The Pittsburgh Penguins played a better game on Wednesday night but still walked away with a loss, this time to the Detroit Red Wings in overtime, 3-2.
On a night when the organization celebrated Evgeni Malkin’s 500th goal, securing a win wasn’t in the cards despite a solid performance from Alex Nedeljkovic.
Luckily, the Penguins secured a point in the loss, which helps in the standings, but with each passing defeat, the most pressing thing is to win future games.
Let’s discuss some takeaways from the overtime loss to the Red Wings.
So Close, Yet So Far Away
The Penguins fell behind 2-0 and rallied back to get a point in overtime once the Red Wings pulled out a 3-2 win. The extra-period loss gave Pittsburgh a single point, their third in the past five games.
It was an impressive comeback, considering how badly the Penguins were outplayed on Monday against the Dallas Stars. Once on the verge of landing at the bottom of the Metropolitan Division, they now have a three-point cushion over their next opponent, the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Although it is another loss and puts the Penguins three games under .500, Wednesday night’s performance was one of their better recent efforts, despite the final score.
Goaltending Woes Continue
Nedeljkovic was scheduled to pick up the pieces after Monday’s loss. He came in relief and played solidly for over 50 minutes, preventing the Stars from reaching double digits.
Against the Red Wings, Nedeljkovic was once again outplayed by an opponent, watching Cam Talbot make 31 saves, including robbing Malkin in overtime seconds before the game-winner.
Realistically, Nedeljkovic should have made the save on Simon Edvinsson, but the young Swedish defenseman fired one along the ice that fooled the Penguins netminder.
Instead of bailing out Pittsburgh and securing two points, Nedeljkovic wasn’t the one making the final save of the game. These moments have sunk so many games for a team that leads the NHL in goals against.
Pointless Streaks Continue
On a night when the Pittsburgh faithful had a chance to celebrate Malkin’s 500th goal, he was pointless for the 11th time this season. Despite having the game-winner on his stick in overtime, he couldn’t convert.
Meanwhile, Rickard Rakell was held off the scoresheet for the fourth game, while Drew O’Connor’s pointless streak reached 12 games. Erik Karlsson has only two points in the last five games, while Kris Letang has three in the past 14 games.
Other notable Penguins players without points include Jesse Puljujarvi, who has had a single assist in the last eight games, and Matt Grzelcyk, who has had power play time and one assist in the past six games.
Almost every night, if Crosby and Malkin don’t get points, the secondary scoring dries up, and the Penguins don’t find ways to win games. On Wednesday, Pittsburgh only needed three goals but couldn’t find them in their sticks.
Penguins & Red Wings Trivia Answers
How did you score in our Game Day Trivia quiz? Here are the answers.
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Marian Hossa
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Phil Kessel, Syl Apps Jr.
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Marc-Andre Fleury
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Chris Conner
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Paul Coffey
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Jim Rutherford
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Glen Sather
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Bryan Watson
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Mario Lemieux
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Chris Kunitz
