rookie has four points in six games and has played exceptionally well.

Boston has cratered since the NHL trade deadline on March 7. After trading longtime Bruins stalwart Brad Marchand, Charlie Coyle, and Brandon Carlo, the team has been in a death spiral, falling to the third-worst record in the NHL.

Read More: Geekie’s Big Season Gives Bruins Big Questions

Jeremy Swayman has gone from front-line starting goalie to just an .894 save percentage, which is nearly identical to the Penguins’ netminders. Jarry has a season stopper rate of .893, and Alex Nedeljkovic is at .894.

Penguins Lines

Ville Koivunen-Sidney Crosby-Bryan Rust

Danton Heinen-Evgeni Malkin-Rickard Rakell

Valtteri Pustinen-Kevin Hayes-Connor Dewar

Joona Koppanen-Vasily Ponomarev-Philip Tomasino

Defense

Matt Grzelcyk-Kris Letang

Conor Timmins-Erik Karlsson

Ryan Graves-Ryan Shea

Goalie: Tristan Jarry, likely

Bruins Lines

Morgan Geekie-Elias Lindholm-David Pastrnak

Pavel Zacha-Casey Mittlestadt-Fabian Lysell

Marat Khusnutdinov-Fraser Minten-Vinni Lettieri

Cole Koepke-John Beecher-Jakub Lauko

Defense

Nikita Zadorov-Henri Jokiharju

Mason Lohrei-Andrew Peeke

Michael Callahan-Parker Wotherspoon

Goalie: Jeremy Swayman, likely

Penguins Game Notes

The Penguins have scored points in 10 of their last 15 home games against Boston, dating back to Dec. 14, 2016 (9-5-1).

The Penguins have points in eight of the last 10 home games (7-2-1). They’re 4-1-1 in their last six and 9-4-2 in their last 15 games.

Bryan Rust has six goals and 14 points over his last 10 games.

Sidney Crosby notched his ninth game-winning goal of the season on Friday night, tying his career high previously set three times. Only Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl (11) and Winnipeg’s Mark Scheifele (10) have more game-winners than Crosby this season.

Jarry has an active 128:08 home shutout streak, marking the longest such streak by a Penguins goaltender since his previous run of 145:36 from April 22-27, 2021. The record is Jarry’s 2019 streak of 169:18. A shutout into the third period today would break the record.

How to Watch

TV: ABC, SportsNet Pittsburgh

Radio: 105.9 The X