Things started great for the Penguins last night in Detroit. Evgeni Malkin scored 53 seconds into the game and was back tied for the league lead in scoring. After that, things turned sour in a 6-3 loss to the Red Wings.
It wasn’t a great night for the depth players. The bottom pairing had a rough night and we are entering some rare territory for bottom six scoring
The last time Pens went the opening 3 GP of a season without a goal from the bottom 6 was 2008-09, with Mike Zigomanis breaking the drought in the fourth game. Kennedy scored twice in the opener that season, but he was playing with Staal and Geno.
— Bob Grove (@bobgrove91) October 18, 2023
Last night was the fourth game of the season and we are still waiting for anybody from the bottom six to contribute a goal. This was a declared weakness before the season. I don’t find these results much of a surprise. It is the biggest thing that will hold this team back that they control. It is way too much of a burden to put on the top six considering the elevated age of this team. The bottom six as currently constructed isn’t a path forward.
The third line of O’Connor-Eller-Harkins has been putrid. Last night they had an xGF% of 4.24. The decimal point is in the correct place. It does say four percent. This is supposed to be the third line? Mike Sullivan moved off of this combo later in the game, but it was too little too late. You absolutely cannot have a totally incompetent third line and to this point it is exactly what the Penguins have had. The bottom four players on the team through four games in xGF% are Jansen Harkins, Drew O’Connor, Lars Eller, and Matt Nieto. They are all under 45%
It’s time to get some other players in the lineup. This isn’t working. My first callup would be either Valtteri Puustinen or Alex Nylander. If depth scoring is the issue then use the players who are the likeliest to assist with that task. Make no mistake, there are no great options. The Penguins are limited. It is why I banged the Tomas Tatar drum so hard in the late summer. This issue wasn’t hiding and it was out in plain sight to see. Kyle Dubas has some work to do here.
Until things improve the top six is going to continue to have to produce at unsustainable levels to be successful. I don’t think Pittsburgh has played a higher echelon team yet this year so things will get tougher. The Penguins are off until Saturday when they host the St. Louis Blues. There should be plenty of time to make changes to the lines before then.
Thanks for reading!