Before the Hurricanes played their game of Duck Hunt on the ice at PNC Arena, each Carolina player lined up to shake hands with retiring referee Brad Watson. Insert your own joke, right? Surely, it would be convenient to pin the Penguins' 3-2 shootout loss Tuesday night on the officials.
It was Tim Peel and Watson who went 45 minutes before awarding a single power play to either side. And it was Peel that called a controversial slashing penalty on Kris Letang in overtime, and then rendered the defenseman useless for the shootout by slapping on a gratuitous 10-minute misconduct. And sure, we could pin everything on Matt Murray's leaky left glove that sent the game into overtime in the first place.
Except for that conspiracy theory part, both were largely true.
Indeed, the officiating was suspect at best, but that is pretty much par for the course in the NHL at this time of year (you can read The Call, below). And Murray was absolutely at fault on Justin Williams' tying goal at 18:04 of the third (read that in The Bad).
But there are some bigger-picture problems that are far more troubling than either of those. Tuesday's meltdown was the seventh time this season and the second game in a row that the Penguins have allowed a 6-on-5 goal in the waning minutes.
"We’d like to believe that we can defend leads better," Mike Sullivan was saying. "We have in the past for a long time and been very good at it. So I know we’re capable. But having said that, I thought it was a hard-fought point for us tonight.”
Thanks to some timely work by Jack Johnson and their penalty killing unit, the Penguins didn't come away completely empty-handed and they may yet avoid a first-round matchup against the Lightning or Capitals by simply picking up one loser's point at a time.
But the reason for Tuesday night's loss, and the biggest reason for the Penguins' first three-game losing streak in 45 days, has been their inability to score goals. They got a whopping two of them here against the Hurricanes. That now gives them four goals in the last three games. The Penguins are a team that averages 3.35 goals per game, sixth-most in the NHL. Over the last three games, that number falls to 1.33. That's just not going to cut it.
Sure, the games are tight this time of year and the Hurricanes are a good team, but how can Jake Guentzel, Sidney Crosby and Phil Kessel not score on any of their three shootout attempts? And this wasn't against some up-and-coming future Vezina winner like Jordan Binnington or Carter Hart, either. This was against Petr Mrazek.
The identity of this team is its stars -- even if they are missing Evgeni Malkin -- and their ability to produce. But over the last three games, well, it's been too much of this:
This is Phil Kessel simply passing up a shot and then turning it over at the blueline in the second period:
This is Kessel -- the King of OT -- simply being unable to handle a pass on his backhand in the extra session that would have led to a breakaway:
Kessel, mired in the most frustrating slump of his career, simply looks lost. But he's not the only one struggling.
Midway through the first period, Sullivan mixed up his top two lines, moving Jared McCann down and promoting Bryan Rust to keep up with the speedy Hurricanes. Though that tweak helped produce the Penguins' only two goals, both came from the top line. That only underscores the Penguins' biggest concern heading into the postseason: They're a one-line team that leans too heavily on its power play.
But as March starts to turn to April, as witnessed Tuesday, the referees are starting to put away the whistles. On top of that, the Penguins' power play is a hot mess right now. As Crosby was telling me beforehand, "It’s not ever about one guy. It comes down to us working together.”
Not coincidentally, the Penguins' current skid coincides with them going 0-for-9 on the power play. While the Penguins can bemoan their lack of chances, just one on Tuesday, they've got to convert when they get them. Despite Letang's return from injury after missing 11 games, the power play was just as ineffective against Carolina as it was against the Flyers, though slightly less putrid.
This is Sidney Crosby sending back a drop pass to no one:
See? It's not just one guy. It's collective.
"I don't know what the shot total was but there was a few good chances for us," Nick Bjugstad was telling me. "I should have had at least one. I have to bear down and find a way to score, but I think getting to the net and creating chaos in front of these goalies is the most important thing, especially the way these guys play tight defense. It's off a shin pad and a rebound, or whatever. You have to find a way to get it there. A lot of these teams are fighting for playoffs. We have to find a way to win those."
Now, after three straight losses, the Penguins are among those teams fighting for the playoffs. And with upcoming games on this road trip against the Predators, Stars and Rangers, the Penguins' margin for error just keeps getting smaller and smaller.
