In the end, it was a beatdown.
The Pittsburgh Penguins started with lethargy and apathy, but a few saves by Arturs Silovs and just enough effort to keep the game tied 1-1 were enough of a kickstart for the Penguins, who laid waste to the Chicago Blackhawks for most of the next 40 minutes.
Chicago outshot the Penguins 10-7 in the first period, but the Penguins ended with a 44-19 shot advantage. And yes, the shot clock told the story. It was the Penguins’ puck, the Penguins’ game, and ultimately an easy 6-2 win at PPG Paints Arena.
It was the Penguins’ fifth straight win and eighth straight game with points. Most of the victories in this streak have been by multiple goals. The Penguins remained in second place in the Metro Division and are now six points ahead of the Washington Capitals with three games in hand. And seven points up with two games in hand on the New Jersey Devils for a playoff spot.
As for Thursday, the Penguins made it a laugher, but they weren’t laughing.
Chicago TV analyst Darren Pang told his likely dwindling audience in the third period, “The NHL is an unforgiving league.”
Indeed, the Penguins were relentless, even pressing throughout the third period, despite the game being put away, salted, and absolutely out of reach.
The team was pushing hard in the final minutes to get Connor Dewar a hat-trick. Coach Dan Muse even put Dewar on Sidney Crosby’s line in the final minutes for the potentially roof-raising moment.
It was unsuccessful, but the Penguins’ attack did not wane. Dewar’s goals, Nos. 12 and 13 this season, are career highs.
“I mean, he’s a really good hockey player. He plays the right way. For me, it’s not surprising. You know, even just watching from training camp and early on, he doesn’t take any nights off. He really doesn’t,” said coach Dan Muse. “He’s a great example of just playing the right way all the time. I don’t think he knows anything different.
“But he’s got a good skill set. He’s got a good shot. Like, I think he’s getting to those areas– he just creates some kind of greasy offense.”
And he is just one of many Penguins having career years.
Ryan Shea scored his third goal, which he tallied with what Rutger McGroarty termed “a bomb,” was Shea’s career best and his 21st point. Shea now has 21 points in 52 games, compared to just six in his previous 70 NHL games.
With some irony, the Penguins’ top line with Sidney Crosby, Rickard Rakell, and Justin Brazeau in place of suspended Bryan Rust was pointless.
The bums, eh?
Indeed, it was the Penguins’ depth that scored and their depth of talent that shone quite brightly, including Egor Chinakhov, who scored a dazzling goal. Anthony Mantha scored another breakaway goal, just as he did a week ago in Edmonton. And Ben Kindel’s cross-body wrister fooled Chicago goalie Arvid Soderblom.
Mantha had three points (1-2-3). Shea, Dewar, Kindel, Blake Lizotte, and Noel Acciari all had multi-point games.
Seriously, no points for the top line? Sheesh. But the depth of skill is undeniable. It’s not just against a bad team; it’s been against Edmonton and Seattle, too. They took Eastern Conference favorite Tampa Bay to a shootout, matching Tampa Bay stride for stride.
“I believe in our guys. The guys, as a coach, this is what you want to have. I see it every day in practice. I believe in these guys and the things that they’re capable of doing, and I’ve seen the work that they put in,” Muse said. “So with all these guys too, you feel good coming off of a road trip, like we just had, you feel good coming off of this game. But no, it’s not surprising. I believe in them, but I also, with all this being said, we have a lot of work to do. We have a lot of work ahead of us. We got to keep pushing.”
If the Penguins aren’t yet having a Matrix moment in which they are beginning to believe, many of you and this writer are coming to a conclusion that something much bigger than expected is possible for this team (Read Sunday’s postgame column: Something is Happening Here).
They’re becoming a good team, and they’re winning, while not yet fully formed.
Penguins Analysis
Yikes.
The Penguins are not a good team after days off. The former coach in these parts said so on the record and more colorfully to those around the team off the record. That fact was underscored by one of the sleepiest first periods of the season.
Analysis of the first period? The Penguins took four minor penalties, three of which were for lazy stick defending. Despite Chicago’s overacting that would have made Jim Carey blush, the Penguins also got away with a couple more trips.
There were far more chips off the glass and floaters to nowhere than there were connected zone exits; the breakouts were non-directional throws instead of sharp passes.
Of the Penguins’ 51 prior first periods, that one would rank pretty close to the bottom.
