Before Friday’s game at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn., the Pittsburgh Penguins participated in a ceremony celebrating their old goaltender, Marc-Andre Fleury, who recently played his 1,000th career game with his current employer, the Minnesota Wild.
After the game, they were presumably cranky over a problem that has gotten old.
Their power play.
Going 1 for 6 with the man advantage, the Penguins were tamed by the Wild, 3-2, snapping a modest two-game winning streak.
Though they did score a tying power-play goal to open the third period, the Penguins failed to take advantage of an opportunity with the man advantage that could have established an early lead in the opening minutes of the contest. Additionally, they were turned away on two power-play sequences in the final 10 minutes of regulation that could have tied the score.
Fleury made 34 saves on 36 shots, as his mark improved to 9-9-3.
“He made some big saves,” Penguins forward Sidney Crosby said to the Associated Press in St. Paul. “I thought they did a great job recognizing what he’s accomplished. It was great to be a part of that, but you still want to have the bragging rights at the end of the night.”
A power-play goal by Wild forward Matt Boldy 12 minutes, 57 seconds into regulation opened the scoring.
Off a furious entry into the offensive zone, Wild forward Kirill Kaprizov slipped a forehand pass to Boldy above the right circle. Deking inside Penguins defenseman Marcus Pettersson, Boldy lifted a forehand shot from between the hashmarks by goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic’s blocker for his 17th goal of the season. Kaprizov and rookie defenseman Brock Faber had assists.
Matt Boldy gives #mnwild a 1-0 lead on the power play from Kirill Kaprizov, great goal pic.twitter.com/4OM5NAxMx5
— Alex Micheletti (@AlexMicheletti) February 10, 2024
The Penguins tied the score at 2:56 of the second period when forward Reilly Smith scored his ninth goal.
Darting past Boldy in front of the home penalty box, Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin claimed a bouncing puck and roared into the offensive zone on the left wing. Fending off Faber, Malkin dished a pass from the left circle to the inner rim of the right circle, where Smith swiped a one-timer by Fleury’s glove on the near side. It was Smith’s first goal since a 4-3 home win against the Wild on Dec. 18. Malkin had the only assist.
BIG MAC TIME THANKS TO REILLY SMITH! ????
Here's how to cash in your @McDonalds offer: https://t.co/QH7j1DPz1i pic.twitter.com/nttBS4uttN
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) February 10, 2024
A goal by defenseman Jonas Brodin, his second of the season, restored a lead for the hosts at 6:21 of the second frame.
Settling a puck in the Penguins’ left corner, Brodin fought through a check by Penguins defenseman Kris Letang and barged his way to the slot. Fending off a poke check by Pettersson, Brodin spun to his left and chopped a forehand shot through a narrow opening under Nedeljkovic’s glove and above his left leg. Boldy and linemate Joel Eriksson Ek claimed assists.
Jonas Brodin makes it a 2-1 #mnwild bangs one home pic.twitter.com/LjuZbLJEkT
— Alex Micheletti (@AlexMicheletti) February 10, 2024
Crosby tied the score again, 2-2, with his 28th goal on a power play only 61 seconds into the third period.
Claiming a loose puck off the Wild’s end boards, Penguins forward Jake Guentzel backhanded a pass from the right of the cage to Crosby, stationed to the left. From there, Crosby fed a clever pass to the right point for defenseman Erik Karlsson. Surveying his options, Karlsson chopped a slap pass to the left of the crease, where Crosby leaned down and one-touched a forehand deflection by Fleury’s right skate. Karlsson and Guentzel had assists. Crosby extended a scoring streak to nine games.
The captain has been getting the job done against Minnesota ????
Crosby now has 16 points (7G-9A) in his last eight games against the Wild. pic.twitter.com/yOYuSJqfPB
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) February 10, 2024
The Wild regained a 3-2 lead at 9:34 of the third via Kaprizov’s 20th goal.
From the right point of the offensive zone, Wild defenseman Zach Bogosian boomed a slapper at the cage that deflected on net after breaking Penguins forward Bryan Rust’s stick in half. Nedeljkovic made the initial save with his right leg but allowed a rebound to the left of the crease, where Kaprizov collected the puck and lifted a wrister past the blocker of a sprawling Nedeljkovic. Bogosian and Brodin tallied assists.
Kirill Kaprizov gives the #mnwild a 3-2 lead, his 20th goal of the season after a marathon review pic.twitter.com/2aBuQBnofD
— Alex Micheletti (@AlexMicheletti) February 10, 2024
The Penguins issued a coach’s challenge claiming the sequence should have been halted after the puck hit the protective netting above the end boards, but following a lengthy review by officials, the score was upheld and the Penguins were issued a delay of game penalty.
“I clearly don’t agree with it. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have challenged it,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said to the AP. “Every player on the ice saw it, even their players. So, they thought it was inconclusive. We felt like there was an angle that showed the puck clearly changed direction and every player on the rink saw it.”
Nedeljkovic’s record fell to 8-4-3 after he unofficially stopped 27 of 30 shots.
Notes:
• The Wild remain the only active NHL franchise the Penguins have never recorded a shutout against.
• According to the league’s official play-by-play sheet, play was halted twice in the first period due to a clock problem.
• Penguins forward Noel Acciari (concussion) and rookie defenseman John Ludvig (healthy) were scratched.
• The Wild’s pregame ceremony recognizing Fleury (who played in his 1,000th career game on Dec. 31):
• Faber’s assist was his 31st point of the season (four goals, 27 assists). He set a new franchise record for points by a rookie defenseman. He previously shared the mark with Filip Kuba, who had 30 points in 2000-01.
