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[Pittsburgh Penguins]

Game Preview: Pittsburgh Penguins @ Tampa Bay Lightning 12/4/25

Who: Pittsburgh Penguins (12-7-5, 29 points, 5th place Metropolitan Division) @ Tampa Bay Lightning (16-8-2, 34 points, 1st place Atlantic Division)

When: 7:00 p.m. eastern

How to Watch: Broadcast locally Sportsnet Pittsburgh and The Spot, streaming on ESPN+

Pens’ Path Ahead: The Pens play next in Dallas on Saturday (6pm eastern start) then return home to Pittsburgh for a five-game homestand from Dec 9 – 16, starting with games against Anaheim, Montreal and San Jose next week in an every-other-day rhythm that begins with Saturday’s game.

Opponent Track: Tampa lost 2-1 on the road to the Islanders on Tuesday night, ending a seven-game winning streak. The Lightning are among the hottest NHL teams over the past month, posting a 10-3-0 record since Nov 5.

Season Series: This is the first of three PIT/TB games this season, the teams will meet again on January 13th in Pittsburgh and then finish things off on April 2nd back in Tampa.

Hidden Stat: Tonight’s game features two stingy teams, Tampa is third in goals/game allowed (2.58), the Pens are ninth (2.72).

Getting to know the Lightning​

Projected lines

FORWARDS

Brnadon Hagel – Anthony Cirelli – Nikita Kucherov

Jake Guentzel – Nicholas Paul – Oliver Bjorkstrand

Zemgus Girgensons – Yanni Gourde – Pontus Holmberg

Curtis Douglas – Dominic James – Gage Goncalves

DEFENSEMEN

JJ Moser / Darren Raddysh

Charle-Edouard D’Astous / Emil Lilleberg

Declan Carlile / Steven Santini

Goalies: Andrei Vasilevskiy and Jonas Johansson

Potential scratches: Boris Katchouk, Maxim Groshev

Injured Reserve: Victor Hedman, Ryan McDonagh, Erik Cernak, Brayden Point

• The Lightning have a sizeable amount of talent out injured, their defense looks unimpressive on paper but they have been rolling in the last month. Vasilevskiy is 8-2 with a .933 save% and 1.97 GAA in his last 10 appearances, which has gone a long way towards papering over the losses that they’ve been dealing with.
• The Mark Donk joke surrounds the Penguins for random players popping up in key roles, it looks like Tampa has taken over on that given this fourth line and most of their defense is looking like NHL video game names in year 8 of a franchise at this point. They do a lot of double shifting from top players situationally to make sure difference makers are on the ice as much as possible (Douglas, for instance has only averaged 5:40 of ice time over his 20 games this season).
• If Ryan Graves were French Canadian, I’d like to think his last name would be “D’Astous”. It hasn’t been a disaster for the 27-year old Tampa rookie; who spent the majority of two years in the ECHL, two years in Finland and one in Sweden before finally finding his way up the ranks in a path very less taken. Pretty wild to see a player in his situation have almost as many NHL games (19) as combined AHL experience (26). Great story considering he was an ECHL level player in 2022, didn’t get much interest and went to Europe for a few years and now suddenly is in a key role for a first place NHL team. Injury has offered opportunity and he’s made the most of it.

Season stats
via hockeydb

• Boy, you can just set your watch to Jake Guentzel scoring 40 goals and 80 points each season, less whatever games missed. His consistency is incredible like that and he’s right on target for it once again at age 31.
• Kucherov is well off Nathan MacKinnon’s scoring (14 points) but Tampa’s star is coming on hot as of late with 10 points (1G+9A) in his last five games. A lot of that passing has gone to Brandon Hagel, who has found the back of the net six times in the last five games. Tampa is incredibly top-heavy this season, but those top four or five players are really, really good. Add in the ‘big cat’ in goal doing his thing and that has made for a formidable team in the early going of this season.

Tampa smarting after losing their streak

The Lightning should be focused tonight after slipping early and being unable to dig out in time in their last game against the Islanders. Moser knows there’s “more out there”, Tampa will be looking to re-establish that tonight.

JJ Moser on this loss: “In the first, we didn’t lean on them enough. We didn’t get enough pucks toward the net. We weren’t there enough to make it hard on their goalie. It was all kind of cute but not effective. Then, in the third, we turned it up and we had our looks but, still,…

— Gabby Shirley (@Gabby_Shirley_) December 3, 2025

Key matchup: Tampa offense vs. Pittsburgh defense

The stats paint a picture where 5v5 could be a scary one for the Penguins tonight. The Pittsburgh defense gives up a lot in terms of shot and goal expectation, bailed out to decent results via good goaltending. The Tampa offense is very strong at shot and chance generation and has good 5v5 scoring results. Surprisingly, the Tampa power play is not very potent given all the talent that they can put on the ice in that situation. Needless to say, it will be a big test and challenge for Tristan Jarry to keep the elite TB offense at bay.

And now for the Pens​

Projected lines

FORWARDS

Kevin Hayes – Sidney Crosby – Bryan Rust

Tommy Novak – Evgeni Malkin – Anthony Mantha

Rutger McGroarty – Ben Kindel – Ville Koivunen

Connor Dewar – Blake Lizotte – Boko Imama

DEFENSEMEN

Parker Wotherspoon / Erik Karlsson

Ryan Shea / Kris Letang

Ryan Graves / Connor Clifton

Goalies: Tristan Jarry and Arturs Silovs

Potential Scratches: Joona Koppanen, Matt Dumba, Harrison Brunicke (AHL rehab assignment)

IR: Filip Hallander, Justin Brazeau, Rickard Rakell, Caleb Jones, Noel Acciari

• The break in games allowed the Pens to return to Pittsburgh after Monday’s game in Philadelphia, have their Christmas party on Tuesday and get a practice in Wednesday at home before flying down to Florida for today’s game. Always an interesting twist in logistics when a “road trip” takes more turns than simply heading to the next stop for a game.
• It was an interesting practice, Anthony Mantha didn’t participate as a maintenance day, which could go into explaining his recent downturn of just two goals and two assists in the last 13 games. Joona Koppanen was out with an illness. Brazeau and Acciari were able to practice in full jerseys but Dan Muse said neither will play today and Kyle Dubas added that both are 7-10 days away from returning, and Rickard Rakell will be out for another 3-4 weeks. We’ll tentatively project the same lineup as last game and assume Mantha will be able to go.

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/penguins-...ttsburgh-penguins-tampa-bay-lightning-12-4-25

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

Pens Points: Way Down South

As winter begins to set in up north, the Pittsburgh Penguins will get a bit of a reprieve from the cold weather as they head south for a pair of games to wrap up this early December road trip, beginning tonight in Tampa Bay where the Atlantic division leading Lightning await. The Penguins are coming off a 5-1 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday night and will be looking to build on their 3-1-0 record over the last four games. This is the first meeting between the two sides this season.

Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 PM and will be broadcast on Sportsnet Pittsburgh.

Pens Points…​

Another three game week for the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins ended with two more wins as some reinforcements arrives from the NHL. Phil Tomasino and Harrison Brunicke made their AHL debuts last week and figure to be back in the lineup for another go around this week. [Pensburgh]

Ville Koivunen has been doing a lot of the little things right during his early days in the NHL, but he’s still be unable to buy a goal thus far. Koivunen has come close more than a few times and it feels like when he does get his first, they will start coming in bunches. [Pensburgh]

Two big names were full participants at practice on Wednesday morning before the team boarded a plane to Florida. Justin Brazeau and Noel Acciari were both present and accounted for at UPMC Lemieux, wearing regular practice jerseys and participating in normal line rushes. [The Hockey News]

It’s time to pen your letters to Santa Claus with Christmas right around the corner and that includes the Pittsburgh Penguins. Much has gone right for the Penguins to this point in the season, but there is always more to wish for to keep it rolling into the new year. [The Hockey Writers]

Arturs Silovs found early success with the Penguins to start the season but his recent outings have been a struggle for the young netminder. To get his season back on track, Silovs is going back to the basics to simplify the his game and let the results speak for themselves. [Trib Live]

There’s still a long way to go for the Penguins, 57 games to be exact, but they’ve sustained their early season momentum and are sitting in a playoff spot in early December. Better than anyone expected but their main goal remains very much in play. [The Athletic $$]

NHL News and Notes…​

In major injury news for a Penguins upcoming opponent, the Dallas Stars announced that Tyler Seguin will likely miss the rest of the season after suffering an ACL injury. Seguin was hurt against the New York Rangers on Tuesday and will now face an extensive recovery process. [NHL]

There may be an unforeseen conundrum brewing in regards to NHL participation in the upcoming Winter Olympics. According to recent reports, the ice surface is Milan is rumored to be smaller than even the standard NHL size that was agreed upon with the IIHF. [ESPN]

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/news/69835/pens-points-way-down-south

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

An historical look at where the Pittsburgh Penguins are after 26 games

It was not the prettiest win. It was probably not the way head coach Dan Muse would want to draw it up. But the Pittsburgh Penguins found a way to go on the road against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday and walk away with a baffling 4-3 regulation win. They let another three-goal lead slip away, somehow regained the lead late in regulation, allowed a game-tying goal, caught a huge break when an NHL-initiated replay review overturned it due to a missed hand pass, and then somehow gave up a clear breakaway to Nikita Kucherov in the closing seconds only to have Tristan Jarry stone him and secure the two points. Hilariously stupid and funny game. All that matters is two points. All that matters is the Penguins are now 14-7-5 on the season and, by points percentage, own the sixth-best record in the NHL and the third-best record in the Eastern Conference as of Friday.

Coming into this week I said if the Penguins could get three points out of this difficult three-game road trip it should probably be looked at as something of a success given the injury situation and the competition in front of them. They already have four points going into their game against the Dallas Stars on Saturday night.

As chaotic as Thursday’s game was, there is still a lot to like about it.

Evgeni Malkin had a vintage Evgeni Malkin performance with two outstanding goals.

They showed some toughness and bounced back from letting a lead slip away and still found a way to dig in and get the lead back and win against a top-tier team on the road.

Tristan Jarry made some huge saves.

Young guys Ben Kindel and Ville Koivunen scored goals.

There was some concern a couple of weeks ago that maybe reality had been starting to set in for the Penguins after their strong start, and that perhaps the strong start is over. Now they have wins in four of their past five games and are still extremely high in the standings.

It is not just a strong start.

It is one of the better starts in recent franchise history. Perhaps the entire franchise history.

Let’s just look at some numbers for context on this.

With Thursday’s win the Penguins are now 14-7-5 with 33 points through their first 26 games.

In the now 58-season history of the franchise the Penguins have….

• Only had 17 seasons where they have won at least 14 games through their first 26 games.
• Only had 13 seasons where they won MORE than 14 games through their first 26 games.

In terms of total points and points percentage, their .635 mark through the first 26 games of the season is the 11th best start through 26 games in the history of the franchise. The 10 starts ahead of it, as well as the two starts immediately after it, all produced playoff berths.

There are certainly still flaws on the roster and with the way they play defensively. They are winning a lot of games due to the power play and goaltending, and there is definitely a ceiling to what a team like that is capable of, and maybe even a smoke-and-mirrors element to a lot of it. But the reality is this: The Penguins are still a team capable of generating a lot of 5-on-5 offense, they still have high-end players on the roster that are playing at a high level, and their power play success is simply finally matching its talent and the expectations.

The goaltending was always going to be a wild-card (as it is for every team), and so far it is holding up its end of the bargain. After so many years where it did not, I think the Penguins will take that and not apologize for it.

They are also still scrapping out points despite being without a forward that opened the season on each of their top-four forward lines (Rickard Rakell on the first line, Justin Brazeau on the second line, Filip Hallander on the third line, Noel Acciari on the fourth line).

They are winning games and collecting points through the first quarter of the season at a pace that historically, for both them and the league as a whole, has a high probability of producing a playoff berth.

At some point it stops becoming a good start and starts becoming a good team.

I am not sure if we are at that point just yet. We are definitely getting close to it.

It might not be a Stanley Cup team, but it still might be a very good team. It might be a very good team in a season where nobody expected it, while also seeing real development from key players they are going to be relying on for their future seasons where they might be able to become a Stanley Cup team again.

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/analysis/...re-the-pittsburgh-penguins-are-after-26-games

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

Penguins rookie class one of the NHL’s best so far

Icing a third line staffed by rookies comes with growing pains.

The Penguins’ “kid line” of Rutger McGroarty, Ben Kindel and Ville Koivunen got pinned in their own zone Thursday on the Brandon Hagel goal that tied the game late for the Tampa Bay Lightning.

BHISFG pic.twitter.com/9KQ5URytbc

— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) December 5, 2025

The rookies were on the ice together at even strength for a total of six minutes and 43 seconds on Thursday, during which MoneyPuck says the Penguins led in shot attempts (7-4) and had a positive Corsi percentage (63.6 percent).

They also helped boost the power play, on which Koivunen and Kindel both scored to help the Pens climb out to an early three-goal lead.

Come for the snipe, stay for the celly

Congrats, Ville! pic.twitter.com/uTgOAGVcPO

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 5, 2025

Another PPG for PGH from a rookie pic.twitter.com/86zZiIfIlg

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 5, 2025

That second-period power play strike marked the seventh goal of the season for Kindel, who turns 19 in April.

Per NHL Stats, that ties Craig Simpson’s 1985 mark for the fourth-most goals by an 18-year-old in Penguins history. It’s a steep climb to join the rest of the list, where Jaromir Jagr (18) and Jordan Staal (29) rank behind Sidney Crosby (39).

