Penguins Wrap: Hitting a Low Point; Malkin Spotlight; Prospects Arriving

The Pittsburgh Penguins might have reached rock bottom this past week. They probably hope their no-show against the Dallas Stars was rock bottom, anyway. That helped lead to other news, as the team began calling up some of its prospects. We’ll see where that goes. They also recalled Tristan Jarry in the hope that the goaltender was able to regain his All-Star form.

Evgeni Malkin’s name came up a couple times. While he doesn’t speak with reporters regularly, he often lays things bare when he does. In a post-practice meeting with the media, he had a message for the fans in the wake of that ugly loss and talked about the team in general. In a more emotional moment, he was honored in a pregame ceremony for reaching 500 career goals.

There also was a trade, but not one that brought back any NHL players. And a long journey reached a big point when Matt Nieto concluded a year-long injury battle.

Catch up on the past week. Click the links.

Saturday: With the maximum two weeks up, goalie Tristan Jarry was recalled from his conditioning loan to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League. Also making the trip from WBS was forward Matt Nieto, who has spent the past year recovering from a knee injury that required two surgeries. A look at the two moves.

Sunday: With Jarry back, the Penguins had to find a way to deal with three goalies at practice. Also, it seemed to be confirmed that Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin were back to centering their own lines. Read the practice report.

Jarry spoke with reporters after practice. He was happy with his progress while with WBS, but he seemed to be pleading for one thing from the Penguins. Find out what in this analysis.

Penguins coach Mike Sullivan offered news on a couple injured forwards, Cody Glass and Keven Hayes, as well as plan for forward Matt Nieto, in his post-practice update.

Monday: With forward Kevin Hayes going on IR, the Penguins recalled former first-round pick Sam Poulin. It turned out to be the first of a few recalls of prospects.

A disturbing trend this season for the Penguins has been blown leads. What the heck is going on with that? PHN surveyed the locker room and got Sullivan’s take in this look at the problem.

And there is was. Suddenly, blown leads seemed to take a back seat. The Penguins imploded. They gave up six goals in the first period against the Dallas Stars in a brutal no-show loss.

The blown leads. The lack of consistency shown in that terrible loss against Dallas a game after a rousing win in Washington. Something is horribly wrong.

Tuesday: The Penguins have brought this on themselves. All their shortcomings mean one thing: They are in need of a shakeup.

Evgeni Malkin came off the ice and sat at his locker stall in a way that signaled he was prepared to take questions from reporters. He then offered fans an apology and offered his assessment of what the team needs.

Was this the first shoe dropping? Maybe not. But the Penguins did swing a deal, getting a couple draft picks while moving center Lars Eller.

Wednesday: In an email exchange with local reporters. Penguins president of hockey operations/general manager Kyle Dubas offered the back story and reasons for the Eller trade.

The no-show loss against Dallas led to a Penguins team meeting where players could clear the air. PHN captured their thoughts and feelings.

Defenseman Erik Karlsson has received some criticism for defensive lapses that seem to overshadow his offensive skills. Now a prominent name says those deficiencies mean he should not have been picked to play in the 4 Nations Face-Off for Team Sweden.

This time, it was the Penguins who overcame a two-goal deficit. However, that translated to just one standings point as they lost to the Detroit Red Wings in overtime.

Why the overtime loss was at least a step in the right direction after Monday’s debacle, and something Sullivan did could help provide an answer to the Penguins’ scoring dearth. That and more in the Penguins report card.

Thursday: Was the Eller trade just the start? One NHL insider says the Penguins are open for business.

The three-goalie look at the NHL level was never going to work long-term. And a forward was ready to take a big step after a long recovery. With Jarry back from his AHL assignment, rookie goalie Joel Blomqvist was sent to WBS. while Matt Nieto was recalled. Read about both moves.

Friday: Prior to their game in Columbus, the Penguins recalled their top defenseman prospect. Find out what it means and catch up on Owen Pickering.

Nearly a week after he finished his AHL conditioning loan, Jarry was tagged to finally get his first start in the NHL since Oct. 16. Also, a top defenseman was ill, and a look at prospect call-ups, including Vasily Ponomarev, in this pregame notebook.

For the second game in a row, the Penguins erased a two-goal deficit. Then they forgot to push against Columbus in the third, loosened up defensively and wound up with an ugly loss.

The Penguins defensive play is a disaster. That and other things the team must face in the Penguins report card.