The three-peat hit its first bump in the road in game one. The St. Louis Blues were able to scrape out an overtime victory after leading for most of the contest. There were some positives to draw from for Pittsburgh as well as some negatives.
Here’s the possession chart
Let’s start with some of the positives.
The Olli Maatta and Justin Schultz pairing had an excellent game. Not only did both players find the back of the net, but they controlled the flow of play when they were on the ice. Game one of the Olli Maatta redemption tour went exactly how he and the team would have wanted it to. Justin Schultz is going to be a much better partner for Maatta than Daley ever was. Also, makes you wonder why this pairing wasn’t given the time of day last year. The Schultz-Cole pairing wasn’t good enough to be inseparable.
Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin found the scoresheet. They are going to have to and did. Both players had two points. It was encouraging to see #SidDownLow for his power play goal. He’s too good near the goal line and scores too many goals from the crease area to not find himself there.
I am going to reiterate what I said in the middle of last season. Jake Guentzel and Conor Sheary will end up being part of the best Sidney Crosby trio. This line works so well together and everybody compliments each other perfectly.
Jake Guentzel should never leave the first power play even when Patric Hornqvist comes back. Guentzel can do everything Hornqvist does and so much more. Guentzel uses his hockey IQ to time his screens and avoid needless body contact while accomplishing the same things that Hornqvist does with brute force. Guentzel’s passing and hands are exceptional and he is capable of playing anywhere in the offensive zone and still be productive. The same can’t be said for 72.
Kris Letang was back in the lineup and boy did I miss watching him play. He is flat out fun to watch. He was creating offensive chances while killing penalties and used his trademark speed to get back before the team got caught. He played high event hockey and still had the shot attempt advantage.
Gregg McKegg! Stand up if you thought he was going to have a performance like that. I didn’t think so. I thought he had a great game. I have no idea if it is sustainable, but I thought his speed was very noticeable and on a few occasions flashed the ability to see the ice and facilitate the puck. This was highlighted with his great assist on the game tying goal
Perhaps he lands the fourth line center role after the team trades for their third line center.
Stick tap to Brian Dumoulin for the keep in at the blue line.
The not so good:
Matt Murray had an off night. It is not the norm for him to allow five goals. He will be better, but that isn’t going to change the result from last night.
Gap control for the Penguins defenders was lacking. Alex Pietrangelo worked over the Penguins for two goals as he was able to back down the defensemen while remaining on his forehand. There were quite a number of high danger opportunities throughout the game and that certainly didn’t help Murray’s cause. Having a bad gap is also going to lead to more penalties taken. If you start reaching with the current standard you are going to get called.
The fourth line isn’t functional at all. Scott Wilson isn’t going to be able to do much with Rowney and Reaves. Scott Wilson has some offensive upside. Tom Kuhnhackl does not. Load up the top three lines and play the fourth line sparingly. It is worth mentioning that Patric Hornqvist’s return to the lineup will help out quite a bit with the line depth. He should be back soon enough.
The Penguins will be back in action tonight against another Central Division foe. They will be taking on the Chicago Blackhawks.
Thanks for reading!