Penguins Final Wrap: Were Those Penalties, & What the Hell Happened?!

NEW YORK  — It’s been 24 hours since the Pittsburgh Penguins did enough to win, but lost their third straight game, lost the series, and lost what was quite possibly the final chance for the core’s fourth Stanley Cup.

Like multiple-Cup winners Chicago Blackhawks and LA Kings before them, the Penguins have not won a playoff series since they were dethroned in 2018. Neither LA nor Chicago won a playoff series after being dethroned in 2015 and 2016, respectively.

Add the Washington Capitals to the list of aging Stanley Cup winners who haven’t won a Round One series since being dethroned.

Reality trumps hope. Teams hanging on with great players in their mid-30s just don’t do well in the postseason. The teams in the second round are younger. The Tampa Bay Lightning are the slight exception, though Steve Stamkos and Victor Hedman are 32 and 31-years-old. Tampa Bay has a bevy of players in their mid-20s, too.

Crosby, 34, was the Penguins’ youngest of the top three centers.

It’s odd using past tense for the Penguins. Less than 24 hours after it came to a screeching halt, I’m home, there are no restaurants in my neighborhood open on Monday, and I haven’t shoved any tourists out of my way…yet.

Penalties, Officials

It was tough to see Alexis Lafreniere grab Marcus Pettersson’s helmet in real-time. Crosby was correct–that was the difference in the series.

Did the Penguins have chances to close out the Rangers before then? Yep. Game 6 will haunt them. However, in professional sports, the margins are so narrow that claiming one missed opportunity negates having one taken away is a bit disingenuous.

I certainly appreciated the thousands and thousands of Rangers fans who visited our site this week. Believe it or not, I received a couple of nice emails, albeit wanting to debate (Sorry, I don’t have that kind of time). The Rangers fans were salty over their late goal in Game 1 that was disallowed after a goalie interference challenge.

So, the three big moments were officials driven. Game 1. Game 5 when Sidney Crosby was elbowed. Game 7.

I’m with you, though perhaps with a bit different perspective. NHL officiating is frustrating. Why was Brock McGinn called for holding on the Rangers’ OT breakaway (correct call) but no penalty called when Evan Rodrigues had to use one hand on his shorthanded goal?

Why wasn’t Lafreniere penalized when he put Pettersson in a headlock in front of the nation? To answer our Rangers fans, no, it was certainly not interference on Pettersson.

The problem is–I don’t have good answers for you. Officials manage the game so that we don’t have 40 minutes in penalties every game, but in the process, they’re increasingly affecting the outcome.

I was impressed with Lafreniere’s extra-legal physicality. He’s adapting that part of his game well to the NHL. You’d love him on your team, hate him on the opponent. It’s up to officials not to let such a blatant cheat code work. That was a bush league move that worked.

Perhaps it’s time the Pittsburgh Penguins had a few players who knew how to play physical and extra-legal physical.

Lastly, the Game 1 goalie interference call was reasonably obvious. After one replay, I knew Toronto would take it off the board.

As frustrating as officiating was for the Penguins in Round One, it’s light years better than the waterskiing debacle of 2021. Montreal and the New York Islanders made a mockery of interference and hooking. They turned back the clocks to the worst era in hockey: the dead puck era.

It was a step forward to see interference and holding calls. Now, maybe we can work towards a bit more consistency. And, calling the bush-league stuff.

What Happened?!

The thing that has boggled me. How did the Pittsburgh Penguins seemingly do everything they needed to do yet lose?

They made Igor Shesterkin look human.

They dominated the puck. Shots. Scoring chances. All favored the Penguins.

Evan Rodrigues and Danton Heinen played some of their best hockey.

Even Kasperi Kapanen looked infinitely better than he looked a few weeks ago.

Yet somehow, they couldn’t slam the door on New York.

I don’t necessarily have good answers. The penalty kill was brutal, which kept New York in the games and series. The Penguins lacked that killer mojo or instinct they had in 2016 and 2017. They managed to get those big goals rather than give them up. The breaks went their way rather than against them.

I have no better answer than–that’s hockey.

It’s a shame that UFAs will walk, and that was our final look at them. It feels like the Penguins deserved better. I agree with Sidney Crosby on that, too.

It’s probably going to be a long time before the Penguins are Stanley Cup contenders. Maybe Ron Hextall can spin some magic this summer, and the Penguins will be refreshed and reborn with a big-name free agent and a slew of hungry bargain free agents.

Because of Sidney Crosby, it’s possible…but unlikely.

I’ll issue this challenge now. Pittsburgh will have to learn to like hockey, not parades. Love the game, not the result.

Or you’re not going to have much fun for a while.