https://triblive.com/sports/unlikely-ot-hero-marcus-pettersson-propels-penguins-into-all-star-break-with-momentum/
Unlikely OT hero Marcus Pettersson propels Penguins into All-Star break with momentum
Late in the first period Saturday at PPG Paints Arena, the Pittsburgh Penguins were burned by an old friend.
With 4 minutes, 7 seconds remaining before intermission, former Penguin Mike Matheson, now an alternate captain for the visiting Montreal Canadiens, assisted on the game’s opening goal, setting up teammate and defensive partner Kaiden Guhle.
Matheson got the better of Marcus Pettersson, who abandoned his defensive zone assignment (covering Guhle) in an attempt to lend a hand to Kris Letang, who moved to intercept Matheson, accelerating with the puck into the right faceoff circle.
21, do your thing 21#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/ZyoTtTLOXF— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) January 28, 2024
As Pettersson admitted after the game, his decision backfired, with Matheson managing to slip a perfect pass to Guhle, who was all alone lurking at the crease before putting the puck past Tristan Jarry.
“I was in a bad position,” Pettersson said. “I’ve got to keep on my guy (at) the back door.”
It was a rare bad moment for Pettersson, who has been one of the Penguins’ most consistent players this season and largely responsible defensively.
However, by the end of the night, Pettersson had the last laugh, returning the favor to Matheson by scoring the winning overtime goal and propelling the Penguins (22-17-7) into the All-Star break with a 3-2 win.
Skating with Rickard Rakell on a two-on-one against none other than Matheson, Pettersson launched a snapshot that zipped past Montreal goalie Jake Allen with 2:17 remaining in the extra frame.
RAISE YOUR HAND TO VIRTUALLY HIGH-FIVE MARCUS PETTERSSON! ✋ pic.twitter.com/dCqYuuVmX9— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) January 28, 2024
It was Pettersson’s second goal of the year and his first winning score through 408 career NHL contests.
Friday night against the Florida Panthers, the Penguins tied the score with less a minute remaining in regulation only to lose in a shootout.
“I don’t think I’m going to get a lot of chances to score in overtime, but it felt huge,” Pettersson said. “Going into the break, earn two points, battle back once again but this time come out on the right side — it brings some juice into the break, so to speak.”
Pettersson was predictably humble after the game in breaking down his goal.
But for coach Mike Sullivan, he saw Pettersson flash his hockey IQ in faking out Matheson before firing the winning shot himself.
“It was a terrific shot, obviously,” Sullivan said. “Right under the bar — really good shot. I thought he had great deception, too. He sold the pass to (Rakell), and I think that affected the goaltender and the defenseman defending it. It was a goal-scorer’s goal. Credit to Marcus.”
In the split-second scenario, Pettersson used his knowledge of Matheson’s tendencies, gained from playing together in Pittsburgh during the 2019-20 and 2020-21 campaigns, to outsmart his former teammate.
“(Matheson is) good at faking you into thinking you have to pass it, so I figured I’d shoot it and luckily, it went in” Petterson said.
The rare goal from Pettersson snapped a six-game overtime losing streak by the Penguins, whose last such victory was Nov. 9 on the road against the Los Angeles Kings.
Pettersson, who saw 23:52 of ice time, also recorded the secondary assist on Jake Guentzel’s equalizer about midway through the third period.
On Saturday, the Penguins’ performance during the sudden death frame pleased their coach.
“I thought the overtime was much better,” Sullivan said. “I thought we defended when we didn’t have the puck. I thought our line changes were efficient and smart. We talked about possession being important. For the most part, we did a pretty good job there.
“But the most important thing is, when we don’t have the puck, we’ve got to defend. We have to make sure we have a certain diligence there that we don’t give a team an easy look, and I thought our guys did a really good job.”
The Penguins started a span of nine days off before their next game at home Feb. 6 vs. Winnipeg.
Having gained a point from Friday’s shootout loss to Florida, coupled with a hard-fought two points against Montreal, the Penguins feel like they carry some momentum into the All-Star break.
“It brings some juice and positivity into the break,” Pettersson said. “It’s a real battle out there in the whole East, I feel like. To come back once again but this time get out on top, it can help our confidence. Huge two points.”
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