Sorry, but this isn't about to go anywhere.
Not without Tristan Jarry being fully invested, both physically and mentally. Not without Jarry participating at every reasonable opportunity. Not without Jarry ... toughening up.
There. I said it.
Not so hard, is it?
See, one of hockey's countless cultural quirks is that one never speaks ill of the goaltender. Not teammates. Not coaches. This took root way back in the sport's dog-sled days a century ago, and it's holding firm right through this particular goaltender being immune to public criticism ... well, right through the Penguins' 5-4 overtime overturn of the Blue Jackets on this Tuesday night at PPG Paints Arena, an event that began with Jarry spotting the NHL's worst team a four-goal lead on just a dozen shots, then was salvaged by this classic Sidney Crosby snipe:
Or, to be more accurate, it was salvaged by Casey DeSmith, Jarry's alleged backup -- hard to tell who's the starter anymore -- stopping all 15 of Columbus' shots after Jarry was yanked a couple minutes into the second period.
One minute, the guy's hurt. The next minute, either Mike Sullivan or Ron Hextall are stating publicly that he's expected back soon. The next month, he's actually back. The next minute, he's hurt again. The next minute, after another setback or two or three, he's back again and plays a promising game or two. The next minute, he's ... sick? Yeah, that was the word Sunday in Sunrise, Fla., leading into the team frittering away a four-game winning streak.
And now, 48 hours later ... this.
Which is to say, this lax left-to-right movement on a power-play one-timer by Emil Bemstron, a fourth-line winger who'd never previously been confused with Alexander Ovechkin:
Which is also to say, this long-range wrister by Liam Foudy, the other fourth-liner who'd increase his 44-game goal total to, uh, three:
That's not good enough. None of it's good enough. And please, spare me any nitpicking about who blew an assignment on this goal or that goal. We're all well past that part of the conversation. Meaning that Jarry hasn't come close to earning being part of that conversation. Because, for all the talent he's clearly got, it's become more than fair to question his commitment and, yeah, his toughness.
But hey, feel free to assign any interpretation at all to Sullivan's remarks after this game when asked why he pulled Jarry when he did and whether it might've had anything to do with the sickness from Sunrise. Or just feel free to following along with my one:
"He's feeling better."
Those were Sullivan's first three words. That's how these always go. No one ever seems to fully share Jarry's own assessments of his status.
"I think the challenge is we just haven't got him on the ice enough. He hasn't been on the ice a whole lot. He had one practice and, for goalies in particular, I think it's important for them to see reps. They need to see the puck. They need to get repetitions. That's how their game gets sharp and stays sharp. I think Tristan is a guy who, when he gets repetitions in practice, that carries over to his game."
Mm-hm. Nothing there, one will note, about lousy luck with injuries or illness. No neatly packaged excuse. Just citing the lack of participation.
"So hopefully, we can get him on the ice here a little bit more, and get him some repetitions so that he can get into a rhythm."
Hopefully.
"But it was a combination of the two. I don't think Tristan was at his best tonight, but I don't think we helped him, either, as a team in front of him."
No, they didn't. The skaters were putrid, but for barely a handful of exceptions for the first 20 minutes. And Jarry, whose sole role is to serve as the last line of defense, was no less putrid.
But wait, Sullivan was then asked to comment on DeSmith's work in relief, and this one required hardly any interpretation at all:
"I thought Case was sharp. He made a couple of big saves in the third period in particular when we needed him to."
When they needed him to.
"I thought he was up to the task."
Up to the task.
"He made some big saves for us when we needed him."
When they needed him.
"And those are the saves you need that gives your team a chance to win. When you're trying to climb back into a game, they're even that much more important. If they were able to get the next goal, that might have been a tough one to overcome. I thought Case made some big saves to keep the score where it was to give us an opportunity to climb back."
I mean ... come on.
I'll reiterate that Jarry's talented. I'll clarify that I'm not being absurd and recommending that DeSmith takes over. But I'll also state, unequivocally and unapologetically, that if Jarry doesn't somehow magically uncover a depth to his durability and/or stability, then there'll be no Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time in 18 springs. And not one of us will need to wonder why.
JEANINE LEECH / GETTY
The Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson skates off as the Penguins celebrate Sidney Crosby's overtime goal.
