Penguins' offense shut down in Game 2 loss to Rangers

NEW YORK — Penguins coach Mike Sullivan has an axiom he leans on quite a bit when discussing the composition of his lineup.

He is inclined to point out that a successful team needs more than 12 forwards, six defensemen and two goaltenders to compete for the Stanley Cup.

And sure enough, through all of two games of the Stanley Cup playoffs, he has already dressed 13 forwards, seven defensemen and three goaltenders.

It’s also pretty accurate to surmise the Penguins will need more than one line to do their scoring if they are to even get past the New York Rangers in the first round, let alone the other three rounds required to claim the championship.

With top-liners Sidney Crosby and Jake Guentzel accounting for the only offense, the Penguins were defeated by the Rangers, 5-2, in Game 2 of their first-round series at Madison Square Garden on Thursday.

The result tied the series, which shifts to PPG Paints Arena for Game 3 on Saturday.

With the lone exception of second-line center Evgeni Malkin’s winning goal in Game 1, a three-overtime thriller, on Tuesday, all four of the Penguins’ even-strength goals have come from their top line of Crosby, Guentzel and Bryan Rust, who scored a five-on-three power-play goal in Game 1.

“Obviously, when you get scoring throughout your lineup, it helps your cause for sure,” Sullivan said. “It helps you win games. But I think these guys are trying to play the game the right way. They’re competing hard out there. They’re trying to get pucks to the net. They’re trying to go to the net. They had some pretty good looks.”

The Penguins did have a 41-40 edge in shots during Game 2.

Advanced figures paint an even more flattering picture for the Penguins. According to Natural Stat Trick, the Penguins controlled what are determined to be “high-danger” scoring chances, 18-5.

“It sounds cliche but put pucks on net and get there,” said Penguins forward Danton Heinen, who has primarily deployed on the left wing of the second line for most of the series. “We’ve had looks. We’ve had chances. We’ve been around the net. Sometimes, it’s just a matter of seeing one go in. We’ve just got to stick with it.”

One common theme that stuck from Game 1 was the Rangers taking the contest’s first lead and never trailing during the run of play.

They claimed a 1-0 advantage 6:50 into regulation when forward Andrew Copp scored his second goal of the postseason.

After Penguins defenseman Mike Matheson failed to clear a puck from behind his own blue line, the Rangers claimed possession and moved it around the offensive zone. Eventually, forward Artemi Panarin controlled the puck in the left circle and centered a pass to the slot for Copp, who swiped a one-timer through a screen of Matheson and partner Kris Letang as well as Rangers forward Ryan Strome, beating goaltender Louis Domingue’s blocker. Panarin and defenseman Justin Braun had assists.

Guentzel tied the game, 2-2, only 2:02 later with his third goal of the playoffs.

Stealing the puck off of Panarin in the neutral zone, Crosby gained the offensive blue line on the left wing but lost the puck after being stood up on a stiff check by Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba. Penguins defenseman Marcus Pettersson followed up on the sequence by claiming the puck in the left circle and putting a wrister on net that was blocked by the left skate of Rangers defenseman K’Andre Miller. The rebound slid to the slot, where Guentzel swiped it with a forehand shot past goaltender Igor Shesterkin’s left leg. Pettersson and Crosby collected assists.

A power-play goal by Strome 2:59 into the second period restored a lead for the hosts, 2-1. Shielding the puck in the Penguins’ right circle, Panarin curled towards the boards and fed a backhand to the center point for Rangers defenseman Adam Fox, who whacked a one-timer. From the slot, Strome deflected the puck with the forehand of his stick blade off the ice and through Domingue’s five hole for his first goal. Fox and Panarin netted assists.

Rangers forward Chris Kreider’s second goal put the Rangers up 3-1 at 12:06 of the second. From the left point of the offensive zone, Miller slid a pass to center point for Rangers forward Frank Vatrano, who golfed a one-timer toward the cage. Establishing position in the slot, Kreider deflected the puck past Domingue’s glove. Assists went to Vatrano and Miller.

A determined effort by Crosby supplied his team with its second goal.

Lugging the puck up ice from his own right circle, Crosby circumnavigated his way through the neutral zone, muscled through resistance by Braun and gained the offensive zone. As Crosby momentarily lost possession, Rust followed up and jabbed a quick backhander on net that Shesterkin rejected with his left leg. Crosby maintained focus on the rebound and swiped a forehand shot through Shesterkin’s five hole for his first goal this postseason. Rust and Matheson claimed assists.

Good fortune supplied the Rangers with a 4-2 lead of the third period. Working the puck down low to the Penguins’ end board, Panarin attempted a backhand pass to the slot only to have it inadvertently deflected into the cage by Matheson’s right skate and through Domingue’s five hole. Panarin was credited with his first goal of the postseason. Vatrano and Miller had assists.

Vatrano, a consistent nemesis of the Penguins, scored his first goal of the postseason at 9:49 of the third. Pushing play up the right wing, Vatrano surged through a weak check attempt by Matheson and attacked the net, lifting a far-side wrister past Domingue’s glove. Defenseman Braden Schneider netted the lone assist. Including the regular season, Vatrano has scored five goals in eight games against the Penguins in 2021-22.

Things got heated late in regulation when Penguins forward Jeff Carter collided with Shesterkin at 17:56 of the third period.

After leaving his crease to play a puck behind the net, Shersterkin attempted to return to the blue paint only to be struck down by Carter when their left legs made contact. As several of the Rangers attempted to mob Carter, Shesterkin laid on the ice for several moments and was attended to by athletic trainer Jim Ramsay. After taking a few moments to gather himself, Shesterkin remained in the game.

Carter was issued minor penalties for goaltender interference and roughing.

Following the game, Sullivan labeled the incident as “just hockey.” Shesterkin, through a translator, indicated he was fine and just “just fell pretty poorly, landed poorly.”

Rangers coach Gerard Gallant was a bit more verbose on the subject.

“I wasn’t too happy, obviously,” Gallant said. “In a game like that, I mean there’s no reason for it. I was disappointed, (Carter) going after (Shesterkin) a little bit like that. Carter’s a good honest player. But it just didn’t look good tonight.”

The Penguins’ attack, with the notable exception of their top line, looked mostly inert on Thursday.

“We’ve been shooting fairly a lot,” Pettersson said. We got a lot of shots on net. Tonight, we got (41).

“Keep shooting. Be desperate.”

Notes:

• Penguins top-pairing defenseman Brian Dumoulin was scratched due to an undisclosed injury. Sullivan did not provide a substantive update on his status other than to indicate he is out “right now.” Dumoulin missed a playoff game for the first time in his career. Before Thursday, he had appeared in 81 consecutive postseason games.

• In his place, defenseman Mark Friedman made his NHL postseason debut. Logging 11:55 of ice time on 18 shifts (including 1:47 on the penalty kill), Friedman, who mostly skated on the third pairing with Chad Ruhwedel, had three shots on three attempts.

• Also making his NHL postseason debut was rookie forward Drew O’Connor. Primarily deployed on the fourth line, O’Connor clocked 6:33 of ice time on 11 shifts and blocked one shot.

• Domingue made his first career postseason start and made 35 saves on 40 shots.

• Injured Penguins forward Jason Zucker participated in warmups but did not play.

• The Rangers entered this game missing some key players as well. Top pairing defenseman Ryan Lindgren was scratched after being injured in Game 1. Additionally, fourth-line center Barclay Goodrow was scratched due to an undisclosed ailment. Gallant labeled him as “week to week.”

Follow the Penguins all season long.