Kindel is also currently tied for second in the NHL’s rookie goalscoring race, and he’s tied for first with 2025 top pick Matthew Schaefer for the rookie power-play scoring lead.

Dane Muse also used Kindel on the penalty kill for a second straight game on Thursday. He recorded more than four minutes on the man disadvantage and helped Bryan Rust set up a shorthanded rush.

Koivunen meanwhile joined Kindel, Filip Hallander and Harrison Brunicke as the fourth rookie to score for the Penguins this season.

Only two teams in the NHL have gotten goals from that many rookies so far this season: the San Jose Sharks, who have seen four rookies score, and the Chicago Blackhawks with an NHL-high.

Both of those teams have, very recently, fully tanked. Both are getting production from recent top-two picks, with 2024 No. 2 pick Artyom Levshunov scoring in Chicago and 2025 No. 2 pick Michael Misa getting on the scoreboard in San Jose.

Ranking among those teams, despite continually finishing middle of the pack in recent years and not having gotten a top-10 draft pick since 2012, is a mark of both Kyle Dubas’ success in the last two drafts as well as Muse’s willingness to give his younger players a chance to play.

We’ll see if the kid line returns to the ice Sunday when the Penguins take on the Dallas Stars on the road.

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/general/69918/penguins-rookie-class-one-of-the-nhls-best-so-far

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

Game Preview: Pittsburgh Penguins @ Dallas Stars 12/7/25

Who: Pittsburgh Penguins (13-7-5, 31 points, 5th place Metropolitan Division) @ Dallas Stars (19-5-5, 43 points, 2nd place Central Division)

When: 6:00 p.m. eastern

How to Watch: Broadcast locally Sportsnet Pittsburgh and Victory+, streaming on ESPN+

Pens’ Path Ahead: Time to go back home, Pittsburgh gets a five-game homestand starting with Anaheim on Tuesday, Montreal on Thursday and San Jose next Saturday.

Opponent Track: The Stars have things figured out lately, they’ve only lost twice in the last month since November 6th (going 12-2-2) since then. They’re a hard team to beat, going 7-0-2 in their last nine games and winners of four of their last five, including a 4-1 win over San Jose in their last game Friday night.

Season Series: Dallas comes to Pittsburgh deep into the season on March 28th.

Getting to know the Stars​

Projected lines

FORWARDS

Sam Steel – Wyatt Johnston – Mikko Rantanen

Jason Robertson – Roope Hintz – Jamie Benn

Oscar Back – Justin Hryckowian – Mavrik Bourque

Colin Blackwell – Radek Faksa – Nathan Bastian

DEFENSEMEN

Esa Lindell/ Miro Heiskanen

Vladislav Kolyachonok / Ilya Lyubushkin

Kyle Capobianco / Alex Petrovic

Goalies: Jake Oettinger and Casey DeSmith

Potential scratches: none

Injured Reserve: Tyler Seguin (torn ACL), Lian Bischel, Thomas Harley, Matt Duchene, Nils Lundqvist, Adam Erne

• Injuries are starting to pile up for the Stars with Seguin and Bischel recently going on the IR. Team Canada’s Thomas Harley is in there too, opening the door for former Penguin Kolyachonok to get back in the lineup.
• In a lot of ways this Dallas lineup, structure and injury situation looks a lot like Pittsburgh’s previous opponent over in Tampa. The Stars, like the Lightning, have also both been really good in the last 10, 12 games, despite some their adversity and fairly patchwork-looking lower part of the lineup. Some of the formula is the same, if you have enough firepower on the top two lines and a really good goalie, that’s enough to get momentum going for a quality team to get in a groove. Of course, Dallas has their most key defender (Heiskanen), a luxury the Lightning don’t have these days.

Season stats
via hockeydb

• Hintz isn’t a complete unknown and has been on the radar as far back as a great playoff back in 2019 as rookie, but I confess I didn’t realize he has four straight 65+ point seasons and has averaged 33 goals from 2021-25. Sneaky great player there that doesn’t catch enough attention.
• Still can’t believe that somehow Rantanen ended up on a division rival to Colorado. That would be like the Penguins somehow getting Zach Werenski or Sebastian Aho (well, the forward one). Stuff like that for an elite player in his prime getting away is so rare in the modern day NHL, and then to wind up on a quality team in the same division? Still hard to believe things played out the way they did.
• Benn, 36, is getting close to the end of the line but is still kickin’. He’s been a regular with Dallas since 2009 and accepted a one year, $1.0 million contract to come back this season. Benn’ been around so long he was teammates with players that were from a different era — Mike Modano, Jere Lehtinen, Marty Turco. Benn’s one of those vets where the only thing missing is a Cup. The Stars have been relatively close lately, three straight WCF losses and a SCF loss before that in 2020, can Benn get there before his time runs out?

Key matchup: Dallas offense vs. Pittsburgh defense

Dallas has an interesting advanced stat profile. Many a top team in the league has a good shot-based process where they control the puck in the offensive zone and pile up way more shots on goal and shot attempts than their opponent. The Stars, not so much. They don’t dominate in control like that, but they are very effective at finishing and scoring goals in the opportunities that they do create. The Stars aren’t usually out there constantly pressuring and building sequences into goals (ala a Carolina or Colorado), Dallas is going to lay in the weeds and then, bang, generate a chance (and probably score on it).

That will present an interesting challenge for the Penguins, who usually concede a good bit on the rush.

And now for the Pens​

Projected lines

FORWARDS

Kevin Hayes – Sidney Crosby – Bryan Rust

Tommy Novak – Evgeni Malkin – Anthony Mantha

Rutger McGroarty – Ben Kindel – Ville Koivunen

Connor Dewar – Blake Lizotte – Boko Imama

DEFENSEMEN

Parker Wotherspoon / Erik Karlsson

Ryan Shea / Kris Letang

Ryan Graves / Connor Clifton

Goalies: Tristan Jarry and Arturs Silovs

Potential Scratches: Joona Koppanen, Matt Dumba, Harrison Brunicke (AHL rehab assignment)

IR: Filip Hallander, Justin Brazeau, Rickard Rakell, Caleb Jones, Noel Acciari

• It’s a big “we’ll see” on these projected lines after yesterday’s practice had Novak on the first line, Malkin getting a day off and injured players Brazeau and Acciari potentially one step closer to returning. Presumably Malkin should be back, and Kyle Dubas’s timeline on the others would suggest they won’t be quite ready yet, though Dubas could have been conservative with his public projections.

Jarry on a roll

It's been a great start to the year for Tristan Jarry.

