BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The Penguins' fourth line hasn't had a real identity this season.
It hasn't chipped in much offensively. It hasn't been especially strong defensively. It hasn't been overly physical. It hasn't been one the team can count on for a boost of energy.
But in Thursday night's 5-2 win over the lowly Sabres at KeyBank Center, the contributions came from the top to the bottom of the lineup, and that included the fourth line of Colton Sceviour, Mark Jankowski and Anthony Angello.
On one of the fourth line's first shifts, when the game was tied, 1-1, the line had sustained offensive zone pressure and two solid chances. First, Angello ripped a shot from the slot that was stopped, then Jankowski struck iron. It was probably the best the fourth line had looked all season.
With the Penguins clinging to a one-goal lead early in the third period as the Sabres were pushing to tie, it was the fourth line that stepped up when Angello shot top-shelf:
Angello explained the play after the game, as well as some of the behind-the-scenes conversations that led to what happened on the ice.
"It was a D-zone draw," he said. "We won it, it went around the boards. Something that we've been preaching and harping on is good wall play. I thought we had good wall play, good slash support. I chipped it out of the zone, we managed the puck, retrieved it, got it back, and I made a nice play with a nice shot on net. I'll be honest -- Evan Rodrigues said anytime I get inside the top of the circles, make sure to let it rip. So I didn't think twice about shooting that one."
General play like that goes a long way toward the Penguins being able to confidently roll four lines.
"It was a great line shift," Angello said of what led to the goal. "I feel like my line's been playing really well. We're bonding, figuring out how each other are playing to our strengths, playing simple and the right way. Good things are finally starting to happen."
Beyond the goal, the way the line played throughout the game is what Mike Sullivan said he'd like to see out of that trio. Angello and Jankowski each had two shots on goal, and Angello had two hits. They were rewarded with the most even-strength ice time that line has seen in awhile, with about nine minutes together at five-on-five. And in that time on five-on-five, they were outstanding at possessing the puck. They didn't allow a single shot attempt against when they were on the ice, and the Penguins as a team attempted six when they were on the ice.
"We talked about chipping in on the offense on occasion," Sullivan said of the fourth line. "If they can do that, it certainly makes us a more difficult team to play against. It makes us a better team. I thought the fourth line had a real strong game tonight. They brought us a lot of energy, I thought they had some offensive zone time, they possessed the puck down low, they forced Buffalo to have to expend energy defending them. That's the type of contribution that those guys can provide for our team. They helped us with momentum. And bring the physical presence. And when Anthony gets a nice goal like that, that's a bonus. So I thought all three of them had a real good game tonight."
For Angello, he may have gotten a little extra boost in this game from playing in this building. He grew up a Sabres fan, a 2 1/2-hour drive from this arena in a town just east of Syracuse.
"I think one of the things that I focused on watching games (as a kid) was just envisioning myself out there, putting myself in different situations, and trying to envision how I would handle different situations under pressure," he said. "I envisioned scoring goals, I'd say (the goal tonight) was pretty spot-on to how I envisioned it."
MORE FROM THE GAME
• The Evgeni Malkin-Kasperi Kapanen connection continues to grow each game, with the pair linking up for the opening goal. Kapanen got a clean breakaway, and instead of taking the shot himself, he dropped it back to Malkin, who had an open net:
Not a bad sequel to the shift their line had last game.
"That tandem in particular has been dynamic," Sullivan said of Malkin and Kapanen.
I asked Malkin after the game about his play with Kapanen as of late, and he downplayed the success they've been having ... a little out of superstition.
"I want to say it's OK right now," he said. "Because all the time I said before, like, 'Woah, we played good,' then next game we're not good. (laughs) I want to be patient and say we work hard, and we're okay right now."
• I think Malkin cracks more jokes in interviews when he's playing well. He was asked after the game what this team needs to be a Cup contender, and he laughed then quipped, "Maybe Mario Lemieux?"
He was also asked about his relationship with Kapanen off of the ice, and he first said, "I don't know, he speak Finland, I can't understand" before giving a real answer.
