PRE-GAME BUZZ
The Penguins (20-16-7, 47 pts) meet the Carolina Hurricanes (20-18-8, 48 pts) today for the third time this season and second time this week.
Pittsburgh will be without Kris Letang, while Carl Hagelin makes his Penguin debut.
Hagelin will play with Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel. Marc Andre Fleury gets the start in goal.
The Hurricanes 2-0 vs the Penguins this season are 4-0-1 in their last five games. Eddie Lack will get the start against Pittsburgh today. Lack is 5-1-2 in his last eight starts but comes into today’s game with an .894 save percentage on the season, one of the worst save percentages in the NHL among goaltenders with over 800 minutes of action. In his career vs the Penguins Lack is 1-0-1 with a 1.92 GAA, .930 save percentage and one shutout.
The Penguins have been involved in a lot of one goal games and it’s been the same story with the Hurricanes. Carolina which plays a conservative style of game under Bill Peters, have allowed 25 shots or less in four straight games. Five of six overall.
Over their last 15 games, Carolina has picked up 19 out of a possible 30 points to get back into the wildcard mix.
For the Penguins at home this is a game you have to come out of it with two points.
The Penguins 5-4 overtime loss Friday night to the Tampa Bay Lightning followed a continued theme.
Coming out flat and falling behind 1-0 just a 1:51 in. The 11th time in the Penguins last 15 games the opposition scored the first goal. That’s been a bad trend that continues under Sullivan, but some positive trends also continued in the game, with one negative (5v5 production) being a positive for one night.
The trend of the Penguins having the ability to provide a momentum changing power goal continued after two Lightning power play goals put Tampa Bay up 3-1 and in control of the game mid-way through the second period. The Penguins got back into the game on a power play goal from Patric Hornqvist to get within one goal and the Penguins overall play went up another notch from there.
The Penguins reliance on the power play has been monumental under Sullivan. They have zero wins when not scoring a power play goal.
A good stat from the telecast Friday night.
Here's the excellent PP graphic that Paul Steigerwald discussed during @penguinslive Weekly this morning. #Pens #NHL pic.twitter.com/lD6FuCUCjv
— Brian Metzer (@Brian_Metzer) January 16, 2016
The power play goal from Hornqvist provided a key momentum shift but three 5 v 5 goals was the biggest positive out of the game. The Penguins are going nowhere this season until they become a more effective team 5 v 5 at putting the puck in the net.
Lovejoy consistently icing the puck came back to haunt Penguins vs Tampa Bay
Despite this narrative that he’s playing a shutdown role, Ben Lovejoy being in the top-4 is a problem for the Penguins. Marc Andre Fleury has a hid a lot and because Lovejoy hasn’t had the type of blooper reel blunders he had last season in the d-zone, his season looks a lot better than it is.
Less minutes for Ben Lovejoy, the better the Penguins will be moving forward.
The issue with Lovejoy is his constant ability in icing the puck. Coaches like him because he’s effective at retrieving pucks with his speed but Lovejoy’s lack of poise with the puck is a major problem. If all he’s going to do is turn and throw the puck off the boards or up the ice with no incentive of making a clean breakout pass, a good ability at retrieving pucks doesn’t do much. Lovejoy doesn’t have Rob Scuderi type limitations in moving the puck up in the transition. That’s where the frustrations are with his game.
Vs the Lightning the Penguins had six icing calls against them. Lovejoy had three of the six icing calls against him.
The last one came back to haunt them. With plenty of time and facing no pressure, Lovejoy iced the puck with 4:56 left [hide] in the period. His pass was to no one in the neutral zone and the clear intention was to ice the puck. The Penguins lost the faceoff out of the timeout and Anton Stralman tied the game at 4-4.
INJURY PRONE LETANG HAS MANAGEMENT DETERMINED TO ADD A MINUTES EATER ON BACK-END
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Pouliot recalled
Funny how as soon as players are no longer with pens they do better it’s like a prison here. despres,stempniak iggy and now perron
Despres sucks
I am sure he does as much as your american GayJoy that pens got
Yeah – I’d say they suck about the same amount, sure.
You guys all remember how Lee Stempniak has been tearing it up since he left?
Despres isnt even playing… Perron score one goal in a losing cause. Take a deep breath you dumbfuck
Perron 1 hagelin 0
Sit Letang out till after the all star break. Let him heal up and get ready for the last 2 months of the season. The team is doing fine…but they need a better 3/4 defenseman.
Let him get healthy! He’s never healthy. He’s a waste.
Just like bb
Bb isn’t a $7 million drain on the, so it doesn’t matter
Ya I don’t know why you continually bring this up. You’re a fucking idiot. Letang is as good as any defence men in the game but we cant rely on him to stay healthy. I get its his willingness to put himself out there but at the end of the day he misses to much to justify the 7 million dollars. Guys arguably my favourite player but when we continuously have a hole on the back end that hurts the on ice product and we pay that hole 7.25 per??? Its a tough situation for the Pens because of his… Read more »
yeah but every team that has high paid defense they also have decent defense that can step up if their main defense is down but for pens when you take letang out the rest of the D is Garbage led by Gayjoy .So pens before chasing Chubby they shouldve got a Defense instead . Phaneuf,Big buff over the summer
Or – they should get rid of Letang and acquire someone that actually, you know, plays.
or Chubby pens can trade him since he still has value
Can’t you guys stop eating each other alive for a few weeks?
6-2-4 last 12
Trade crosby Stan and trade letang too since pens are 1-71 without letang in the lineup this year
Letang is useless. The pussy French Canadian misses every third game. Stealing a paycheck.
And your American chubby is. Not? I rather someone not be at the game rather be hypocrite and pretend he is playing taking a roster spot that another player wishing to play in the NHL
One shows up for work. One sits in the press box waving his white flag like the rest of the French. Goddamn embarrassment.
I call bullshlt on that stat
Pens are 2-7-1 without letang in lineup this year. Trade letang
10 games! 1/2 through the season! Misses a quarter of the games played! He’s beau Bennett. But $6 mil more expensive. What a steal!
Don’t compare letang to any American injury frauds like bennett or the biggest fraud American dipietro if I was that fraud I’d be ashamed to collect my paycheck
He’s worse than Bennett. His contract alone makes him worse. gaytang
The trifecta! American to American to American.
Murica
What do you get when a Fin gets a pass from a Russian and American? A Penguins goal.
Do the Steelers play today?
No. Next season
At what cost in terms of trading assets and salary cost/length- feel a moronic move coming
Jack Johnson is a minute eater
I dont know how you can say the perron for hagelin move was moronic when you havent even seen how he fits in here.
You replied to the wrong post
……. fail
What do u trade for him? 4.3 a yr till 2018