Penguins Grades: Bad Habits Roar, Karlsson Pans Team Performance

ELMONT, NY — Bad habits tend to crop up when least expected, and the Pittsburgh Penguins’ recent run of exemplary play and back-slapping defensive performances caved in like New Jersey sections of I-80 Saturday in a 6-3 loss to the New York Islanders.

The Penguins never led and made an attempted comeback, but those bad habits kept popping up.

Read More: Penguins Stumble, Comeback Thwarted by Islanders

The Penguins never really found their footing. They trailed 1-0, twice, after referees overturned the first goal, which the Islanders scored as the result of defensive miscues (and goalie interference), but that merely delayed the frustration.

“Tonight was not one of our better nights,” Karlsson admitted before matter-of-factly slamming the team’s performance. “I don’t think that we were engaged enough, both physically and mentally. I think they were a better team than us for pretty much the entire game. And, you know, it’s unfortunate. This was a big one for us.”

Yes, the Islanders attacked from the opening minutes. The Penguins didn’t really mount a sustained counterattack. And by the time defenseman Kris Letang put the puck in his own net for the fourth NYI goal, the Islanders were too far ahead.

Penguins Xs and Os

The Xs and Os of the Penguins attack that were so very relevant before the holiday break were instead disjointed Saturday. The Penguins didn’t contain the Islanders well in the neutral zone, thus creating loose pucks and opportunities. And they didn’t create much forecheck pressure and turnovers, either.

Instead, the Islanders had a plan, and it seemed to capture the flatfooted Penguins perfectly.

From the opening minutes, the Islanders attacked the Penguins over the top and kept them in front of them. The Islanders jumped the Penguins’ breakouts, were physical on the perimeter, and, indeed, finished their chances.

The Penguins were not physical, didn’t force the Islanders to defend down low, and were never the better team.

The Penguins’ biggest problem Saturday wasn’t energy or a lack of talent. Patrick Roy’s scheme didn’t outclass them, nor did it fool them.

The Penguins simply weren’t playing hard in the defensive zone. Their “sort-out” was abysmal on several occasions, and Sidney Crosby’s line was the biggest offender. The defense pairs were jumping to the wrong spots, too.

The units were not singing from the same hymnal. The Islanders scored a few goals with open players because Penguins forwards and defensemen double-covered one player, leaving another wide … WIDE … open.

That’s the scowl-inducing problem that nearly nuked the team in the first couple of months of the season, but it has been gleefully absent for the past 13 games.

Penguins coach Mike Sullivan was succinct in his synopsis of the game. There really wasn’t a need for follow-up questions. He said it:

“I don’t think it was a matter of compete level. I don’t think we played smart. We just didn’t play a conscientious game like the game we’ve been playing for the last six weeks. I just think we were (pause), our decisions with the puck and where they needed to be, we didn’t play straight ahead. And we talked about playing simple before the game. Just the importance of simplicity and playing straight ahead. I just don’t think we did well.”

Penguins Grades

Team: D

They played harder than a D grade, but they didn’t play smarter. They know better, and the players who made the mistakes reverted to sloppy ways.

There were very few second chances in the offensive zone. The Penguins just didn’t work hard enough when they really needed to.

Erik Karlsson: D

He was pretty good at the start of the third period, which may have led many to assume a comeback was indeed possible. However, his three giveaways led all players, and he didn’t seem as engaged as he was before the break. He backslid to the casual version.

Rakell-Crosby-Rust: Ouch

They had some great chances. Rickard Rakell scored. However, Sidney Crosby was a minus-3, and Bryan Rust was a minus-4. It was their line that had the most sort-out issues. They’ve carried the team, but on this night, they were fighting themselves.

Evgeni Malkin: B

It looked like Malkin had fresh legs and was getting after it; however, his line couldn’t buy a goal. Malkin had a few Grade A chances, and so did Drew O’Connor, whose goal slump is reaching epic proportions.

On one shift in the second period, Malkin stole the puck and was dominating the offensive zone. O’Connor had a clean run at Islanders goalie Ilya Sorokin but was stopped. O’Connor also had a tight tip-in chance but was stopped. And the pièce de résistance was being open in front of the net as the puck–for the second straight game–sailed over his stick.

O’Connor might need a shaman or a priest. He hasn’t lit the lamp since Oct. 18.

Cody Glass: B

The Penguins’ third line, centered by Glass, was noticeable. Glass had a couple of chances and hit the post.

Tristan Jarry: B-

Those were all good goals, but there were a couple of stoppable tallies, too. He made plenty of good stops and gave the Penguins a chance to win.