Penguins Never Had It; Carolina Coasts to 4-1 Win

PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Penguins (3-3-0) goalie Joel Blomqvist against the Carolina Hurricanes (2-1-0). It wasn’t exactly a one-on-five street fight, but at times, it seemed like Blomqvist was the only Penguins player to see the puck.

Blomqvist, 22, was the difference between his team getting blown out by the middle of the second period and having a chance to win. However, Carolina coasted to a very comfortable 4-1 win at PPG Paints Arena on Friday.

Blomqvist stopped 32 of 36 and got helpers from the musical quartet of hit posts behind him. However, the Penguins failed to capitalize on Blomqvist’s work.

The ice may have tilted slightly toward Carolina in the first period, but the Penguins’ new secret weapon–their third line with Lars Eller, Jesse Puljujarvi, and Drew O’Connor–earned the first tally.

O’Connor (3) was one vs. two in the offensive zone. He looked for a pass but didn’t have one and immediately unleashed a top-corner wrist shot past a surprised Carolina goalie, Frederik Andersen, at 12:20 of the first period.

However, that frequent illness of giving up the tying goal almost immediately again infected the Penguins. As did their chronic mistake virus.

One minute and four seconds later, Penguins defenseman Erik Karlsson made his second big defensive zone mistake of the first period when he vacated his spot to double-cover the puck carrier. Karlsson didn’t regain his position near the net, and Blake Jackson (2) had Blomqvist at his mercy for an easy goal at 13:24.

The Penguins had little push in the second period. And by little, we mean none.

After a trio of clanged and clanked posts, Carolina finally got the 2-1 lead they deserved. On the power play, Martin Necas (1) sniped a wrister from the left circle at 6:52. He beat Blomqvist high to the far post.

Later in the period, Penguins winger Michael Bunting took a high-sticking double minor. Carolina scored on the first of the double minors when defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere beat Blomqvist with a one-timer from near the blue line through net-front traffic at 17:13.

After 40 minutes, Carolina was outshooting the Penguins 24-9.

At the 11:00 mark of the third period, Carolina forward Jack Roslovic ended any doubts about the final outcome, if they existed, by snapping a high wrister past Blomqvist’s glove from the right circle for a 4-1 Carolina lead.

The Penguins never did get another bounce or a break Friday as the hopeful murmur of the home crowd eventually drifted to footsteps toward the exits. According to NaturalStatTrick.com, Carolina had 67% of the scoring chances and 68% of the high-danger chances.

The Penguins finished with 26 shots on goal.

Penguins notes

According to Penguins historian Bob Grove, Friday marked the 30th time opponents held the Penguins to under 10 shots through two periods. They had won the previous five.

No Penguins player had more than one shot after 40 minutes.

The Penguins practice on Saturday before embarking on a four-game road trip, beginning in Winnipeg on Sunday. Calgary, Edmonton, and Vancouver follow.

Coach Mike Sullivan flipped the Penguins middle six after the first period. O’Connor played with Evgeni Malkin and Rickard Rakell, while Bunting played with the Eller line.