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
THREE STARS
My curtain calls go to …
1. Petr Mrazek
Hurricanes goaltender
Seemed a curious pick to start after going 0-2-1 against the Penguins last season, playoffs included, while with the Flyers. But Mrazek has now won seven of his last eight after making 36 saves Tuesday.
2. Jake Guentzel
Penguins left winger
Guentzel had a sweet secondary assist to set up Letang's goal and netted his 37th goal of the season in the third. With eight games to go, Guentzel will almost certainly get 40. Wonder how many more he'd have if he was on the top power play all season?
3. Justin Williams
Hurricanes right winger
It wasn't quite Game 7, but the clutch veteran and the Hurricanes' captain came through with the game-tying goal. It was the 37-year-old's 22nd goal of the season. That's impressive at any age.
THE GOOD
If only the game had ended with 4:37 left in the third period. It was just too perfect, right? In his first game back after an extended absence, Letang scored a beautiful goal that broke a late 1-1 tie and reminded why he should still be in the Norris conversation:
It was the result of a gorgeous 3-on-1 passing sequence. First, Guentzel broke down the right-hand side and threw on the brakes as he entered the zone, feeding the puck to Rust who was coming down the left side to create a 2-on-0 after Justin Faulk bit on Guentzel. From the left circle, Rust deftly passed it across to Letang who put it over Mrazek's glove.
In more ways than one, it was a vintage performance from Letang. Managing minutes? Forget about it. Reunited with Brian Dumoulin on the top pair, Letang played a team-high 26:45, though he was on the second unit for the one power play. He also chipped in one block, one hit and one really bad penalty.
"I thought he was great all night," was Sullivan's assessment.
The goal was Letang's 16th of the season and first since scoring a pair of goals against the Rangers on Feb. 17. Among all defensemen, only the Maple Leafs' Morgan Rielly has more with 20.
And it stood to be the game-winner until ...
THE BAD
"You miss it?" Murray snapped tersely when I'd asked what happened on the game-tying goal. "It was a shot, rebound. You know?"
Oh, we know. Murray's glove-hand struggles have usually centered around his positioning and getting his glove up quickly enough, not about his ability to catch a puck. But that's what happened at 18:04 of the third period when Dougie Hamilton's point shot went in and out of the goalie's catching mitt and right to Williams at the left side of the cage, where he had a wide-open net:
As is usually the case with any goal, there is more at play than just the goalie. The play started when Crosby won the faceoff vs. Jordan Staal, but Nino Niederreiter made a heads-up play to beat Matt Cullen to the loose puck and fed a pass back to Hamilton at the point. Rust went down for the block but missed, leaving Williams free to collect the rebound.
"It's not a lack of execution or anything, just a bounce in their favor," Letang said. "It should not be a concern."
Williams joins a club that includes Jake Voracek and Conor Sheary in scoring questionable late 6-on-5 goals that have beaten Murray in the final minutes of regulation in the last month. But this one wasn't a fluky goal like Voracek's and the Penguins weren't down to four defensemen, either. This one hit him in the glove.
"I wouldn't say there's a trend," Murray was saying. "Just each time there's been one little mistake, and I've got to make a save. That's pretty much what it comes down to."
That goal spoiled what was otherwise a stellar performance from Murray, who stopped 37 of 39 shots, 14 of them in the third period and four others in overtime, including a stop on Sebastian Aho on a breakaway. In the shootout, Murray stopped two of three, the lone goal coming from Hamilton on the Hurricanes' first attempt.
Sullivan said he still believes in his team and in Murray's ability to make timely saves. As he should. Again, it's not like the Penguins are giving the goalie a lot of run support.
"No, I think this team is a battle-tested group," the coach said. "They’ve been through a lot. So I don’t worry about that.”
THE PLAY
As good as both goalies were, the save of the night goes to Johnson.
With :25 remaining in overtime and the Hurricanes on the power play for Letang's slash, Aho had the game on his stick again. This time he had a yawning net to shoot at. From the right circle, Carolina's leader in goals, assists and points teed up a one-timer that Johnson was able to get over to and just get a shin pad on:
Johnson's block, one of his four of the Penguins' 15, sent the game to the shootout. Though Carolina's power play is ranked just 22nd, the Penguins PK came up with two huge kills over the game's final seven minutes to earn a point.
