Penguins Report Card: An Internal Struggle, Another Hard Lesson

NEWARK — After the Pittsburgh Penguins’ strong start, they just couldn’t help themselves. For most of the first 20 minutes, they outplayed the New Jersey Devils and had the better opportunities by playing a patient, structured game.

Then, they got anxious to score the first goal and lost that discipline. They reverted to the aggressive forecheck that is part of their DNA, but that was a fatal flaw because New Jersey is faster than the Penguins. Much faster.

After the Penguins loosened, they never got it back.

Later in the second period, the shots were 14-11 in favor of the New Jersey Devils. As the Penguins fought for space and tried to settle the puck, the teams combined for only 25 shots in the first 35 minutes. Then New Jersey took over and took 14 of the last 15 shots en route to a 3-0 win at the Prudential Center Saturday.

Read More: Bad Bounces, Penguins Smothered in New Jersey

New Jersey has allowed 2o or less than 20 shots in eight of their last nine games, though Saturday didn’t have the feel of a defensive struggle, at least in the first period. It did have the feel of playing hockey on an ice rink that was a basketball court just a few hours earlier.

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— Dan Kingerski (@TheDanKingerski) December 21, 2024

Evgeni Malkin had a breakaway on the second shift of the game. However, as he beat goalie Jacob Markstrom to the backhand side, the puck hopped off his stick.

“I feel the ice was not bad tonight because we knew there was a basketball game this morning, you know? I had so much time, I should (have) controlled the puck better,” said Malkin. “I tried to use my backhand, but it didn’t work. Maybe the ice. Maybe my stick. (It) might be in my hands. Like, who knows? Maybe everything, you know. I should play better, for sure.”

In fairness, New Jersey center Jack Hughes also had a would-be breakaway in the second period nullified by the slush.

New Jersey center Nico Hischier scored the backbreaking goal as New Jersey outmuscled the Penguins in front of the net. It was a mad scrum, and New Jersey winger Stefan Noesen became a fullback to clear the way for Hischier, bulldozing Penguins defenseman Ryan Shea, who was in the middle of the scrum.

–The Penguins weren’t happy with the goal. On the ice, Shea argued–his palms up in disbelief–before he acted out Noesen’s shove. After the game, players had some colorful language to express their incredulity at the lack of an interference call.

–Of course, Erik Karlsson was penalized late in the first period for yelling the full version of “WTF.” Fans tweeting near the ice level and Penguins players had the same story. That phrase earned Karlsson two minutes.

The penalty should probably earn the referees a stern call from director of officiating, Stephen Walcom. Hey, it’s Newark. That’s a polite greeting.

–The Penguins were in the game until the third period, and while the score was close, New Jersey was able to put the Penguins in a sleeper hold.

“It was a pretty low-event game until they got the second goal. It wasn’t like they had a lot of shots either,” said coach Mike Sullivan. “At one point, (the shots) were 14 to 11. I thought after they got the second goal, we opened up a little early, and that’s where they got a bunch of shots.”

The overall vibe in the Penguins locker room wasn’t down or depressed. They played New Jersey stride for stride, and they got an education on several fronts. It won’t take 10 minutes in the film room to see what they need to do better. They needed the ugly goal that never arrived, but they were achingly close until they had to open up to rally from a 2-0 deficit.

“(Malkin) had some looks. He had that breakaway right away. The puck got away from him,” said Sullivan. “The ice wasn’t very good. I know they had a basketball game. I thought both sides had some looks for opportunities, but the puck just didn’t — it bounced over sticks.”

Penguins Xs and Os

Saturday was a perfect exposition of the Penguins’ evolution, but they need to truly embrace who they are. In the first period, the Penguins’ forecheck was cautious, allowing the F1 to settle back, creating layers of defense in the neutral zone. The center ice traffic was ideal and slowed New Jersey.

The shot total after the first period was 5-4 in favor of the Penguins, and they probably should have scored a goal, if not two.

By forechecking too aggressively, the Penguins yielded their layers in the neutral zone, creating a gap in which New Jersey could gain speed. I don’t think the Penguins ever recovered from allowing New Jersey momentum; the Penguins chased the game from there.

The scoring chances were 4-2 in favor of the Penguins after 20 minutes but 27-9 in the next 40.

It was an education for the Penguins, and one can assume it will take time to truly adopt the structure and feel it deep in their hockey soul. They didn’t abandon it Saturday, but they got too aggressive too often. They yielded some odd-man breaks in the second period when two and three forwards were caught low.

Also, the NHL should require a longer waiting period between the end of a basketball game and the start of a hockey game. At 3:08 p.m., the court was fully intact. That’s not an indictment of the people at the Prudential Center; it’s an acknowledgment that an ice sheet needs more than a couple of hours to be ready for what NHL players will do to it.

That was the frustrating part of observing the game–who knows how it would have played out on better ice. Perhaps the Penguins would have been squashed entirely, or perhaps they would have scored an early goal and been able to play confidently. Instead, fans were treated to tackle football in the mud.

The referees also let a couple of mandatory calls slide as New Jersey knocked the net off the moorings following Malkin’s breakaway. Shortly thereafter, a New Jersey defenseman knocked Cody Glass’s helmet off (not a penalty, though it looked a bit intentional, which would be). Then Ondrej Palat swatted the helmet away with his stick (that’s supposed to be a penalty). The helmet actually hit the referee, so he couldn’t say he didn’t see it.

Both should have been Penguins power plays in the first five minutes.

Ultimately, the Penguins were upset with themselves but aren’t going to stew on this one for days. Nor should they.

Penguins Report Card

Team: C+

They needed to crash the net more often. With the ice conditions, that was the only way to score a goal. New Jersey scored both goals (excluding the empty netter) from perhaps a combined 10 feet. The Penguins probably need someone like Noesen to bulldoze a path for their stars, too.

Otherwise, the Penguins were perfectly fine. They made mistakes on the forecheck, which created odd-man rushes, but they weren’t terrible in any phase.

P.O Joseph: A

Easily one of the Penguins’ best players. He was good with the puck, good in the defensive zone, and made a few good plays in the offensive zone to keep the play alive. That was the best version of Joseph, who is very excited to be back.

Michael Bunting: A

I loved his game. He was deep under the Devils’ skin by creating some chaos near the net and doing some first-rate agitating. New Jersey defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler tacked him after the empty netter. Both got misconduct penalties, but that’s how much Bunting annoyed New Jersey. He didn’t have any scoring chances, but he was there if a rebound happened to come his way.

“That’s the game he plays,” said New Jersey defenseman Brenden Dillon to deflect a question by James Nichols of New Jersey Hockey Now.

Tristan Jarry: A

The two goals scored weren’t on him.

Coach Mike Sullivan: C

He needed to pull back on the team, but the Penguins’ forecheck remained too aggressive. The structure was great in the first 15 minutes but too loose in the next 45.