– Wins in nine of 11 starts (9-2-0)
– 2.61 goals-against average
– .913 save percentage (8th in NHL, min. 10 GP)

Jarry against teams that currently occupy a playoff spot? He's gone 4-1-0 with a .923 SV% pic.twitter.com/cOBtffV63t

— Penguins PR (@PenguinsPR) December 6, 2025

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/penguins-...view-pittsburgh-penguins-dallas-stars-12-7-25

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

Penguins/Stars Recap: Pens blow another third period lead, lose this time in shootout to Dallas

Pregame​

Evgeni Malkin misses his first game of the season with an undisclosed upper body injury, the Penguins replace him with a different 6’5” center. Maybe no one will notice? Pittsburgh gets two happy returns from injury with Justin Brazeau and Noel Acciari back for the first time in a while. Matt Dumba rotates back in on defense, Tristan Jarry keeps going in goal.

Tonight's lineup in Dallas pic.twitter.com/r5OxynP1YY

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 7, 2025

First period​

Pittsburgh got off to a good start. Aside from Dumba and Ryan Graves getting pinned in their zone for a couple of shifts, the Penguins did well in terms of managing the puck and staying out of the penalty box.

Late in the first, the reunited fourth line strikes. Blake Lizotte lays a pass over for a wide open Connor Dewar in the middle of the ice. Dewar slams it home past Jake Oettinger to open the scoring with 1:42 to play in the first.

Acciari → Lizotte → Dewar

The fourth line came to play pic.twitter.com/i9k7p8pcxC

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 7, 2025

The teams guide into first intermission even on shots at 7-7 and with the Pens holding the early 1-0 lead.

Second period​

Dallas gets a 2-on-1 in the opening seconds of the period, Jarry makes a big save on Jamie Benn. On Benn’s next shift a minute later, he gets a similar situation and makes a much harder shot. Dumba and Hayes don’t do much in support. Tie game 1-1.

Ka-BANG pic.twitter.com/urxZxvss9W

— Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) December 8, 2025

The Pens’ new look first line gets a strong shift in the offensive zone. Sidney Crosby goes low to high with passes twice, Kris Letang gets the memo and takes a quick point shot. Tommy Novak is able to deflect it from in front, and Pittsburgh is back in front 2-1.

That's a Tommy tip-in

(Only six more points for Sid) pic.twitter.com/PTRpQJ7sRv

— SportsNet Pittsburgh (@SNPittsburgh) December 8, 2025

Benn’s active period continues, not in a good way for him. He’s off to the penalty box for hooking in the game’s first penalty. Not a particularly impressive power play, Ben Kindel gets one good look but shoots wide of the net. The Pens get another power play soon after, same outcome of nothing happening.

The Pens get to the second intermission only allowing three Dallas shots in that period, and only 11

on the game in total. It’s only a one-goal lead at 2-1.

Third period​

Great shift for the Pens’ youngsters on the third line- Rutger McGroarty sets up Ville Koivunen for a great look and he chunks the shot enough to where Oettinger can get a glove to it. Koivunen unfortunately ends the shift in the penalty box, granting Dallas their first power play of the night. The Pens kill that off.

Dallas pulls the goalie and isolated on the Pens’ fourth line and third defensive pair after an icing and work a 6v5 advantage. The Pens can’t find a clear, Miro Heiskanen shoots from out deep, neither Lizotte nor Graves can block it. Pittsburgh blows another third period lead, 2-2 with 1:49 to play.

EVENED IT UP! pic.twitter.com/wIPAK6SxiU

— Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) December 8, 2025

Dallas keeps pushing for a late winner, but they can’t find one before regulation ends.

Overtime​

Crosby-Rust-Karlsson start out for the Pens, the linesman throws Crosby out of the faceoff circle and the Penguins end up losing the opening faceoff and the all-important control of the puck…Jarry robs Jason Robertson and keep the game alive.

Robertson gets another chance late, Jarry is there or the shot is wide.

Shootout​

Robertson goes first, hits the crossbar. Not his night.

Rust is up for the Pens, shoots it right into the glove of Oettenger.

—

Matt Duchene leads off Round 2, he tries to go 5-hole but Jarry takes it away in time.

Crosby takes his turn, tests the blocker of Oettenger, it’s solid.

—

Mikko Rantanen is up, he snaps a shot past Jarry.

Letang has the last gasp for the Pens, he tries to deke to the forehand but the goalie reads it all the way.

The Pens fall in a shootout.

Some thoughts​

• It didn’t take long for the best fourth line configuration the Pens have used this season to get back on the scoreboard. Something about the way those players work together simply works very well as a cohesive unit. They’re not going to score all the time but players like Lizotte and Dewar aren’t devoid of offensive talent either. As mentioned on the broadcast, Dewar is up to 10 total goals as a Penguin in 44 games. He’s got six this season in 27 games.
• Mantha looked rejuvenated to get his linemate back in Brazeau, recording 4 SOG and 9 total shot attempts. Mantha was also elevated to the top power play in Malkin’s absence.
• Haven’t always been impressed by Novak from game to game, but he’s playing good hockey these days. Six points in the last five games and he’s been raising his game lately. It’s been nice to see his decisions with the puck lately, it looks like he’s playing with more confidence given how well it’s been going as of late.
• Bryan Rust blocked four shots on the game, the last one made a mark. Cameras caught him wincing and holding up his arm pointing to trainers down past the wrist on the back of his forearm where it struck. Rust would have to leave for the dressing room for a bit of the second period to get that tended to but was back for the third period.
• Another game, another blown third period lead for the Pens. They only had a one-goal cushion, it happens – but it happens a lot to them. It felt ominous when Koivunen couldn’t convert a great chance and then took a penalty seconds later. They got out of that, they couldn’t quite make to the end of regulation while up. You’ll take a 2-0-1 road trip any day of the week but with the standings so tight the Pens are going to have to hold onto the games when they’re up late.
• Not sure what Dumba is doing on the team, or especially in the lineup. Using him with Graves is playing with fire and creates a pair with limited upside and significant chance that their combined limitations end up hurting the team.
• Shame for Jarry that he lost, Dallas didn’t pepper him with shots (see the preview notes about their tendency to not achieve a high quantity of shots) but the ones he saw were a test. Jarry was sensational in OT as well. It was all for naught, because the Pittsburgh shooters are not very skilled in the arts of the shootout.

Up next is a lengthy home-stand, and the schedule picks up with games every other day (or sooner) for a while in December. The Pens won’t feel great about another blown lead but they can return home after a successful road trip that saw them pick up five out of a possible six points.

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/game-reca...iod-lead-lose-this-time-in-shootout-to-dallas

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

The week ahead: Penguins need to try some new faces in shootouts

Overall you have to be pretty pleased with the past week if you are a Pittsburgh Penguins fan. They went on a three-game road trip through Philadelphia, Tampa Bay and Dallas and won the first two games in regulation, and then still collected a point in the latter game after mostly outplaying and shutting down one of the best teams in hockey. Out of a possible six points, they collected five of them and remain in a pretty solid position in the playoff race.

The point totals make the standings look close and packed together, but keep in mind how few games the Penguins have played compared to other teams.

