Penguins' power play enjoying rare success
The Pittsburgh Penguins received an obvious boost in every facet during Tuesday’s 7-3 rout of the Minnesota Wild at home thanks to the return of forward Sidney Crosby.
The power play was arguably the most tangible to quantify as it went 2 for 4 with Crosby collecting secondary assists on each goal scored by forward Evgeni Malkin.
(Video courtesy NHL)
But even before Crosby’s return, the power play was in the midst of a noticeable hot streak, having gone 2 for 4 during Sunday’s 4-3 shootout road win against the Arizona Coyotes.
(Video courtesy NHL)
Before this two-game sequence, the Penguins had scored multiple power-play goals in only four contests this season.
What’s led to this minor surge?
“It’s such a fine line, the power play,” Crosby said after Wednesday’s practice in Cranberry. “In Arizona, (the Penguins) did a good job of just entering the puck (into the offensive zone). I feel like we generated some good chances off of that. Then (Tuesday) night, the first one we got was off an entry, too. The entries help just as far as getting set up and doing what you want to do. That goes a long way.
“At the end of the day, a power play is all about executing.”
That execution was presumably a tad easier with Crosby present.
“He’s a playmaker,” Malkin said. “He controls the puck. I (know) Sid a long time. We try to look at each other, we try to move pucks quicker. You see it worked right away. We practiced for a couple of days. (Tuesday), we scored two goals, huge goals. It’s so much easier because Sid moves pucks so well. He holds pucks so well. Best player.”
For the season, the Penguins are 26 for 131 with a conversion rate of 19.1 percent, 17th in the NHL. So even with a fair amount of success the past two games, it remains a work in progress.
At the same time, it can be easy to invest too much into the base numbers.
“We’ve been shooting the puck, moving the puck well,” defenseman Kris Letang said. “There’s phases in the year where it goes like that. You’re playing it simple, you’re shooting the puck and good goals are going in. I know at one point in the year, we could not score on the (power play), but we generated so many chances.
“Sometimes they go in, sometimes they don’t.”
Notes:
• The Penguins had full attendance at practice among players on the active roster.
• Coach Mike Sullivan offered a minimal update on the status of injured defensemen Brian Dumoulin (left ankle) and Justin Schultz (undisclosed) and forward Nick Bjugstad (core muscle).
“They’re just continuing the rehab process,” Sullivan said. “They’re going through it. We’re encouraged by the progress that they’ve made. We’re hopeful that they’ll get some of these guys back in a timely fashion.”
• Dumoulin was spotted walking past the dressing room without any medical apparatus. As recently as a few weeks ago, he was on crutches after surgery to repair lacerated tendons in his ankle Dec. 1.
Seth Rorabaugh is a TribLive reporter covering the Pittsburgh Penguins. A North Huntingdon native, he joined the Trib in 2019 and has covered the Penguins since 2007. He can be reached at srorabaugh@triblive.com.
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