Sometimes you just have to laugh and move on. Nothing about the results of this game made any sense. Pittsburgh destroyed Edmonton and left the rink with an overtime loss. At least it kept this streak alive.
There’s a lot to like about how the Penguins played today.
I want to bring attention to the upper right and lower left corners. That’s what shutting down Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl looks like in chart form. Kris Letang and Brian Dumoulin were elite today. Connor McDavid was only CF 3 CA 28 and Draisaitl was CF 3 CA 25 at 5v5 today. The Oilers won’t win many games with those kinds of numbers. Today was the fluky exception.
Just as fluky was how the Penguins scored their lone goal. Not only was it a Brian Dumoulin goal, but it was shorthanded(!)
Again, I don’t know why Dumoulin can’t put up more tangible offense. He’s certainly capable, but for some reason it is only once in a blue moon.
Draisaitl may have been held in check in regulation, but when the ice opened up in 3v3 he flashed his offensive brilliance
Pittsburgh played great. This is the first time in a long time they had their full complement of forwards and things looked really good. Combine that with the proper usage among the defensemen and the team has a lot better chance of maximizing the results even though things didn’t go their way today. Hopefully, the team can stay healthy for a stretch of time to see what the roster can really do. Today was a great start.
Thanks for reading!
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