They have the same number of points as the New York Rangers ….. but have played four fewer games.

They have one fewer point than the New York Islanders …. but have played in three fewer games.

They are one point ahead of the New Jersey Devils …. but have played in two fewer games.

Points percentage is where you need to be looking right now, and by that the Penguins still have the seventh-best record in the entire NHL and the third-best record in the Eastern Conference. They have played 27 games and only lost seven of them in regulation. They have 13 regulation wins, which is the fourth most in hockey despite playing in the second fewest games.

There is a lot to like right now about where they are.

There are, however, two big negatives that keep creeping into things. They keep losing leads in the third period (or leads in general), and they still can not win in a shootout. Both things happened on Sunday in Dallas to prevent the Penguins from having a perfect 3-0 road trip.

They are leaving some points on the table by going 0-4 in shootouts and 1-6 in games decided beyond regulation. Even winning two or three of those games would have them even higher in the standings and probably really change the outlook on the season and their recent play. Those missed points might also add up for a team that will probably end up closer to the playoff bubble. The third period leads are something they just have to get better at protecting. I thought they did a mostly good job on Sunday until the final two minutes when the fourth line had a bad shift that resulted in an icing, and then got caught in a 6-on-5 situation and could not get off the ice.

They just need to be better situationally and have more attention to detail in those moments at a team.

The shootouts are more of an annoyance because they do not happen that often, but at some point you did need to win at least one of them. While Tristan Jarry at least gave them a chance on Sunday, the Penguins skaters looked helpless against Stars goalie Jake Oettinger. The struggles of the Penguins shooters in these things has been a little overlooked due to how bad Arturs Silovs was in his shootouts earlier this season, but they looked awful again on Sunday. It was the same three shooters we typically see in these things: Bryan Rust, Sidney Crosby and Kris Letang.

Crosby is always going to be there, and he probably should be, because even though it is not one of his strengths he is still good enough at it.

Rust and Letang need to be dumped from the rotation. Especially Letang. Since the start of the 2017 season he is 4-for-24 in shootout attempts. The magic he had in his career is gone in these moments. Rust is 2-for-11 over the past three years.

Among the many things that have helped turn this Penguins season around, the presence of some exciting youth is high on the list. It is time to give them a chance in these moments. Let Ben Kindel take an attempt. Put Ville Koivunen out there. Justin Brazeau has demonstrated some smooth hands in tight spaces. Let’s see what he can do. If the Penguins find themselves in another shootout this week, somebody new needs to be sent over the boards.

Speaking of this week, the Penguins return home to start a five-game home stand, and will play four of those games this week.

It is an interesting set of teams coming in, starting with Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday night. The Ducks are as good of an offensive team as there is in the league, but are still kind of a mess defensively and are currently without starting goalie Lukas Dostal. Anaheim won the first meeting this season on a late power play goal following a delay of game penalty in the closing minutes of regulation. The Ducks have the sixth-best points percentage in the NHL.

On Thursday, the Montreal Canadiens are in town and they are kind of the Eastern Conference version of Anaheim. Exciting young offense, some issues on the defensive end and abysmal goaltending.

Over the weekend, the Penguins have a back-to-back on Saturday and Sunday with the San Jose Sharks and Utah Mammoth coming into town. Saturday’s game will give you an opportunity to see one of the NHL’s best young stars in Macklin Celebrini, who is an absolute freak to watch. He is incredible. He and Will Smith give the Sharks a dynamic young forward duo, but the rest of the roster is still very lacking. The Sharks have some of the absolute worst 5-on-5 numbers in hockey this season.

Utah, on the other hand, has some of the best 5-on-5 numbers, but has not really received the type of goaltending that is allowing them to take the step forward that a lot of people expected them to take.

It is not quite as challenging of a week as this past week on paper, but these teams do all present their own special set of challenges. Especially offensively, and especially on an individual level. But there are going to be opportunities for the Penguins, and they are not really facing any elite goalies during this stretch. Given that all of these games are at home if the Penguins can come away with five or six points this week that would be a good week. It should perhaps be the expectation.

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/analysis/...guins-need-to-try-some-new-faces-in-shootouts

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

Harrison Brunicke joining Team Canada for World Juniors

Harrison Brunicke has been named to Team Canada’s training camp roster.

Harrison Brunicke has been named to Canada's #WorldJuniors camp roster https://t.co/RPTpLyR7K3

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 8, 2025

Brunicke has spent the last two weeks on a conditioning loan with Wilkes-Barre of the AHL. The 19-year old has not played an NHL game since November 3rd.

World Juniors runs from December 26th through January 5th, Brunicke has still not appeared in his 10th NHL game which would begin his NHL contract tolling. If and when he would get to 40 games of being on the NHL roster, he earns a year of credit towards unrestricted free agency – which he could reach by age 26 instead of the standard 27 should he remain in the NHL for subsequent years.

Brunicke won’t be the only NHL player going to World Juniors, Calgary has released their prize 19-year old right handed defender Zayne Parekh and San Jose is sending 18-year old forward Michael Misa to play for the Canadians as well.

One name not on the roster is Ben Kindel, a player where there were social media rumors that would be going to World Junior. Kindel, who is on the Pens’ top power play, doesn’t seem like a strong candidate for Pittsburgh to send out of the NHL, though they still do have time to reverse course and work out that designation if that situation develops further. It was reported that Canada was wanting and hoping Kindel would be available for use in this tournament, but at this point it looks like all they are going to get out of the Pens is Brunicke.

This announcement solves what should be happening for Brunicke over the next month or so, GM Kyle Dubas had previously talked on his podcast back in November about the developmental plan that Pittsburgh is using for their teenaged defensemen who technically must be assigned back to his junior hockey league team if he is not on the NHL roster. So far the Pens have taken steps to avoid that, playing in the World Junior being the latest step to get him action against the best of his age group on a temporary basis before seeing how that goes to determine the next steps.

GMKD offers Major Harrison Brunicke updates
– He will remain in Pittsburgh this weekend
– World Juniors could be in play
– 14 day AHL conditioning stint could be in the cards
– What's best for HB45 is best for the Penguins
@SNPittsburgh
Full Showhttps://t.co/9oFiUMNB5c pic.twitter.com/YvWUSVvtuX

— Penguins Radio Network (@penguinslive) November 20, 2025

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/news/69993/harrison-brunicke-joining-team-canada-for-world-juniors

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

Game Preview: Anaheim Ducks @ Pittsburgh Penguins 12/9/25

Who: Anaheim Ducks (18-10-1, 37 points, 1st place Pacific Division) @ Pittsburgh Penguins (14-7-6, 34 points, 4th place Metropolitan Division)

When: 7:00 p.m. ET

How to Watch: Broadcast locally on Victory+, KCOP-13 and SN-PIT , streaming on ESPN+

Pens’ Path Ahead: The homestand continues Thursday with a home game against the Montreal Canadiens. The Pens come back to PPG Paints Arena for back-to-back afternoon games this weekend against the San Jose Sharks and Utah Mammoth.

