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Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby is trying to stay positive after his team started off the season slowly. The Penguins are 3-4 to start the campaign, and Crosby knows the club must perform much better.
“It's not our goalies. It's on us to play better in front of them. We're giving up odd-man rushes,” Crosby said, per The Athletic. “We're not getting clears. Look at the game-winner. I lose the faceoff. Then I don't get my guy. And it ends up in the back of the net. We can't keep giving up five or six goals a game if we want to win.”
Pittsburgh is trying to get back to the Stanley Cup Playoffs after a drought. The team has missed the playoffs the last two years, despite having two of the league's stars in Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. Together, the duo have won three Stanley Cups in the Steel City.
Sidney Crosby's window to win another championship is closing
Crosby has spent his entire career in Pittsburgh. He's one of the greatest centers ever to grace the ice; Crosby recently became the 10th player to reach 1,600 points in an NHL career.
The last few years have been forgettable for Crosby and the team. This season is proving to be no different, which is extremely frustrating for Penguins fans. Pittsburgh's defense has struggled, there's no question about that. The team has given up a total of 15 goals in just the last three games. Two of those contests were losses, including a 6-3 defeat to the Winnipeg Jets.
“Obviously, we're just giving too much up. I think we can't give up what we've been giving up and expect to win consistently. Defensively, we've got to find another level,” Crosby said after losing to the Jets, per NHL.com.
The Penguins are shuffling around goal tenders to try and find a winning combination in net. Pittsburgh recently added Alex Nedeljkovic for its current road trip, after its other goalies struggled to open the year. The situation is ongoing.
This season, Crosby is a bit sluggish offensively. The star has six points, including five assists. Crosby's plus-minus is not where it needs to be though; he's posted a -4 so far this season in that statistical category. If the Penguins have success this season, Crosby will have to improve that number, while also finding the net more often with his shot. He signed a massive contract extension in the offseason, guaranteeing to end his career in Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh next plays the Calgary Flames on Wednesday. The Penguins are currently five points behind the New Jersey Devils in the Eastern Conference's Metropolitan Division.
