The great start that the Pittsburgh Penguins had this season has faded into the memory. After a disastrous performance against the San Jose Sharks that saw them blow a 5-1 lead with 14 minutes to play in the third period and fall 6-5 in overtime, the nightmarish play continued for the Penguins Sunday against the Utah Mammoth. Pittsburgh took a 3-0 lead into the 3rd period, but they fell apart in the final 20 minutes and dropped a 5-4 overtime decision.
The Penguins are clearly staggering as the team approaches the halfway point of the season.
The Penguins made a huge move as they traded goaltender Tristan Jarry and minor league forward Sam Poulin to the Edmonton Oilers for goalie Stuart Skinner, defenseman Brett Kulak and a 2029 second-round draft pick. This move does not look like it will save the Penguins, as Skinner was not lighting it up with the Oilers.
It may not be much help to the Oilers, either. General manager Stan Bowman had his eyes on Jarry and believes he can give Edmonton a lift, but there is little in the goaltender's background to make anyone think that he can be a winning factor for this team in the postseason.
The implosions against the Sharks and Mammoth are the worst examples as the defense has been shattered in recent games. General manager Kyle Dubas and first-year head coach Dan Muse have to address this issue.
Older veterans on the blue line proving to be a liability for Penguins
The Penguins were able to get off to a surprisingly good start this season as both Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin put up big numbers that allowed Pittsburgh to get the jump on several opponents and build significant leads. Additionally, the Penguins defense also was doing its job as Erik Karlsson and Kris Letang were able to deliver in complementary roles that allowed the team to dictate the pace of the game.
However, the defense has struggled mightily in recent weeks and this appears to be a huge problem area. Karlsson has always been known as an offensive defenseman but his defensive play has always been an area of concern.
Letang has been a much better all-around player because he has been consistent on both ends of the ice, but that is no longer the case. He has lost more than a step at the age of 38, and his play has been shoddy. He has struggled to hold on to the puck and he tends to panic and find himself out of position after he makes a mistake.
It is unlikely that those two will get better at this point in their careers.
Pittsburgh's defense also features Ryan Shea, Parker Wotherspoon, Ryan Graves and Connor Clifton. None of those players are difference makers or shut down defenders. It's very clear that Dubas has to do something to help the Penguins defense.
Muse has tried to take the pressure off of his players by putting the blame on himself, but it is clear the defense is not good enough to keep the Penguins in contention.
“We have to be disciplined,” he said. “We clearly have to be better five-on-six at the end of games. There are multiple parts to it. We’ll continue to work on it, continue to address it. There’s no question in my mind that this group can play much better than they are. But we have to get there.”
Goaltending also has to improve
The trade of Jarry for Skinner does not appear to be the kind of move that will help the Penguins at the goaltender position. In the loss to the Mammoth, Muse had Sergei Murashov in goal and not the former Oiler netminder.
Prior to the trade, Jarry had played in 14 games for the Penguins and he had a 2.66 goals against average along with a .909 save percentage and 9-3-1 record. Silovs has a 3.20 GAA and an .893 save percentage along with a 4-4-6 record. Murashov's start against the the Mammoth was just his fourth start of the season.
Skinner played in 23 games for the Oilers prior to the trade, and he has delivered a ho-hum 11-8-4 record for the back to back Stanley Cup finalists. He has a 2.83 GAA along with an .894 save percentage. Skinner has never had better than 2.62 GAA during his 6-year career with the Oilers and his best save percentage is .913. There is nothing to suggest that Skinner will give the Penguins with anything more than ordinary goaltending.
This team needs help on the blue line and a dose of self-confidence that has been drained significantly as the season has progressed.
