The Penguins' locker room was unusually late in opening to the media following Saturday night's 5-2 win over the Canadiens.
No, it's not what you think. There was no wild celebration of any sort after clinching a playoff berth, a franchise-record 12th year in a row doing that.
Apparently the delay was due to a players meeting with one simple message: There's some unfinished business to tend to over the final three games of the regular season, beginning with Sunday night's nationally televised showdown against the Capitals at PPG Paints Arena.
The win over the Canadiens pushed the Penguins to within a mere three points of the Capitals for the lead in the Metropolitan Division. Even though that would seem like a longshot, given that the Capitals still have a game in hand, the Penguins are going all in.
TAP ABOVE FOR BOXSCORE, STANDINGS, VIDEO"We just had a little talk and it’s going to be important for us to get out to a good start," said Riley Sheahan, the game's deserved No. 1 star. "If we can win that game, it would be huge for us. If we get those two points, it would get us a little closer. Like we said, we want to put ourselves in the best possible position. We know we've got a spot in the playoffs, but we want to work our way up."
With a 29-8-2 record at home, second-best in the NHL, you can understand why the Penguins would prefer to stay home as much as possible this spring. A division title hasn't precluded the Penguins from winning the Stanley Cup each of the last two years but, hey, what's another banner?
"By no means are we satisfied," Mike Sullivan said. "We know there's another level to our team and that's what we're striving for."
1. The power play clicked.
OK, a little context is needed here. The Penguins have the league's top-ranked power play at 25.7 percent. The Canadiens have the NHL's 30th-ranked penalty kill at 74.5 percent. Do the math.
Predictably, it was a mismatch that the Penguins were able to capitalize on. They scored three times -- Patric Hornqvist, Phil Kessel and Sheahan (his first as a Penguin) -- on nine shots.
The entries, the zone time and the artistry with which the Penguins were able to move the puck around so quickly on Saturday was astounding. But, again, it was against the Canadiens. Kessel was able to score this one on the man advantage at 7:18 of the third and I'm pretty sure he wasn't even trying to shoot the puck:
The three power play goals were the Penguins' most in a game since Feb. 2 against the team they face Sunday, the Capitals. A good omen, perhaps?
"It's been the most consistent part of our game all year," Sullivan said. "The first part of the year it won a lot of games for us. You have to give the guys on the power play a lot of credit."
Far more concerning for Sullivan's group moving forward though is the health of Kessel, who left the game in the third period with an apparent upper body injury. We'll know more prior to the Capitals game but Kessel has been an invaluable member of the power play. He is the unit's de facto quarterback on the half-wall and reclaimed the NHL lead for power play points with 40.
2. Derick Brassard can take his time.
Brassard missed his second straight game with a groin injury but there's no need for him to rush back after seeing what the new-look third line can do.
Other than winning just 33 percent of his faceoffs, Sheahan -- who was again centering Hornqvist and Conor Sheary -- may have played his finest game in a Penguins uniform.
Sheahan set the tone with his hustle play to set up Sheary for the Penguins' first goal. After Antti Niemi (more on him in a bit) stopped Sheahan's initial shot on the rush, the center grabbed his own rebound behind the Montreal net and centered it to Sheary:
Hard to believe, but this is Sheary's first goal-scoring streak -- two games -- since the fourth and fifth games of the season. With all three scoring goals on Saturday, the trio of Sheahan, Hornqvist and Sheary has combined for eight points (all situations) the last two games.
"These two guys are easy to play with," Sheahan said. "They get in there on the forecheck. Patric, obviously, does a great job in front of the net and keeping pucks in the zone and things like that and Conor’s a good playmaker."
It will be interesting to see how the lines shake out when Brassard returns, given the instant chemistry that group has found.
3. Hornqvist reaches 200.
True, 200 goals -- 94 of them with the Penguins -- doesn't have quite the same sizzle as 500 or 600, but given his relentless, grating style of play it's a noteworthy accomplishment. Hornqvist became the 23rd Swedish-born player to reach the milestone.
And he did it in vintage style at 10:18 of the first period. He tipped a Justin Schultz wrist shot from the point, which Niemi stopped, and then simply buried the rebound. It was his 26th of the season and 15th on the power play, moving him ahead of Evgeni Malkin for the team lead.
Afterward, Hornqvist talked about the power play's success:
4. Matt Murray is finding his rhythm.
After losing his first two starts following a concussion that sidelined him for nine games, Murray has now won two of his last three and appears to be getting back to the top of his game.
He stopped 24 of 26 shots, including a pair of breakaways in the third period, to earn his 26th win of the season. This snare on Paul Bryon with 7:18 left in the game was his best of the night:
Apparently Murray's catching glove works pretty well, after all.
It would be hard to blame Murray for either of the two goals that did get past him. Jeff Petry's opening goal at 8:42 of the first deflected in off Malkin's skate. The other goal, Jonathan Drouin's power play marker with 11 seconds remaining in the opening period, was one no goalie could have stopped. It was Montreal's only power play and it marked the fifth straight game that the Penguins' sagging PK has allowed a goal.
Over the final 40 minutes Murray made 15 saves. But as he was saying, it was the quality, not the quantity, of the saves he had to make:
With the Penguins still technically within striking distance of the Capitals, look for Murray to get the start again vs. Washington. Murray hasn't started both ends of a back-to-back this season but said he'd welcome the challenge.
"I want to play all the time," he said. "It's not my decision. I'll be ready to go if they call me. If not then I'll get a good skate, work on my game and go from there."
5. Antti Niemi's forgettable return.
What does Niemi have in common with Georges Vezina, Jacques Plante, Ken Dryden and Patrick Roy? They all played goalie for the Montreal Canadiens. And that's where any and all comparisons end.
There was only a smattering of boos at PPG Paints Arena when Montreal's starting goalie was announced. But if Pittsburgh fans had forgotten about Niemi and his unfortunate three-game career as a Penguin, they were quickly reminded during the first period. Niemi allowed three goals on 16 shots, including Carl Hagelin's goal at 14:36 which the Swede banked off the Finn's back.
If the Canadiens didn't have a home game Sunday against the Devils, Claude Julien would have almost certainly yanked Niemi in favor of Carey Price.