Opponent Tracker: The Ducks have seen some mixed results during a three-game homestand this past week, losing a 7-0 shutout by the Mammoth only to claim a 4-3 shootout win over the Washington Capitals and a 7-1 blowout of the Chicago Blackhawks.

Season Series: The Pens lost this season’s series opener in Anaheim by giving up a power-play goal with just over one a half minutes remaining in a tied game back on Oct. 14.

Getting to know the Ducks​

Projected lines

FORWARDS

Chris Kreider – Leo Carlsson – Troy Terry

Cutter Gauthier – Mason McTavish – Beckett Sennecke

Frank Vatrano – Ryan Strome – Alex Killorn

Ross Johnston – Ryan Poehling – Mikael Granlund

DEFENSEMEN

Jackson LaCombe / Jacob Trouba

Olen Zellweger / Radko Gudas

Pavel Mintyukov / Drew Helleson

Goalies: Ville Husso, Vyacheslav Buteyets

Potential scratches: Nikita Nesterenko, Jansen Harkins, Ian Moore

Injured Reserve: Petr Mrazek, Lukas Dostal

• The Ducks are currently missing both Lukas Dostal and Petr Mrazek to week-to-week injuries. Dostal is a particularly major loss, considering he had led the Ducks to an 11-5 record in his first 17 appearances of the season.
• In the absence of both their regular starter and backup the Ducks have turned to third-stringer Ville Husso, who has played well enough to keep Anaheim at the top of the Pacific since Dostal’s injury.

Ville Husso! pic.twitter.com/SVTMORQE76

— NHL Deutsch (@NHLde) December 6, 2025

• Mikael Granlund recently returned to the third line after missing 18 games with a lower-body injury he suffered back in October.

Season stats
via hockeydb

• Beckett Sennecke, the No. 3 pick of the 2024 draft, currently leads all rookies in both goals (nine) and points (24) through his first 29 games. He could be an easy player to pick out tonight due to his speed. NHL Edge puts him in the 96th percentile of all skaters this season in speed bursts of more than 21 miles per hour.

Sennecke

He's makin' plays out there!
It's 3-0! #FlyTogether pic.twitter.com/39zytzCaSn

— Anaheim Ducks (@AnaheimDucks) December 8, 2025

• Sennecke isn’t the only young player who’s hitting stride for the Ducks so far this season. Leo Carlsson, the No. 2 pick of the 2023 draft, has 38 points (16 goals, 22 assists) in 29 games.

Leo

We got fiiiiivveeee on it! #FlyTogether pic.twitter.com/HOb4BT1UTw

— Anaheim Ducks (@AnaheimDucks) December 8, 2025

• Former New York Rangers captain Jacob Trouba has five goals in his first 29 games, a huge uptick for a player who totaled just four goals across his two prior seasons. He was also recently under fire for a controversial hit that injured Caps rookie Ryan Leonard last week.
• The Ducks are heading into the matchup ranked second only to the Colorado Avalanche with 3.59 goals per game. The team is also allowing 3.28 goals against per game, the 11th-most in the NHL, but that’s considering that Dostal has been out since Nov. 22. Getting him back will make this team an even more dangerous opponent down the stretch.
• One area of weakness for Anaheim has been special teams. The Ducks rank 18th in the NHL with an 18.8 power play percentage and 28th with a 75.3 percent success rate on the penalty kill. The Ducks had gone 0-for-17 on the power play prior to Sunday’s win over the Blackhawks, but they’ll hope scoring two power play goals against Chicago will be enough to turn that trend around.
• For the first time in eight years, the Penguins are facing what seems likely to be a playoff-bound Ducks team. After finishing sixth or lower in the Pacific for the last seven years, Anaheim is heading into this matchup with a division lead.

And now for the Pens​

Projected lines

FORWARDS

Kevin Hayes – Sidney Crosby – Bryan Rust

Tommy Novak – Evgeni Malkin (?) – Anthony Mantha

Rutger McGroarty – Ben Kindel – Ville Koivunen

Connor Dewar – Blake Lizotte – Boko Imama

DEFENSEMEN

Parker Wotherspoon / Erik Karlsson

Ryan Shea / Kris Letang

Ryan Graves / Connor Clifton

Goalies: Tristan Jarry and Arturs Silovs

Potential Scratches: Joona Koppanen, Matt Dumba, Harrison Brunicke (AHL rehab assignment)

IR: Filip Hallander, Justin Brazeau, Rickard Rakell, Caleb Jones, Noel Acciari

• Keep an eye out regarding an injury update on Evgeni Malkin, who missed Sunday’s shootout loss to the Ducks with an upper-body injury the Penguins described as a day-to-day issue. If he remains sidelined, Kevin Hayes could once more draw in as the Pens’ second-line center.
• Should he be available to play, Malkin has typically been a tough matchup for the Ducks. He’s put up 30 points (11 goals, 19 assists) in 26 career games against Anaheim.
• Tristan Jarry posted another strong outing against on Sunday against the Stars (notwithstanding the shootout loss). The Penguins are 9-2-1 with him in net so far this season.
• Speaking of shootouts: The Pens have yet to win one in four tries this season. Should tonight’s matchup go to extra time, head coach Dan Muse might have to consider sending out someone other than Sidney Crosby, Kris Letang and Bryan Rust to try their luck.

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/general/70008/game-preview-anaheim-ducks-pittsburgh-penguins-12-9-25

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

Evgeni Malkin’s absence should result in bigger role for Kid Line

Just when it looked like the Pittsburgh Penguins were starting to get healthier and back to full strength, more injury news hit. The Penguins announced on Tuesday that forwards Evgeni Malkin and Blake Lizotte are being played on Injured Reserve.

They are significant injuries.

Both players are expected to be out on a “week-to-week” basis, according to the Penguins.

Updated injury timelines:

Both Malkin and Lizotte are week-to-week with upper-body injuries. https://t.co/QnteKaUIyj

— Penguins PR (@PenguinsPR) December 9, 2025

In Malkin’s case, he has found an extra gear this season and already has 29 points in 26 games. He has been one of their top offensive players and in a lot of games has been a major difference-maker (Thursday night in Tampa Bay, for example).

Lizotte has been a key cog on the fourth line and a major part of the penalty kill.

In their place, Danton Heinen and Sam Poulin are coming back from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

It is obviously not ideal in the short-term given the potential the Malkin, Anthony Mantha and Justin Brazeau line has shown this season. Malkin’s absence comes just as Brazeau was making his return. Based on Sunday’s game, it is likely that Kevin Hayes will stay in that center spot.

Long-term, it’s probably not the worst thing for Malkin to not be playing 82 games and some time off might do him well. It still hurts the team in the short-term with some tough games ahead this month.

