Kovacevic: Sullivan's response to Chicago focuses on -- gasp -- effort

Oct 6, 2017 • 2:34 pm

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CRANBERRY TOWNSHIP, Pa. — Aside from the hum of the Zamboni, the whoosh of the overhead ventilation and the groans of dozens of disappointed fans, there was barely anything audible about the Penguins' scheduled practice Friday at the Lemieux Sports Complex.

Other than the shrill, piercing horror-flick screams that might as well have been emanating from the players' locker room.

I kid, of course, but maybe not.

Mike Sullivan decided upon returning from Chicago and that 10-1 debacle Thursday night to utilize the originally scheduled noon practice -- one that almost surely would have been optional or even canceled after opening the season with back-to-back games Wednesday and Thursday -- not for standard drills but for a half-hour afternoon video meeting aimed primarily at upgrading, of all things for a two-time defending Stanley Cup champion, their effort.

Because ... you know:

Also, through both games so far, the Penguins have given up 15 goals, 78 shots and 53 other attempts for a grand total of -- my God, wait for it -- 131 attempted shots.

More than one per minute!

No players took the ice Friday, other than Evgeni Malkin in shorts trying out a new pair of skates. Sullivan, the only representative of the Penguins to speak, entered the venue's press room after the video meeting with a calm, collected demeanor and stayed that way through his 10-minute session.

This was my opening question for the head coach:

And this is the full audio recording.

Among the highlights:

• On what's wrong: "Right now, more so than results, our coaching staff is concerned with just the mindset or the commitment level to play the game the right way. I think when this team starts there, we’re competitive, we can play with anybody. Sometimes we get in certain modes where we’re trying to outscore teams instead of just playing the game the right way. And so, the message to our group this morning was that if we’re going to play the game to our identity which we have defined clearly and talked about daily with this group, part of that identity is being a team that doesn’t beat itself. And I thought last night, we broke that rule in so many different ways."

• On how to fix it: "It starts with our willingness to manage the puck. When we don’t manage the puck appropriately, we give teams freebies. When you look at the genesis of some of those scoring chances last night, it started with our lack of diligence to manage the puck in the critical areas of the rink. You know, it’s always a delicate balance with this group because our coaching staff believes in this group’s ability to make plays. We want them to make plays. We encourage them to make plays. That’s what separates our guys from a lot of others. But having said that, there’s always that fine line. And that’s part of what we talked about this morning, and we showed them examples."

• On the lack of defense, in particular: “I just think there’s an element of physicality that’s associated with the game. And when you look at the group that we have, we’re not looking for bone-crushing bodychecks throughout the lineup. We’ve got a mobile defensive corps, a skilled forward group ... we’re not asking guys to be something that they’re not. But at the end of the day, you know, hockey is rooted in emotion and physicality. It’s part of the game. So part of being hard to play against and being good defensively is your ability to engage physically. We’ve got to create separation from the puck, get into people’s bodies, disrupt puck possession, stop cycles ... and we have to do that by playing to our strengths. We’ve got to use our skill sets to win puck battles."

• On what, if anything, to cull from Chicago: "We just have to heed the lessons. We’re early in this season, so no one’s hitting the panic button here, but I do think when we get beat in the fashion we get beat last night that it’s an important wakeup call to all of us."

• On whether he might shake up the lineup or combinations: "We tweaked last night throughout the course of the game. If we don’t see combinations that give us the ability to have consistent success, then we’re gonna tweak. That’s something I’ve done since I’ve been here. Ideally, we’d like to settle some combinations but, if we’re not having success, as a coaching staff, that’s one of the ways that we can be proactive to try to effect some change to try to create the urgency we’re looking for."

• On any emotions in the meeting: "It was more matter-of-fact. When you get stomped on like that, I think it's most important to heed the lessons. Where are we going to go from here? How are we going to respond? That's the most important takeaway. And so we tried to identity a couple areas of our game and show them the hard evidence. And now everybody's got to take ownership of their own responsibilities, our coaching staff included, and try to make sure we respond the right way."

This is classic Sully. All of it.

He isn't the throw-food-against-the-wall type. He isn't the send-a-message-through-the-media type. And you'd better believe he isn't the punitive type. In fact, he's actually sensitive to any such description anytime it's come up. He doesn't subscribe to the old-school 'bag skate,' and he doesn't even like the term. So it couldn't have been a surprise that he chose to make a visual impression rather than a visceral one.

Sure, we witness him fuming on the bench. One could almost make out flames flying from his ears during the third period at the United Center. That's who he is, too. He's richly passionate, as much as any coach or manager I've covered in professional sports. It's a huge part, I believe, of why Pittsburgh has embraced the man.

But he also sees the skill at hand, and he can appreciate better than anyone the character at hand. He'll solve this before long, and so will his players.

Next up is a Stanley Cup Final rematch with Nashville tomorrow night at PPG Paints Arena.

In the interim, because sports can never be taken too seriously, our Taylor Haase tries to envision the video the players were shown:

TAYLOR HAASE / DKPS

WHAT'S BREWING

• Hey, it's Saturday, so it's Site Stuff day.

PENGUINS

• Event: Game vs. Predators

• Location: PPG Paints Arena

• Time: 7:08 p.m.

• Morning skate: 10:30 a.m.-noon

• Doors open: 6 p.m.

• Lots open: 5 p.m.