The Pittsburgh Penguins enter the All-Star Break with a 31-15-40-(66pts) record at the 50 game mark and following last night’s 1-0 win over the New York Islanders, the Penguins are maintaining in the Eastern Conference without Sidney Crosby.
Despite averaging just 2.1 goals per game in the nine games without Crosby, the Penguins have posted a 5-3-1 record in Crosby’s absence. The Penguins are winning behind their goaltending and defensive play, where the team has emerged among the league’s elite in both areas.

Penguins by the Numbers at the All-Star Break

Pittsburgh is 4th in the Eastern Conference with 66 points and are 5 points behind conference leading Philadelphia (71pts)
*Pittsburgh is 17-9-1 at home, 4th best home record in the NHL | Pittsburgh is 14-6-3 on the road, 9th best road record in the NHL

*Rank 7th in the NHL in goals per game at 3.02. Philadelphia is 1st in the NHL at 3.46 goals per game.
*Rank 2nd in the NHL in goals against per game at 2.24. Boston is 1st in the NHL at 2.16.
*Pittsburgh’s power play continues to stay in the middle of the pack, ranking 14th in the NHL at 17.9%. Pittsburgh is 16.8% at home on the power play and 19.1% on the road.
*Two reasons for the Penguins being built for the playoffs: They are 2nd in the NHL in goals against per game and 1st in the NHL on the penalty kill at 88.5%. Pittsburgh is second in the NHL with 8 shorthanded goals. New York is 1st with 9 goals.
Last post-season, Pittsburgh was 72.1% on the PK.
*Rank 3rd in plus/minus at +28
*Expect for a few debacles, the Penguins have been strong when having a lead…..Pittsburgh is 16-4-1 when leading after 1st period | Pittsburgh is 21-3-0 when leading after two periods |
*One area of interest is that the Penguins struggle to comeback when trailing. Pittsburgh is 4-6-0 when trailing after one period and 0-10-1 when trailing after two periods.
*Overall Pittsburgh is 22-5-1 when scoring 1st and 9-10-0 when trailing 1st
*Pittsburgh has emerged as one of the most physical teams in the NHL, ranking 3rd in the NHL with 1,361 hits.

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