Connor McDavid, for the second consecutive game against the Penguins, put up four points in an Edmonton victory. His lone visit to Pittsburgh this season was worth it for the fans in attendance. He gave them a must see performance. McDavid now has 122 points and is seven clear of Jonathan Huberdeau for the Art Ross Trophy. His goal was a tremendous sharp angle shot to the top corner
Tough angle? No problem from Connor McDavid (@cmcdavid97) — he gets the Shot of the Night! 🎯
— NHL (@NHL) April 27, 2022
NHL x @JagermeisterUSA pic.twitter.com/1mRUuM44AF
That was the positive for the game. If you’re going to lose at least be entertained.
As for the actual analysis the Penguins are clearly struggling at the moment. There are limitations with the roster. It is the reality of having no farm system or draft picks. We all knew the late stage Crosby/Malkin era would have its hurdles to overcome. Something that does not have to happen is the coach not maximizing the ability of the players available. The line construction from last night was remarkably inept. Nothing about it made sense. It put players in positions where they would have to punch above their weight. The results spoke for themselves. Brock McGinn in the top six and Jeff Carter continuing to sink the third line are choices that don’t have to be made. Brian Dumoulin continues to play top pairing minutes when in actuality he is closer to being a healthy scratch.
Jeff Carter did score on the tail end of the power play, but his even-strength play has been atrocious. He is a poison pill for his linemates. Here is what Natural Stat Trick had from last night’s game
The choice to play Kapanen can be defended. They need goals. His skill set is better equipped to do that than some of the other options even if he is one of the most inconsistent and frustrating players. Playing him with the center who is currently struggling the most isn’t going to do anything for him. You are going to sink both players further. Believe it or not Danton Heinen has the third most 5v5 goals on the team this year at 15. Placing him with a struggling Carter won’t help him continue to produce.
Some things you can’t control, like injuries. Jason Zucker is dead set on sticking to his Beau Bennett arc at the moment. He left last night’s game with yet another injury. Who knows how long he will be out for. The team needs him to be functional. They can’t even get him in the lineup on a regular basis. It is definitely frustrating for the player. He doesn’t want this. It does not change the fact when he is missing the depth crumbles.
From an x and o standpoint I think Mike Sullivan does a really good job. The forwards are aggressive on the forecheck, the defense are active in pinching to keep zone time, and they consistently run solid faceoff plays. My point of criticism has been more about his deployment the last few years, especially when the stakes rise in the playoffs. You need to maximize your ability to score goals. The Penguins for a number of years struggle to do just that in the most important games despite still having some top end talent. The lines are always temporary. He can change them today if he wants to. It was still disappointing to see how they were constructed for the Oilers game and mirrors the type of game management mistakes he has made in the playoffs in recent years. I know Malkin missed time because of the suspension, but he’s back now. You are still allowed to play him at 5v5 with Crosby at times. Sullivan was doing this about a month ago. Now is not the time to bail on it.
The team has one more game left in the regular season. They will play Columbus at home on Friday. We still don’t know who the Penguins will play in round one. The Capitals are one point behind the Penguins right now with a game in hand. If they win out they will leapfrog the Penguins and play the Rangers. The Florida Panthers are very much on the table for Pittsburgh right now. Weirdly enough the #1 seed in the conference might be the preferred matchup for Pittsburgh. Mike Sullivan, for all the reasons listed above, has not fared well against defensive teams in recent memory.
Thanks for reading!