However, Chicago was equally blasé. So, the teams regrouped in the dressing rooms. And the Penguins found their legs while Chicago found that the Penguins are a much better team.
The Penguins had little trouble with Chicago’s forecheck or neutral zone structure in the second period. They were able to enter the zone with control, and it began to look more like a practice drill than an NHL game as the Penguins scored four in the second.
It was Penguins hockey in all phases.
“I think at least for me personally, it’s just trying to play fast, play smart. Play a 200-foot game, compete hard,” Kindel said.
Chicago tried to take away the middle. Maybe. Or they were chasing the puck. Or they were playing a zone defense. In actuality, the Penguins ran over Chicago.
The quintessential example of the Penguins’ superiority was Chinakhov’s goal later in the second period, the goal that touched off the firestorm of Penguins activity.
Defenseman Parker Wotherspoon not only won a battle against Tyler Bertuzzi at the blueline, but also shouldered him to the ice and pushed the puck to Evgeni Malkin for what developed into a two-on-one because Chinakhov’s speed put real distance between himself and the defender chasing him.
Malkin gave Chinakhov the breakaway chance, and he converted. Oh by the way, he’s also 2-for-2 in shootouts this season, in case that comes up again.
The example continued 31 seconds later when the Penguins blocked a couple of Chicago shots, preventing pressure, and transitioned out of the zone. After a good defensive play, Anthony Mantha looped out of the zone, and Chicago focused on Ben Kindel at center ice while Mantha raced behind a pair of should-be defenders for a breakaway goal.
“I think everybody was just like–we knew we had more to give (after the first period). And I think that overall, we started stacking a lot of shifts,” Rutger McGroarty said. “I think we’re a really scary team when we can start stacking shifts and getting changes in the o-zone and kind of hemming them in because at the end of the day, players start to decline when they get tired. So if we can hem guys in and when they’re tired, I think we’re really good at that.”
Penguins skill. Puck possession (aka: holding onto pucks).
Tactically, it was not a clean game. It looked like the Penguins were off for a week (OK, three days), but when they brought some semblance of a coordinated attack, Chicago was too scattered to really defend.
Penguins Report Card
Team: B
They won, convincingly. But it would be hard to beat a competent opponent with their effort in the first 25 minutes. They allowed some really high-danger chances on the power play and in the first period.
Performances to Praise
Egor Chinakhov: Much like he was doing in Vancouver, Chinakhov pushed his own boundaries; he scooted past defenders, stickhandled around them, and charged to the net. He scored his ninth goal of the season and sixth in 14 games with the Penguins.
And he’s just scratching the surface. The 24-year-old looks really … REALLY good. As he keeps improving or gaining the confidence to show what he can do, Columbus might be quite embarrassed. He is not the product of good linemates, but an offensive weapon who takes space and creates opportunity.
Parker Wotherspoon: Wotherspoon has upped his level of feisty. He’s showing a good bit of sandpaper in his game. And he’s keeping the pairing with Erik Karlsson responsible. He was quite good Thursday.
Rutger McGroarty: The Penguins’ rookie smiled through the frustration when PHN asked a positive-leaning question. He had quite a number of scoring chances Thursday. That’s a good thing. But McGroarty’s lack of goal lights continues to be a bit of a drawback.
“I think it’s always good to get scoring chances, but I think that I’ve got to bury some. But that’s what Mo (Anthony Mantha) and Kindy (Ben Kindel) were for tonight,” McGroarty said. “They were buzzing, and Shazo (Ryan Shea) with a bomb too, yeah. But once you’re getting those opportunities, it’s always nice, but I’ve got to start to execute on those.”
Regardless of the desire to score, he set up shop near the Chicago net. He stayed. He fought for space. He created space and opened up plays for others. Don’t let the scoresheet fool you (or him), he played a complete game. He finished a plus-3.
Evgeni Malkin: There are some nights when you step back and soak in what has been an extraordinary run. Malkin is on top of his game. He dealt the puck like a puppeteer, and he showed up in the defensive zone.
Ilya Solovyov: A good, quiet game for the big Belarusian defenseman. He had one thundering hit on Frank Nazar in the first period that rattled the backboards as much as the player. He had a couple of nice moments with the puck in the offensive zone when he put the puck into the right area for dangerous scoring chances. Quiet is good right now.
Categorized:Penguins Analysis
