Many youngsters have gone west to California in search of fame and fortune. The Penguins already have plenty of both, but what they don't have is a lock on their playoff position. Not yet, anyway.
Play as they have over the past four games, though, and that should be a mere formality.
The Penguins extended their winning streak to four, matching their season best, with an impressive 5-2 win over the Rangers at PPG Paints Arena on Sunday night.
On a day in which Pittsburgh lost one championship contender, the two-time defending Stanley Cup champs reminded once again that their run might not be done yet.
Two or three weeks ago, that may have seemed laughable, after a miserable December saw them go 6-8. However, the change of calendar has seen the Penguins emerge with a renewed sense of urgency and a swagger that had been missing in their gait over the first 40 games of this season.
On Sunday they won by overcoming an early 2-1 deficit -- "pushback" as they called it -- in an old-school Patrick Division rivalry game that saw the Penguins take sole possession of the first wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference and leave themselves just two points out of second place in the Metropolitan Division.
"We liked a lot of the way the game was being played from our standpoint," Mike Sullivan said. "We just kept telling our guys to stay with it. I feel like we did that. They just kept trying to play the game the right way and forcing the Rangers, for the most part, to play goal line to goal line."
Now comes the hard part.
The last time the Penguins won four in a row, between Nov. 25 and Dec. 2, they followed that up by losing four of their next five. Today, the Penguins embark on a three-game trip to California where they will play the Ducks, Kings and Sharks.
Whatever momentum or confidence that they take west with them will mean nothing if it doesn't produce wins, says Carl Hagelin:
1. Speaking of Hagelin, he's been good. Really good.
Placed on the second line of late with Evgeni Malkin and fellow Swede Patric Hornqvist, Hagelin has played what Sullivan called "his best all year for us." No arguments here.
On Saturday, Hagelin excelled on the penalty-kill. On Sunday, he showed some decent offensive touch that's been sorely missing in his game this season. Against the Rangers, his former team, he had a goal and assist, his first multi-point game of the season, while extending his modest points streak to three games.
Here, Hagelin dug at a loose puck under Henrik Lundqvist that led to Hornqvist's first-period goal, his first in nine games:
It's hard not to overlook Hagelin's pricey contract. For $4 million this season, three goals -- he scored an empty netter on Sunday, his first in 18 games -- just isn't cutting it. But he is an invaluable penalty killer who can generate offense with his foot speed. If his hands could catch up to his feet ...
"It's felt good the last five or six games," said Hagelin, who recorded the 200th point of his career. "Goals are going to come when I'm playing well."
Placing Hagelin on the second line certainly opened Sullivan up for criticism, but that line has played well and it's allowed Sullivan to better balance out his offense and roll four lines. The trio of Hagelin, Malkin and Hornqvist each brings a little different element, but it seems to mesh well.
"That line with him and Geno and Horny have been a solid line at both ends of the rink," Sullivan said. "Geno's a scoring threat. Horny's a guy that goes to the net. There's different elements on that line that could potentially make a good line and Haggy's been a big part of it with his foot speed and chasing pucks down."
2. Dominik Simon deserved that goal.
There's a reason why Simon is playing on the top line with the best player in the world. Simon has shown an uncanny ability and skill set to play in tight areas which complements Sidney Crosby's game and, potentially, Daniel Sprong's too.
Of that trio, Simon is clearly the least-known commodity. Actually, few people had Simon pegged to be called up to Pittsburgh, but Sullivan said he's always known that the 2015 fifth-rounder would be good. He coached Simon for about two months at the start of his first AHL season.
"We all recognized his skill level and his talent the first week that we worked with Dominik," Sullivan said. "We felt like he had huge upside."
Simon, a Czech, had to adjust to the smaller ice in North America and a different culture and language, but he has passed each test to date. Since being recalled again earlier this month, he has played a sound, two-way game -- a must in Sullivan's system -- but has also displayed good offensive instincts, recording four assists, and an outstanding 57.71 Corsi For percentage.
All he hadn't done in his 15 career NHL games was score a goal. With 8:38 left in the first period, it appeared he was going to score a highlight reel beauty on this falling spin-o-rama, but Lundqvist was able to squeeze off the five hole:
Simon finally broke through at 13:15 of the second:
No, this rebound goal on Sprong's shot wasn't quite SportsCenter Top 10 material, but it might be when he tells his grandkids in, oh, 30 years from now. Sprong retrieved the puck for him and Simon had it at his locker stall afterward.
Simon, who had 14 shots on goal in 10 games this season, said he sensed his time was coming.
"I was hoping that it was going to come," he said. "I had some shots last game. I was trying to do my best to go for it. So I'm really, really glad that it went in there. Hopefully it will go a little easier now."
With Bryan Rust skating on his own Sunday morning, the injured forward would seem close to returning. That means that Sullivan will face another tough decision as to who plays and who doesn't, but Simon is certainly giving his coach something to think about on the top line.