But it also might be an opportunity for other players on the team — specifically The Kid Line of Ben Kindel, Ville Koivunen and Rutger McGroarty.

With Malkin down and the second-line not really have anybody you can count on to drive it or drive offense, this seems like it would be a good opportunity to elevate the role of the Kindel line and allow it to serve as the “second line” for the time being.

The one thing first-year head coach Dan Muse has been really good about this season — and really effective with — is balancing out the ice-time and consistently rolling four lines, so on most nights there really has not been much difference in the ice-time between the first, second and third lines. There still has been a difference. On Sunday in Dallas, for example, The Kid Line played 9:51 during 5-on-5, which was the lowest of the Penguins’ four lines. They were extremely effective in those minutes, and have been since being put together.

It is a small sample size, but in 26 minutes together that trio has out-shot teams by a 15-3 margin and owns a 72.3 percent expected goal share. They also pass the eye test and have consistently caused havoc in the offensive zone.

Let them cook a little bit and see if they can turn that territorial advantage, as well as a slightly bigger role with more ice-time, into offense.

When Malkin is healthy and centering the second line I have absolutely no problem with the Kindel line playing the “third line” line role. It extends the lineup, and you should be looking at your third line as an additional scoring line anyway if you are trying to win. You need offense from that group. It has also been effective in its role. But when Malkin is not in the middle of Mantha and Brazeau I feel like that group does not really project as a top-six group. The Kindel line does, at least in terms of talent and playing style. I am not saying you need to overload their plates or play them for 15 minutes. Give them an extra shift or two. Bump them up in the rotation. Give them more of the offensive zone face-offs that would otherwise be going to Malkin.

Put them into situations where they can succeed, create chances and hopefully score. You are going to need some extra offense anyway.

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/analysis/...nce-should-result-in-bigger-role-for-kid-line

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

Wilkes Weekly: Kings of PA

The WBS Penguins enjoyed another successful week by earning victories over Pennsylvania rivals in Lehigh Valley and Hershey. Here’s Nick Hart from WBSPenguins.com on his weekly roundup of the action:

Friday, Dec. 5 – PENGUINS 6 vs. Lehigh Valley 2
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton improved to 4-0-0-0 in its season series against Lehigh Valley with a decisive home win. Six different players lit the lamp, and each member of a line composed of Aidan McDonough, Tristan Broz and Avery Hayes compiled multiple points. Sergei Murashov logged a season-high 34 saves.

Saturday, Dec. 6 – PENGUINS 4 at Hershey 1
Joel Blomqvist was a fortress with 27 starry saves to keep the Penguins in the game before erupting for four unanswered goals. Valtteri Puustinen kicked off his team’s surge late in the second period, then tallied again 58 seconds into the third. Gabe Klassen and McDonough also scored in the final frame.

Goaltending remains a huge point in the Pens’ favor. To have back-to-back games and be able to roll out Joel Blomqvist and Sergei Murashov is such a huge advantage and great piece of depth to rely on. Per Hart, the WBS Pens have allowed two or fewer goals in 13 out of their 23 games this season, which obviously puts a team in a wonderful position to win games.

Puustinen’s two goals were his first since October 29th and doubled his season total up to four. He’s become something of a forgotten player for the NHL radar and buried deeper within the organization but has been able to be a mainstay for the WBS Pens this season.

The wins push WBS up to 17-5-1 and retain their first place spot in the Atlantic division for another week.

The Providence Bruins are right there, the Pens and PBruins meet on Saturday night in a game that could decide the top of the standings for the short-term. WBS also plays @Hartford tonight and hosts Charlotte on Sunday.

On the roster movement tracker, Boko Imama and Joona Koppanen have returned to the AHL in the last week. Danton Heinen was called back up to Pittsburgh and Sam Poulin went up to the NHL (and quietly back down) to Wilkes yesterday. Defensively, Harrison Brunicke and Jack St. Ivany have completed their temporary rehab stints and are out of the AHL which created room for Scooter Brickey and Finn Harding to return to WBS from Wheeling to even out the numbers. That could be the way it is for a while in the AHL since Evgeni Malkin and Blake Lizotte are on IR with week-to-week injuries could signify that Heinen’s services will be required in the NHL for the near future.

The overall net adds of forwards to get Koppanen and Imama back should help the cause in WBS, the team went with an 11 forward/7 defense lineup on Saturday partially due to the amount of forwards who were recalled to Pittsburgh at the time.

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/wbs-weekly/70092/wilkes-weekly-kings-of-pa

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

Revisiting Sidney Crosby’s chase of Mario Lemieux’s point record

Sidney Crosby is up to 1,718 career points, five shy of Mario Lemieux’s Penguin franchise record of 1,723. Lemieux stands ninth all-time in NHL scoring. Putting up 1,723 points for a single team is a franchise record that many thought had a chance to stand indefinitely. Only two players have scored more points for a single franchise than Lemieux did with Pittsburgh (Gordie Howe notched 1,809 with the Red Wings, Steve Yzerman had 1,755 for Detroit).

Crosby’s path to 1,723 looked uncertain when he missed well over a total season during 2010-11 and 2011-12 while dealing with concussion and neck issues in a period where he was regularly recording 100+ point seasons in his absolute scoring prime. That led our crystal ball towards doubting the day where Lemieux would get surpassed might ever come.

January 2014: Will Sidney Crosby ever pass Mario Lemieux in points?

Can he do it?​

Realistically, given how player point production drops in the latter years, combined with Crosby’s injury history, the betting odds say that Mario is safe as the Penguins #1 scorer of all time*.Crosby lost 113 games (or 160 points at his rate of scoring) due to injuries from 2011-2013 in what should have been the prime of his career, and that probably ended all doubt of whether or not Lemieux would remain number one.

Still, what we’re witnessing with Crosby- who’s 11 points up on everyone in the entire league right now in scoring- is special. Just as Mario Lemieux was special, especially considering how few games he was able to play, and just how well he played despite being in a lot of pain even when he was able to play.

Barring some Jagr-esque commitment to play the game until an extremely late age, it seems unlikely that Crosby will pass Lemieux. But as we’ve seen over the years, I sure wouldn’t bet against greatness.

One thing that wasn’t foreseen in 2014 was the staying power Crosby would prove to have. Since January 1, 2020, Crosby has scored 484 points in 409 games. Putting up almost 500 points deep into his 30’s, playing a vast majority of the games and staying productive at a Swiss watch level of precision wasn’t something to count on back then. It also speaks to what a great ride it has been to have a first-hand view of one of the Mount Rushmore’s of hockey carve out his spot right before our eyes over the years.

Back in 2014 it looked like Crosby might go onto have a Lemieux-esque type of brilliant but brief career. Instead, longevity, has proven to become a positive for Crosby, which would have been difficult to dream up in the first half of his career when missing large chunks of seasons was a regular occurrence. It’s often said that players don’t find a way to get healthier and more durable as they age, somehow Crosby has managed to pull that off in addition to his magical feats on the ice.

