The Pittsburgh Penguins can’t help but build up an early lead and then watch it slip away like seconds on a clock.
On Tuesday, they blew a 2-0 lead to the Tampa Bay Lightning, who rallied in the third period and secured an overtime victory at PPG Paints Arena.
As the fans in attendance celebrated Hockey Fights Cancer, they were stuck watching a team with potential squander away an opportunity to defeat an old teammate, Jake Guentzel, and a highly respected conference rival.
Instead, subpar goaltending and the inability of star players to find the back of the net caused the Penguins to lose yet another valuable two points.
Let’s discuss.
Another Blown Lead, Another Loss
At this point, everyone has to be tired of watching and reading the same thing night in and night out. The Penguins either build up an early lead and watch it slip away, or they fall behind and never claw themselves back into the contest.
Tonight, for what seems like the thousandth time, Pittsburgh jumped out to a 2-0 lead and coasted through the third period with just four shots on goal while the Lightning rallied back to force overtime and win.
Although the players may not be very consistent, the Penguins are continuously blowing leads, so at least they remain consistent with that facet of their game.
It Came Down to Goaltending…Again
Tristan Jarry got the nod on Tuesday and had a 22-save shutout heading into the third period. His team was up 2-0, and then the Lightning struck once before following that up with a shot on goal that Jarry tipped in on himself.
After that, it was all downhill from there. Even though there were still seven minutes left in the contest, the life was sucked out of the Pittsburgh lineup, and before anyone knew it, overtime ended with Jarry not even in the goal crease when Brayden Point tucked in the winner.
Considering that the Penguins netminder is one of the top five highest-paid skaters in the lineup, he needs to be better than sliding five feet out of the blue paint in an overtime period.
Will a Coaching Change Salvage Season?
The Boston Bruins are fourth in the Atlantic Division with an 8-9-3 record and just fired former Jack Adams Award winner Jim Montgomery for a poor start through 20 games.
The Bruins are playing just as bad as the Penguins, who are 7-10-4 after 21 games, yet no one is talking about a coaching change outside of the fans on social media.
Related: 5 Possible Replacements For Penguins’ Mike Sullivan
It is quite a curious situation, as Montgomery led the Bruins to the playoffs in all the seasons he was behind the bench. In contrast, Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan has led his club to the 21st-best record in the NHL during the same time frame and remains untouchable.
Pittsburgh has achieved a 1-2-2 record in the past five games and 36 third-period shots on goal. Whether ahead or chasing the game, their lack of effort in the third period will sink their season before American Thanksgiving.
Maybe it’s time for a new voice and game plan, or perhaps it’s not.
Penguins & Lightning Trivia Answers
How did you score in our Game Day Trivia quiz? Here are the answers.
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Nils Ekman
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Wayne Primeau
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Evgeni Malkin
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Marc-Andre Fleury
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2016
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Chris Kunitz
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Wendell Young
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Sidney Crosby
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Mario Lemieux
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Evgeni Malkin
