It would be fair to say that the odds were stacked against the Penguins coming into Monday night's game against the Kings here at Crypto.com Arena.
It was their third game in a different city in four nights, coming off of a long road trip across the country. They were without leading goal-scorer Rickard Rakell, who returned to Pittsburgh before the game for family reasons. And they were up against one of their toughest opponents yet, the 30-10-5 Kings who had lost just twice in regulation at home all season.
It wasn't even close.
The Penguins dominated the Kings in a 5-1 drubbing, one of their best and most complete showings to date this season.
Mike Sullivan, alluding to some of those aforementioned challenges, called it "one of the better games we played all year," adding, "We played with a ton of energy. We did a real good job just playing on top of them in the offensive zone. I thought we did a great job getting five-man units in all three zones against a team that is as stingy defensively as they are. I thought we did a real good job trying to get inside, trying to create opportunities and force them to have to defend the net front. That was one of the things we talked about before the game. I thought the guys did a great job."
A Kevin Hayes power-play goal and a Sidney Crosby redirect of Matt Grzelcyk's shot gave the Penguins a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes, having outshot the Kings 12-6 in the first frame. Evgeni Malkin extended the lead to 3-0 in the second period to cap off a big individual effort on his shift.
The Kings got their lone goal later in the second. With both P.O Joseph and Owen Pickering in the box, Adrian Kempe capitalized on the ensuing 5-on-3 power play off a one-timer from the right circle. Cody Glass regained the three-goal lead with a minute left in the period, going to the net and redirecting a pass from Hayes. Anthony Beauvillier scored the lone goal in the third period, knocking in a loose puck that goaltender David Rittich had just lost track of.
The Kings are one of the tightest teams defensively in the NHL. Coming into this game they averaged 2.42 goals against per game, the second-best in the NHL. They averaged just 24.7 shots on goal against per game, the best in the league.
The Penguins managed 32 shots to the Kings' 26. It was just the fifth time all season that the Kings allowed five or more goals.
"Our game plan was to just be on top of them, with all five guys," Hayes told me. "And I think we did that."
Alex Nedeljkovic observed that "the best defense is good offense" for the Penguins in this win.
"Anytime they got any sort of momentum, a shift or two in our end, we respond the right way every time," Nedeljkovic said. "We spend five minutes in their end, and more times than not we put a goal in the back of their net."
This seven-game trip is one of the Penguins' most pivotal stretches of the season. After splitting the first two games in Buffalo and Washington, to put forth an effort like this against a team like that is richly encouraging. And if the vibe in the locker room afterward was any indication, it can serve as a real morale boost moving forward.
The Penguins still have four games left, against the Ducks, Kraken, Sharks and Utah, four teams that don't represent nearly the challenge this one did. If the Penguins play like this -- as a five-man unit, responding "the right way" to even the slightest push -- they could come back to Pittsburgh in a pretty good spot.
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THE ASYLUM
Taylor Haase
10:08 am - 01.21.2025Los AngelesPenguins pound Kings in pinnacle performance
It would be fair to say that the odds were stacked against the Penguins coming into Monday night's game against the Kings here at Crypto.com Arena.
It was their third game in a different city in four nights, coming off of a long road trip across the country. They were without leading goal-scorer Rickard Rakell, who returned to Pittsburgh before the game for family reasons. And they were up against one of their toughest opponents yet, the 30-10-5 Kings who had lost just twice in regulation at home all season.
It wasn't even close.
The Penguins dominated the Kings in a 5-1 drubbing, one of their best and most complete showings to date this season.
Mike Sullivan, alluding to some of those aforementioned challenges, called it "one of the better games we played all year," adding, "We played with a ton of energy. We did a real good job just playing on top of them in the offensive zone. I thought we did a great job getting five-man units in all three zones against a team that is as stingy defensively as they are. I thought we did a real good job trying to get inside, trying to create opportunities and force them to have to defend the net front. That was one of the things we talked about before the game. I thought the guys did a great job."
A Kevin Hayes power-play goal and a Sidney Crosby redirect of Matt Grzelcyk's shot gave the Penguins a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes, having outshot the Kings 12-6 in the first frame. Evgeni Malkin extended the lead to 3-0 in the second period to cap off a big individual effort on his shift.
The Kings got their lone goal later in the second. With both P.O Joseph and Owen Pickering in the box, Adrian Kempe capitalized on the ensuing 5-on-3 power play off a one-timer from the right circle. Cody Glass regained the three-goal lead with a minute left in the period, going to the net and redirecting a pass from Hayes. Anthony Beauvillier scored the lone goal in the third period, knocking in a loose puck that goaltender David Rittich had just lost track of.
The Kings are one of the tightest teams defensively in the NHL. Coming into this game they averaged 2.42 goals against per game, the second-best in the NHL. They averaged just 24.7 shots on goal against per game, the best in the league.
The Penguins managed 32 shots to the Kings' 26. It was just the fifth time all season that the Kings allowed five or more goals.
"Our game plan was to just be on top of them, with all five guys," Hayes told me. "And I think we did that."
Alex Nedeljkovic observed that "the best defense is good offense" for the Penguins in this win.
"Anytime they got any sort of momentum, a shift or two in our end, we respond the right way every time," Nedeljkovic said. "We spend five minutes in their end, and more times than not we put a goal in the back of their net."
This seven-game trip is one of the Penguins' most pivotal stretches of the season. After splitting the first two games in Buffalo and Washington, to put forth an effort like this against a team like that is richly encouraging. And if the vibe in the locker room afterward was any indication, it can serve as a real morale boost moving forward.
The Penguins still have four games left, against the Ducks, Kraken, Sharks and Utah, four teams that don't represent nearly the challenge this one did. If the Penguins play like this -- as a five-man unit, responding "the right way" to even the slightest push -- they could come back to Pittsburgh in a pretty good spot.
Want to participate in our comments?
Want an ad-free experience?
Become a member, and enjoy premium benefits! Make your voice heard on the Steelers, Penguins and Pirates, and hear right back from tens of thousands of fellow Pittsburgh sports fans worldwide! Plus, access all our premium content, including Dejan Kovacevic columns, Friday Insider, daily Live Qs with the staff, more! And yeah, that's right, no ads at all!
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