Coach’s Debrief: The Penguins Repeatable ‘Blueprint’

Pittsburgh Penguins coach Mike Sullivan called his team’s win over the Anaheim Ducks Thursday a good “blueprint” for the team’s success.

Coach Francis Anzalone puts the Penguins game on the whiteboard and takes you inside the coach’s video room for what the Penguins did well. The Coach’s Debrief isn’t hot takes but is for fans who want to know more about the nuts and bolts of the Penguins’ scheme and game that even Sullivan often doesn’t want to talk about.

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Beyond Sidney Crosby’s heroics with the Penguins’ only goal and a stiff determination that propelled the team forward, the team played a different type of game than it has played to this point in the season.

In Ep7 of The Debrief, Francis Anzalone walks us through elements of the Penguins 2-1 OT win vs. Anaheim that they need to continue on Saturday vs. the Montreal Canadiens. Anzalone specifically breaks down the Penguins’ improvement on the “inside” and their defensive focus on protecting the “good ice” vs. the Ducks on Thursday night.

The coaching points presented and video clips displayed in the episode represent what F.A. calls a “repeatable game plan” for the Pens on Saturday and into the future.

00:00–1:04: Introduction

1:05– 2:13: Bottom Line Up Front

2:14–4:47 : F.A.-Sullivan Coaching Alignment

4:48–13:47: The Big 3 Reasons for Success vs. Anaheim

13:48– 15:27: If F.A. Was David Quinn for a Day…

15:28–21:49: The Video Does Not Lie

21:50–28:09: Readying for the Montreal Canadiens

Check it out, and be sure to like, comment, and subscribe.