Penguins Report Card: Pens Pass Big Test, But Not Without Fight | PHN+

The Pittsburgh Penguins lit the lamp four times against the Boston Bruins and allowed only a power-play goal against in their 4-1 win over the Boston Bruins on Monday night at PPG Paints Arena. The valuable two points put the Penguins five points ahead of Boston and out of Boston’s reach in the East Division. How the Penguins got those points offers insights into both the Penguins’ strengths and weaknesses.

The Penguins allowed 43 shots on goal, and not only the shot clock favored Boston but so too did the heat map.

Boston decidedly threw pucks at the net, which padded the shot total.

“You could tell they were trying to get a lot of pucks to the net, and there were definitely some Grade-A chances that (Jarry) had to make some big saves. The ones they got short-handed in the second few late and the third as well,” Sidney Crosby said. “So they threw a lot of of the net. You could tell that was part of their game plan. And, you know, we’ve got to do a better job of trying to get out of our end and play in theirs a little bit more. But Jarry made some great saves…”

Now, the whys and hows.