• Jason Zucker scored twice and contributed all his trademark spirit throughout, but it was still Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, one or the other, partaking in all five goals. Including one setting up the other for the winner on a four-on-three power play. But even then, the instant Sid scored, he spun back toward the bench to point toward Zucker, who'd drawn that overtime penalty.
Danny Shirey breaks down the goal.
• I had one thought above all in seeing Alex Nylander's strong, seamless debut with the Penguins: What in hell was he doing in Wilkes-Barre all winter while we were watching Brock McGinn go an entire semester without a point?
Danny breaks down Nylander's day, too.
• It was Dmitry Kulikov's debut, too, and he had palpable apprehension at all points of the rink, though more so on offense. He'd see a chance to pinch and back off, per the Ducks' system. Here, the green light's a glaring green.
• With Zucker scoring his 20th and 21st goals -- eight of those in the past 10 games alone! -- the Penguins now have an NHL-high five players with 20-plus. And there are still some complaining, no doubt, that this team's top-six forwards need to do more.
• Both of Zucker's goals:
And he shot straight afterward, too, acknowledging that "absolutely nothing good" occurred in that first period, adding, "We'll take those two points, but obviously, we know it wasn't the most ideal game for us."
• Why does this keep happening?
I asked Kris Letang if it might actually be easier to rev up for the Islanders or Rangers, the latter of whom the Penguins are about to see three times in short order:
"You have to play the same way, whether you're playing the Rangers or playing Columbus," he'd reply. "That was a mistake tonight, I think."
• The Penguins became the third team in the league this season to pull off a four-goal comeback and victory, in addition to becoming the ninth in franchise history, the first time since Dec. 11, 2006, against the Capitals.
• No, there wasn't any intermission rah-rah or reading of a riot act to ignite the rally. This isn't that type of group, but I'd confirm it, anyway.
• Drew O'Connor's interference minor in the third period was the right call. The penalty was egregious. At the same time, it feels fair to stress that this coaching staff's pushing O'Connor hard to finish checks, and this kid's desperate to stay in the NHL. Plus, a second earlier, Jeff Carter had a chance to finish a check in a far more potentially productive setting, and he simply passed.
• Let's talk about Carter logging double the ice time of Nick Bonino, 14:44 to 7:53. Explain it to me like I'm 5 years old. Anyone at all.
• Never, ever take him -- or that stranger on the right, for that matter -- for granted:
NHL
• Mega-shout, in closing, to a crowd that cared. Booing the team off the ice after the first period, chanting 'FI-RE HEX-TALL!' when it was ugliest ... then being what DeSmith called "the loudest crowd all year" when the script flipped ... never wonder where the heart is on that front.
• Thanks for reading my hockey coverage. It's awesome to be back home.
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
• Live file
• Scoreboard
• Standings
• Statistics
• Schedule
THE HIGHLIGHTS
THE THREE STARS
As selected at PPG Paints Arena:
1. Sidney Crosby, Penguins C
2. Jason Zucker, Penguins LW
3. Liam Foudy, Blue Jackets LW
THE INJURIES
• Ryan Poehling, left winger, has a lingering upper-body injury and was placed on LTIR earlier Tuesday.
• Mikael Granlund, right winger, missed the game because of an illness.
• Bryan Rust, right winger, isn't hurt but didn't play for what the team described as personal reasons. It's entirely possible that he's about to become the happiest man on the planet.
THE LINEUPS
Sullivan's lines and pairings:
Jake Guentzel-Sidney Crosby-Rickard Rakell
Jason Zucker-Evgeni Malkin-Danton Heinen
Drew O'Connor-Jeff Carter-Alex Nylander
Nick Bonino-Josh Archibald
Brian Dumoulin-Kris Letang
Marcus Pettersson-Jeff Petry
Dmitry Kulikov-Jan Rutta
P.O Joseph
And for Brad Larsen's Blue Jackets:
Johnny Gaudreau-Boone Jenner-Kirill Marchenko
Kent Johnson-Jack Roslovic-Patrik Laine
Eric Robinson-Cole Sillinger-Mathieu Olivier
Liam Foudy-Lane Pederson-Emil Bemstrom
Tim Berni-Erik Gudbranson
Nick Blankenburg-Andrew Peeke
Gavin Bayreuther-Adam Boqvist
THE SCHEDULE
There's a practice Wednesday, 12 p.m., in Cranberry, Pa. And there'll be a game the next night against the Islanders back here, continuing a five-game homestand.
THE MULTIMEDIA
THE CONTENT
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