"We're hoping that he can continue to build on this," Sullivan said. "The fact that he scored tonight should be a great boost of confidence for him, but we thought as a coaching staff that he's had some pretty strong games."
3. Penguins are getting offense from defense, jumping on rebounds.
The Penguins hurled 47 shots at Lundqvist on Sunday night, their third-highest total this season. Of those 47, 19 of them came from defensemen and that doesn't even take into account the seven shots that were either blocked or off the mark.
Sullivan has been harping on generating offense from the back end and, not coincidentally, a big part of the reason for the current run has been the ability of his blueliners to get shots through on goal. That also helps to explain why Ian Cole has had a seat in the press box. Against the Rangers, the Penguins were able to use their speed and chase down rebounds.
"Some of those goals were just getting pucks on the net," said Hagelin. "Sooner or later they're going to go in. (Lundqvist) gave up some rebounds. It's important for us to jump on those pucks and make it harder for them."
No, Lundqvist was not happy with this strategy. The Rangers goalie, who blew up at his teammates a day earlier, blew a fuse when Riley Sheahan crashed his crease for a second-period goal that was ultimately disallowed after being ruled it was kicked. Lundqvist even threw a puck toward one of the officials:
This was the Rangers' third straight loss, and second in two days coming off their bye.
“In my mind, it’s not a couple games. In this past month, I think the level is just not high enough. You almost get tired of sitting here trying to find the right thing to say,” Lundqvist told reporters.
4. The Penguins showed some fight.
Of all the reasons for the recent turnaround, the trade with Dallas that brought Jamie Oleksiak to Pittsburgh on Dec. 19 might not rank at the top, but it's not mere coincidence either. Oleksiak brings an element and unique skill set to the blueline that they just didn't have before.
On Sunday, Oleksiak added a pair of assists, his first multi-point game in a Penguins uniform.
"I think he's getting more and more comfortable with how we're trying to play the game," Sullivan said. "I think his confidence is getting higher and that always helps a player."
Certainly, he's quickly endeared himself to fans and his new teammates -- like Ryan Reaves -- with his size, strength and mean streak. There are those who say fighting is archaic or that it has no place in the sport, but you can't argue that Oleksiak's second-period fight with Brendan Smith didn't wake up the Penguins:
Oleksiak was assessed 17 minutes in penalties, including a 10-minute misconduct, a career first. But while he was in the box, the Penguins struck twice on goals from Simon and Phil Kessel, who recorded the 700th point of his career and, by the way, has eight points in his last four games. Not bad for a non-All-Star.
Thanks in part to Oleksiak, the Penguins were able to overcome a 2-1 deficit and seize momentum. Sullivan said Oleksiak's scrap, his second as a Penguin, "could have" been a turning point.
"I think our sport is such a game of momentum, and when you don't have it, you have to find a way to get it back, and you have try and not get hurt when you don't have it," Sullivan said. "And when you have it, you have to ride it, stay with it and keep it shift after shift."
Since the trade the Penguins are 7-5 with Oleksiak, who said it's been a fun ride watching his new team turn things around.
"It's great, I think we have all the pieces here," he said. "I think everyone, top to bottom, everyone's kind of contributing. Everyone's playing very confidently right now."
5. Matt Murray will be back sooner rather than later.
Technically, the Penguins didn't hold a morning skate, but a few players informally took the ice, including Murray.
The starting goalie has been on leave since Friday attending to a personal family matter, but he is back in Pittsburgh. Before the game Sullivan said there was no change in Murray's status and that "we're giving him his personal space and we're asking everyone to be respectful of that."
After the game, Sullivan announced that Murray would be making the west coast trip with his teammates. That means with back-to-back games Wednesday and Thursday against the Ducks and Kings, Murray figures to get one of those starts and possibly two of the three games in California.
Obviously, Murray is the No. 1 goalie the moment he comes back, but Tristan Jarry showed again this weekend that he is legit and Jim Rutherford won't be shopping for another backup anytime soon.
The Penguins have won the last five games that Jarry has started, though Murray bailed him out last Sunday against the Bruins. Jarry was good enough against the Rangers, stopping 26 of 28 shots.
Certainly he'd like to have this one back against Smith, who beat the Penguins' 22-year-old goalie on a half-slapper from the left circle late in the first period to give the Rangers a 2-1 lead. It was Smith's first goal this season:
But Jarry also made some timely saves, including this stop on Michael Grabner on a partial break with 15:30 left in what had been a one-goal game:
"Tristan was solid. He made the saves we needed him to make," Sullivan said.
For any goalie, backup or otherwise, that's all you can ask for.
MATT SUNDAY GALLERY
Penguins vs. Rangers, PPG Paints Arena, Jan. 14, 2018. - MATT SUNDAY / DKPS