NEW YORK -- Following their second loss to the pesky Islanders in 72 hours, there was no shortage of frustration in the visitors locker room Thursday night. Once again, the Penguins felt they deserved a better fate after out-working their opponent for the better part of three periods. They also felt they cleaned up those massive defensive breakdowns that cost them two nights earlier.
Sure, the Islanders played them tight again, particularly down low. This is a Barry Trotz-coached team, after all. But, man, the Penguins certainly had some chances. An inch here or there, a play here or there and the 3-2 shootout loss at Barclays Center could have meant two points instead of one.
What if Thomas Hickey's centering pass finds its mark instead of hitting Anders Lee's blade?
What if Thomas Greiss doesn't snare a pair of Phil Kessel lasers marked for the top shelf?
What if Greiss doesn't get a left pad out to stop Jamie Oleksiak on a breakaway?
What is Greiss doesn't pokecheck the puck clean off Sidney Crosby's stick in OT?
So many what ifs.
But the difference between Daniel Sprong and, say, Crosby, Kessel and even Oleksiak, is that the latter three guys have been scoring goals, particularly of late.
Want to talk about frustration? Sprong's yet to score one this season. Thursday marked the 10th straight game that he's yet to find the back of the net.
A year or three ago, a 10-game drought might be cause to send Sprong back to the QMJHL. Obviously, that can't happen and neither is sending him down to Wilkes-Barre. Out of options, the Penguins have little recourse but to play him.
"We think he's playing hard," Mike Sullivan said after Thursday's game. "He's certainly ... we think he's improving with each game that he plays. We just have to stay with it."
Now, the purpose of this exercise is not to bury the 21-year-old. In fact, it is to praise him.
It was just four games ago in a similar highly-contested game that the 21-year-old was glued to a seat on the bench in Edmonton. But in Thursday's low-scoring affair, there was no shortening of Sullivan's bench. Sprong was front and center in the third period, playing 3:20 of his 9:44 -- 1:32 on the second power play unit -- over the final 20 minutes of regulation.
A pretty compelling argument could be made that the Penguins' best period was their last one and Sprong and fourth line mates Bryan Rust and Derek Grant were a big part of it.
After getting wiped out by the Islanders' acclaimed fourth line, which produced a pair of goals Tuesday at PPG Paints Arena, the line of Rust, Sprong and Grant won their matchup. Check out this extended zone time and work on the forecheck by Sprong three minutes into the final period:
"I thought we were working better as a unit down there," Rust said of the offensive zone. "I think on the forecheck, we had 1-2-3 guys all kind of close, working off each other and dug those pucks out and when we got it out in space, tried to find some areas."
Grant, who's also yet to score though in a much shorter sample size, said the key was to keep it simple. You know, the fourth line staples of getting pucks deep, grinding the opponent down low and getting bodies to the net.
"We didn't get one, but it's going in the right direction," Grant said.
Indeed, Sprong has been making noticeable strides since being scratched in Calgary. His 53.3 Corsi For percentage in all situations on Thursday ranked among the Penguins' highest.
"He's playing a lot better and you can see him get a little more confidence, making a few more plays," Rust said. "I think we're building some chemistry."
Alas, Sprong is a goal-scorer or is expected to be one at the NHL level after he scored 32 of them in 65 games for Wilkes-Barre last season. He had one shot Thursday and two others missed their mark. His best look came in the second period when he took a drop pass from Grant and skated to the top of the right circle. With Hickey closing in to defend, Sprong didn't get as much as he probably would have liked on his wrist shot and Greiss made a relatively easy save:
While some in the fan base have bemoaned the minutes and the quality of Sprong's linemates, a somewhat valid point, the play above was one where you'd like to think that Sprong will eventually score on consistently. If he's to earn a promotion to the top six, he's going to have to earn it.
It took Grant 92 games over five seasons in the NHL before blossoming into a 12-goal scorer with the Ducks last season.
"It's never easy when you come into the league," Grant said. "It's a tough league to score in. I think the first step for him is creating the shots and getting the shots off. He's got a good shot, so the goals will come."
When Derick Brassard returns from his lower body injury, which should be sooner rather than later, Sullivan will have a decision to make. Sprong returned to the lineup only after Brassard went out. Likely, the fourth line will get a makeover, but it's hard to see Sprong returning to the press box.
Despite another tough outcome Thursday, the Penguins are gaining traction with four lines.
"We think everybody's contributing at this point," Sullivan said. "We just have to get better with each game."