"I mean, we try to be nice together," he said. "On the road, we all stay in the hotel, not going out, not going to dinner together. But still, maybe I know I'm too old to him, but I try to be with him, play cards, play video games, too, NHL. He's a good guy, he's really funny."
• The Penguins held the Sabres' power play, which ranked fifth in the NHL entering the game, scoreless on two opportunities.
• The Penguins went 1 for 2 on their own man advantage, with Jake Guentzel's goal off of a Sidney Crosby feed from below the goal line eventually proving to be the game-winner:
Maybe just let Crosby quarterback the whole thing from back there.
• Tristan Jarry took a shot at the empty net in the final minute-plus of the game that went wide. Bryan Rust recovered the puck off the end boards and scored, giving Jarry his third assist of the season and moving him into a five-way tie with Sceviour, Rodrigues, Jankowski, and Brian Dumoulin for 16th place in the team's scoring race.
• John Marino didn't play. He missed Wednesday's practice, as well, though the update Sullivan provided then was that it was a maintenance day. Sullivan said after Thursday's game that Marino is now day-to-day with an upper-body injury. For what it's worth, Marino took part in the Penguins' optional morning skate Thursday and wasn't in a no-contact jersey.
• The Penguins won only 40 percent of faceoffs. Of the four centers, only Crosby (58 percent) won more than he lost. Malkin (33 percent), Blueger (33 percent) and Jankowski (17 percent) all struggled.
• The win was Sullivan's 300th in the NHL as a head coach. He's the 50th coach to ever reach the milestone, and only the fourth American.
"We gave him a puck tonight," Malkin said of what the team did for Sullivan after the win. "Everyone said congrats. He's a great guy, great coach. And it's not over. I hope he works a long time with the team in the NHL, and more wins for him."
Sullivan said after that he hadn't given the milestone "too much thought."
"It's a humbling honor," he said. "The players gave me a nice tribute after the game. But I'm just grateful to the players that I've had the privilege to coach over the years, especially the guys here in Pittsburgh. We've been together here for quite some time now. I've always been one to believe that this is a players' game. When you have the opportunity to coach players like I have here in Pittsburgh, you're going to win a lot of games because these guys are so talented and so driven. It was nice to reach this milestone, I'm certainly the benefactor of having the privilege of coaching some really good players."
• The Sabres don't have fans in the building yet, as their first game with fans will come March 20. But they still had the mascot there, just kind of awkwardly shuffling around at the top of the lower bowl. It was electric.
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
• Video highlights
• NHL scoreboard
• Standings
• Statistics
THE THREE STARS
As selected at KeyBank Center:
1. Evgeni Malkin, Penguins
2. Jake Guentzel, Penguins
3. Brandon Tanev, Penguins
THE INJURIES
• Forward Jason Zucker is out "longer-term" with a lower-body injury sustained on Feb. 23.
• Defenseman Mark Friedman is day-to-day with an upper-body injury sustained on March 4.
• Forward Jared McCann is day-to-day with an upper-body injury sustained Sunday.
• Defenseman John Marino is day-to-day with an upper-body injury.
THE LINEUPS
Sullivan’s lines and pairings:
Jake Guentzel-Sidney Crosby-Bryan Rust
Evan Rodrigues-Evgeni Malkin-Kasperi Kapanen
Zach Aston-Reese-Teddy Blueger-Brandon Tanev
Colton Sceviour-Mark Jankowski-Anthony Angello
Brian Dumoulin-Kris Letang
Mike Matheson-Cody Ceci
Marcus Pettersson-Chad Ruhwedel
And for Ralph Krueger's Sabres:
Taylor Hall-Dylan Cozens-Sam Reinhart
Victor Olofsson-Eric Staal-Riley Sheahan
Jeff Skinner-Curtis Lazar-Casey Mittelstadt
Tobias Rieder-Cody Eakin-Tage Thompson
Matt Irwin-Rasmus Ristolainen
Jacob Bryson-Brandon Montour
Rasmus Dahlin-Colin Miller
THE SCHEDULE
The Penguins will practice Friday at noon. They'll play the Sabres again on Saturday at 7:08 p.m. I'll be there for all of it.
THE CONTENT
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