Tim Benz: Penguins should take advantage of upcoming schedule, fans should be nervous

The Pittsburgh Penguins, for a moment, have given themselves at least some space to breathe.

The teams chasing them for the final Eastern Conference playoff spot are helping out as well.

By virtue of the Pens’ electrifying yet excruciating 4-3 regulation win over the Washington Capitals on Saturday, the club now has 82 points, good for the conference’s second wild-card slot with nine games left to play.

Meanwhile, the ninth-place Florida Panthers dropped their fourth consecutive decision Monday night, this time 5-2 in Ottawa. That means they are still stuck at 79 points with eight games remaining.

The Buffalo Sabres also lost Monday — a 4-3 shootout defeat at home against the Montreal Canadiens, cellar-dwellers in the Atlantic Division. That means Buffalo only gets one point, so they are now tied for 10th place with the Senators at 77 apiece.

Now would be a good time for the Penguins to cushion those leads as much as possible because the schedule is easing up, and the team needs to take advantage.

“If you’re in the situation that a handful of us teams are in, your desperation — your urgency — is there. It’s been there for a bit now,” captain Sidney Crosby said Monday. “Our game has to remain consistent. We’ve done some good things here the last four or five games, so we’ve just got to continue to build.”

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The Penguins have four games remaining this week. One of them is against the best team in hockey. The Boston Bruins come to town Saturday. They have an NHL-leading 119 points and are riding a seven-game win streak.

So the Penguins better make hay against the other three opponents they’ll be seeing between now and the end of the weekend.

Coach Mike Sullivan’s team is in Detroit on Tuesday night. Then the Nashville Predators visit PPG Paints Arena on Thursday. And after the Bruins leave town Saturday afternoon, the Philadelphia Flyers come calling for a 6 p.m. faceoff Sunday evening.

None of those teams currently occupy a playoff spot. So those are six points the Penguins absolutely should grab.

Then again, as we discussed during this week’s “Madden Monday” podcast, “should” is often the most dangerous word to say out loud when discussing the Penguins.

For instance:

• “The Penguins really should beat the San Jose Sharks at home before the All-Star break.”

• “The Penguins really should be better in their own division.”

• “The Penguins really should coast to a win with this third period lead at home against the (insert: Islanders, Capitals, Canadiens, Panthers, Rangers).”

• “The Penguins really should beat the Senators if they put up 49 shots.”

You really should get the point by now, I hope.

“For all intents and purposes, I feel like we’re in our own playoffs right now, trying to make the playoffs,” Sullivan said Tuesday. “Every game takes on a heightened level of importance by nature of having less games. So we’ve got opportunities in front of us that we have to maximize in order to gain points to solidify a playoff spot. That’s our goal first and foremost.”

Sullivan better hope the Penguins heed some of that advice because the schedule will lighten up for the Panthers soon too.

A Wednesday showdown with the Toronto Maple Leafs will be Florida’s third game in four outings against a team currently in the Eastern Conference playoff bracket. Starting Thursday in Montreal, Florida will then play five games in a row against non-playoff foes, before finishing the year with Toronto and the Metropolitan Division-leading Carolina Hurricanes.

But Sullivan would prefer the Penguins focus on their own business.

“The best way (to secure a playoff spot) is to make sure that we stay in the moment and we just focus on one game in front of us,” Sullivan said. “Play our best game on the ice that gives us the best chance to win.”

For Sullivan and his team, that should be enough to earn three wins against the Red Wings, Predators and Flyers.

Should.

Tim Benz and Brian Metzer discuss the Penguins’ upcoming slate of games in this week’s hockey podcast.

Listen: Tim Benz and Brian Metzer talk Penguins