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
THREE STARS
My curtain calls go to …
1. Thomas Greiss
Islanders goaltender
The former Penguin stole two points, making 29 saves -- a few of them spectacular -- on 31 shots. In the shootout, he then went 3-for-3 stopping, in order, Evgeni Malkin, Sidney Crosby and Kris Letang. Not bad.
2. Dominik Simon
Penguins right winger
With his first-period power play goal, Simon extended his points streak to five games. Like Sprong, he was benched for the third period in Edmonton and has responded by recording six points in the five games since.
3. ANDERS LEE
Islanders left winger
New York's new captain has scored 74 goals over the previous two seasons, but few were as ugly as his third-period goal that gave the Islanders a 2-1 lead at 10:11. It was his third of the season and first which didn't come on the power play.
THE GOOD
The power play. Without it, the Penguins wouldn't have scored, as Simon scored early and Malkin late on a 2-for-4 night.
But when the second unit cashes in, it's a little more noteworthy. Simon opened the scoring at 6:20 of the first period after Jake Guentzel drove the net and collected the rebound, putting the puck high to the blocker side past Greiss:
"That's a great goal on the power play," Sullivan said of Simon. "He stayed with it to get his stick on the puck in that situation. It was a nice goal."
Down 2-1 late, the power play converted again when it needed to most. Malkin salvaged a point for the Penguins when his one-timed a knuckler from the right dot that beat Greiss through the five-hole at 12:02.
THE BAD
Yep, that same power play.
It ranks ninth in the NHL, possesses an arsenal of offensive weapons practically unmatched in the league, but defense isn't their strong suit. For the second time this season, the top unit coughed up a short-handed goal, this time to the Islanders' Josh Bailey at 14:46 of the second period.
Typically, short-handed goals are game-changers. And this one was.
Shortly after a 4-on-3 power play became a 5-on4, Casey Cizikas banked a pass ahead to Bailey and around Letang. Bailey skated in alone, deked Murray and slid the puck through the five-hole. Letang, who'd been on the ice for 1:04 and was the last man back, was simply out of gas. After missing Tuesday's game with a lower body injury and being a game-time decision Thursday, the veteran defenseman said he felt "rusty."
"It's a tough one," is how Sullivan put it. "Obviously, we have to have more awareness on the ice in that circumstance."
For the Penguins, it was the second short-handed goal they've allowed in 11 games, tying them for second-most. Montreal's Joel Armia was the other player to score short-handed on Oct. 6 in a 5-1 loss at PPG Paints Arena.
"There's going to be a time when the (power play) is not clicking but you can't give up goals like that," Crosby said. "It was a little too easy I think. Ends up being a big part of the game. Our power play was good, had a couple goals but it wasn't able to be the difference because of that."
It was the third short-handed goal scored by the Islanders, tying for third-most.
THE PLAY
You better believe it was Greiss' overtime stop of Crosby in overtime. I've got separately for Drive to the Net.
THE CALL
The announced crowd of 10,910 was by far the smallest the Penguins have played in front of this season. But there sounded like a lot more Islanders fans in the building when Lee was called for slashing Oleksiak at 11:01 of the third. The call was rather ticky-tacyk at any point in the game but even more so late in what had been a 2-1 game. Lee's penalty led to Malkin's game-tying power play goal.
THE OTHER SIDE
When they lost John Tavares for nothing in in free agency, the thinking in New York was that the Islanders would be Mathew Barzal and a whole lot of nothing else.
Barzal, last season's Calder Trophy winner, has held up his end even though he didn't record a point Thursday against the Penguins. The Islanders, however, are more than one guy. They play extremely well as a team in Trotz's heavily structured system and they have now won four in a row, including a sweep of the Penguins in this home-and-home series. They now share the lead with the Penguins atop the Metropolitan Division with 15 points each.
"Anytime you put a few wins together, the feeling gets really good in the room," said Lee, who replaced Tavares as captain. "That energy is there. We're playing good hockey against some good teams. They've set the standard the last few years and to get a couple wins, obviously just a shootout, but huge points for us."
"Didn't get too many chances but they capitalized," Rust said. "They're a team that plays hard defensively."
THE INJURIES
• Derick Brassard, forward, missed his third straight game, with a lower-body injury. He is day-to-day.
• Justin Schultz, defenseman, is expected to miss four months after fracturing his leg Oct. 13 in Montreal.
THE SCHEDULE
The Penguins will have a scheduled off day Friday before they take on the Maple Leafs on Saturday night at PPG Paints Arena.
THE COVERAGE
Visit our Penguins team page for everything.
MATT SUNDAY GALLERY
Penguins vs. Islanders, New York, Nov. 1, 2018 - MATT SUNDAY / DKPS