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Penguins Game 53, Rescue Effort; Lines, Notes, & How to Watch vs. Utah HC

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Pittsburgh Penguins Game vs. Utah Hockey Club

SALT LAKE CITY — The Pittsburgh Penguins (20-24-8) have one more chance to salvage a good feeling from this extended seven-game road trip that seemingly began a lifetime ago with a joyous victory over the Buffalo Sabres and Alex Nedeljkovic’s goalie goal. It’s been a slog since then, as the team has plummeted to the bottom of the Metro Division and next-to-last in the Eastern Conference. They make the franchise’s first visit to Salt Lake City to face the Utah Hockey Club (21-21-7) at the Delta Center on Wednesday.



The puck drops just after 9:30 EST.

Hey, at least it’s not a 10:30 game, right?

The Penguins are in dire straights following a belly-up loss to the worst team in the NHL, the San Jose Sharks Monday. The Penguins managed just one goal against the toothless demons of the deep when Sidney Crosby scored in the first minute of the third period to tie the game 1-1. However, that was the end of the Penguins scoring and probably the last realistic talk of their playoff chances.

Read More: Tough Penguins Practice: Hush Crosby Trade Talk, Pens ‘Keep Fighting’

The Penguins are 2-4-0 on the first six games of the road trip. The visions of Nedeljkovic’s goal or the resounding win over the LA Kings are long gone, replaced by sad performances against bottom-feeders such as Anaheim, Seattle, and San Jose. Now, the Penguins find themselves amongst those bottom feeders, currently in line for a top-seven draft pick.

Coach Mike Sullivan said Alex Nedeljkovic will start in net.

Utah just wrapped a three-game road trip, losing its last two games to the Winnipeg Jets and Ottawa Senators. On Sunday, Utah lost to Ottawa 3-1. The young team is six points back of the Calgary Flames for a wild-card spot, but it is hanging in there.

Clayton Keller is having a breakout season. He leads the team with 54 points and 18 goals.

Karel Vejmelka is the likely starter in goal for UHC.

The Penguins are without Evgeni Malkin, who has been placed on injured reserve. Blake Lizotte’s status is unknown. He has practiced with the team but has not played in the last three games due to an illness.

Possible Penguins Lines

Rickard Rakell-Sidney Crosby-Bryan Rust

Michael Bunting-Cody Glass-Anthony Beauvillier

Drew O’Connor-Kevin-Hayes-Philip Tomasino/Jesse Puljujarvi

Matt Nieto-Noel Acciari-Blake Lizotte/Boko Imama

Defense

Marcus Pettersson-Kris Letang

Matt Grzelcyk-Erik Karlsson

Ryan Graves-P.O Joseph

Goalies: Alex Nedeljkovic/Joel Blomqvist

Utah HC Lines

Clayton Keller-Logan Cooley-Nick Schmaltz

Alex Kerfoot-Barret Hayton-Josh Doan

Michael Carcone-Jack McBain-Lawson Crouse

Liam O’Brien-Kevin Stenlund-Nick Bjugstad

Defense

Olli Maatta-John Marino

Ian Cole-Michael Kesselring

Juuso Valimaki-Nick Desimone

Goalies: Karel Vejmelka/Connor Ingram

Special Teams

Penguins power play: 26.2%, 6th. Penguins penalty kill: 79.3%, 15th.

Utah Power Play: 21.9%, 15th. Utah Penalty Kill: 81.6%, 10th.

Penguins Game Notes

Per moneypuck.com, Pittsburgh’s top line of Sidney Crosby, Rickard Rakell, and Bryan Rust have generated 20.3 expected goals this season, a figure that ranks fifth among all NHL line combinations this season.

The Penguins are 5-for-16 on the power play on this West Coast trip; however, they have not scored on their last eight attempts.

Forward CGlass’sass’ 52.4% face-off win percentage is on track to be a career-high, and KeHayes’syes’ 53.5% face-off win percentage is on pace to be the second highest of his career.

With an assist Monday, Matt Grzelcyk tied his career-high with 26 points.

The Penguins are eight points behind the Boston Bruins for the top wild-card spot and seven points behind Tampa Bay for the second wild card, but Tampa Bay has three games in hand. The Penguins lead the Buffalo Sabres by five points at the bottom of the Eastern Conference, but Buffalo has two games in hand.

How to Watch

TV: SportsNet Pittsburgh, TNT

Radio: 105.9 The X