THE CALL
There were just two sets of matching minor penalties called until the Penguins were awarded a power play at 5:03 of the third, when Rust used his speed to draw an interference penalty on Justin Faulk. The Hurricanes didn't even get their first chance until 18:16 of the third when Jack Johnson was called for roughing Andrei Svechnikov. Yep, that is what's referred to as a make-up call.
However, the call that had the Penguins up in arms most was Letang's slash on Aho's breakaway at 2:56 of overtime. Judge for yourself:
"I think I gave him a tap on the (rear)," Letang protested afterward. "I didn't alter anything on that play. I literally reached, and I think I mostly didn't even touch him. I don't know why he called that. I was really surprised."
The NHL has made slashing a point of emphasis the past two seasons. So if you're a fan of the crackdown then you shouldn't have a problem with it. However, it came in overtime after far more egregious acts had been let go and Letang never made contact to Aho's hands or stick.
"It doesn't really matter what I think about the penalty because I'm not the referee," a clearly displeased Sullivan was saying. "His opinion is the only one that matters."
Though the Penguins' frustration might be justified, Letang had to bite his tongue after it and move on. Instead, he took himself out of the game with his 10-minute misconduct.
THE OTHER SIDE
Judging by the 14,677 that bothered showing up at PNC Arena, it's not so much a "bunch of jerks" as it is a handful of them. Apparently, the N.C. State Wolfpack were also in action Tuesday night, playing across town at their on-campus arena and siphoning fans away from the Triangle's only major pro sports team. Oh, did I mention it was for a first-round NIT game? Yeah, apparently the "Storm Surge" is more of a ripple.
But the Hurricanes are having fun with it. So, to each their own:
Duck Hunt Storm Surge! ? pic.twitter.com/K07Ctjdjs6
— Carolina Hurricanes (@NHLCanes) March 20, 2019
If this was a playoff test for the Hurricanes, who haven't seen the postseason in a decade, they passed. Labeled the Corsi Cup champs for their ability to generate shots while suppressing their opponents, the Hurricanes certainly put shots on Murray. Their 39 shots were 4.8 more than their season average. But they also gave up 38, 9.4 more than their average.
"That's exactly what it was. The whole game was tight. Lots of scoring chances, but not a lot of goals," head coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "Playoff games are always tight and always seem to come right to the end. We got a positive outcome. It was a good effort from both teams."
The Hurricanes' win moved them to within two points of the Penguins for third place in the Metro.
THE DATA
• The shootout was the Penguins' fourth this season and first since Dec. 10 against the Islanders, a 2-1 win at Nassau Coliseum. The Penguins are now 1-3 in those.
• Two of the Penguins' top four Corsi For percentages at 5v5 went to fourth-liners Cullen (68.00) and Garrett Wilson (59.09).
• Even after McCann was bumped down to the second line, Teddy Blueger remained at center and the rookie won 57 percent of his draws, the best mark on the Penguins.
• Letang is 39 percent in his career in shootout attempts, including 0-for-2 this season.
• The Penguins are 0-6-1 in their last six road games without Malkin.
THE INJURIES
• Evgeni Malkin, center, missed his second game and is week-to-week with an upper-body injury.
• Zach Aston-Reese, forward, missed his fifth game with a hip injury and is now out “longer term.”
• Olli Maatta, defenseman, has a separated left shoulder sustained Feb. 11. He’s on IR. He's on the trip and participated in the morning skate in a non-contract jersey.
• Chad Ruhwedel, defenseman, missed his 11th game with an upper-body injury.
THE LINEUPS
Sullivan’s lines and pairings as they finished:
Guentzel - Crosby - Rust
McCann - Blueger - Kessel
Simon - Bjugstad - Hornqvist
Blandisi - Cullen - Wilson
Dumoulin- Letang
Johnson - Schultz
Pettersson - Gudbranson
• And for Brind'Amour's Hurricanes:
Niederreiter-Aho-Williams
Svechnikov-Staal-Teravainen
Ferland-Wallmark-Martinook
McGinn-McKegg-Maenalanen
Slavin-Hamilton
Pesce-Faulk
Fleury-van Riemsdyk
THE SCHEDULE
The Penguins will have a travel day today as they head to Nashville to take on the Predators on Thursday night.
THE COVERAGE
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