Crosby has played 464 more career regular season games than Lemieux, whose storied career was marked throughout with extended periods of injury and retirement absences. That second-half career durability and the ability to suit up in so many more games in this different era is the starting point for why Crosby is primed to take over the top spot for career points from Lemieux.

Moving ahead a decade, all that work had come into focus, and Crosby’s pursuit of the franchise scoring record was looking like an inevitability more than a theoretical proposition.

August 2024:

Sidney Crosby’s pursuit of Mario Lemieux’s all-time franchise scoring records

Points
Lemieux: 1,723
Crosby: 1,596

—At current rates and with that darn extension, Crosby ought be looking at setting the bar for the Penguin point total sometime in the 2025-26 season, perhaps fairly early into the year too. That would be a remarkable accomplishment that many never thought would fall, considering that Lemieux was seventh in NHL scoring when he walked away and if all goes well will only be lasting 20 years.

By the summer 2024 it was not terribly difficult to then project the timing of when Lemieux’s Penguin point total would fall, even before Crosby had officially inked the contract extension to keep him with the Penguins through the 2026-27 season. All the pieces were coming together by then, and dutifully Crosby has stayed right on target with the projections.

Crosby previously broke Lemieux’s record for most assists in franchise history, and with the current Pens captain closing in on the points, the only question now is if Crosby can go for the clean sweep of the major stat categories and take over Mario’s goal total to finish it off.

That topic provides another opportunity to potentially be incorrect. Lemieux, at 690, is is 47 goals clear of Crosby. Given Crosby’s age of 38, it may seem like he doesn’t have 58 more goals in him. However, this season Crosby has scored 18 goals in 28 games. Crosby has scored 43 goals in the previous 82 games played between Dec 1 2024 and today. Based on that type of late-season flourish, even if Crosby hung up his skates when his contract ends in 2027, he would have a really good chance of scoring at least 48 goals over the next 18 months or so (in up to a max. of 136 games). Should he decide to play longer after that for the Pens, the goal record is undoubtedly going to be Crosby’s.

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/general/6...-crosbys-chase-of-mario-lemieuxs-point-record

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

How will the Penguins respond?

Momentum is only as good as the next shift, the next play and the next game. That is important to keep in mind for the Pittsburgh Penguins going into Thursday’s game against the Montreal Canadiens — and their next two games this week — after their back-to-back tough losses against the Dallas Stars and Anaheim Ducks. There is a school of thought that losing two games, in the manner in which they did, and only getting two points instead of four points, could be some sort of season-defining turning point.

There is always the possibility of that. Those were not just random defeats to good teams.

Those were gut-punch defeats to good teams that you outplayed by a significant margin for the majority of the game. Those were defeats that you were in total control of. They were also defeats that kept replaying a similar narrative that has happened all season with a blown third period lead and an overtime/shootout loss.

In a lot of ways the game on Tuesday night against Anaheim was highly encouraging.

They showed us they were able to bounce back from a tough loss just a couple of days earlier, and responded with perhaps even stronger showing than the one they had in Dallas (which, up until that point, might have been one of their best games of the season given the opponent and the context of the road trip). They mostly limited one of the highest-scoring teams in the league, dictated the game, bounced back from a deficit of their own and put themselves in a position to close it out.

Then everything fell apart at the end of regulation.

It is not a stretch to say they were rattled in overtime by what happened at the end of regulation, and that 1:44 of power play time illustrated that perfectly. That was a team that had no confidence. That was a team that was shaken to its core. They played like it, and despite having some quality chances and wide open looks in overtime were unable to get the win.

Then the shootout went exactly as everybody expected it to go, right down to Sidney Crosby trying the exact same move that never works.

It is easy to look at all of that, within the context of the week, and within the context of the season as a whole, and say, well, this team might be cooked.

I know this is not the type of thing people want to hear after games like that, but there were still a lot of things the Penguins should be taking away from those games. Specifically the fact that they did play great hockey for the overwhelming majority of them, and did so against two really good teams. In Dallas, they did so against arguably one of the two or three best teams in hockey, which came after road regulation wins at Philadelphia and Tampa Bay.

There is mounting evidence to suggest that there IS a good team here. A flawed team, to be sure, but still a good team that is capable of hanging with and going toe-to-toe with the best teams in the league.

This is very much a trust the process situation, because lately the process has been outstanding and almost everything you want to see from a playoff team. The attention to detail needs to be better. The situational awareness needs to be better. But those things are, in theory at least, easier to fix than getting a team to play better overall. They have the hard part right. Now they just have to finish the rest of it.

This is also an example as to why I think it can, and will, be beneficial to have veteran players that have won before around a rebuilding team with young players. A team that is constructed primarily of young players still trying to find their way in the NHL might look at those two games and very much let it ruin their season. Having winners around that have been through adversity, tough times and worked/played their way through it is important. There is a value in that.

The Penguins still have four more games on this home stand, including three more this week. All of them are against opponents they should be capable of beating.

They are still in a very good position in the standings, and still enter play on Thursday with the seventh-best points percentage in the NHL and the third-best points percentage in the Eastern Conference. It is easy to look at the point totals and get concerned about how close things are and how little margin for error there is right now, and there is some truth to that. To a point. But games played matter, and the Penguins have still played fewer games than any other team in hockey.

Like I pointed out on Monday, they are one point ahead of the Rangers, while having played four fewer games. They are tied with the Devils in two fewer games. Only two points behind the Islanders in three fewer games. They have put themselves in a good position, It could be a better position. They have put themselves in situations and given themselves opportunities for it to be a better position. They can still continue to do that as long as they do not let these recent games disrupt their progress. They have given themselves a cushion and are playing better.

Over the past eight games the Penguins have 11 out of a possible 16 points and the fifth-best points percentage in the league over that time. They have the third-best expected goals share during 5-on-5 play during that stretch. Yes, they have given away some points in that time and could, and should, be better …. but they are still collecting points. A lot of them. They are right there. Keep going with it. Keep doing it. Keep playing that way. Keep trusting the process.

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/analysis/70113/how-will-the-penguins-respond

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

Friedman: Hoffmann family’s exclusive window to purchase Pens has expired

A potential buyer for the Pittsburgh Penguins who had an exclusive window to buy the team has apparently allowed that window close.

Earlier this year, news surfaced that the Hoffmann family, who are based out of Florida and own the ECHL’s Florida Everblades, had emerged as a serious contender to buy the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman said at the time that he believed the Penguins would get sold at a valuation of $1.75 billion as the Fenway Sports Group was considering selling the franchise just under four years after making the purchase.

Friedman mentioned the possible sale in his latest 32 Thoughts column, mentioning that the Hoffmann family’s exclusive window to buy the team has expired.

4. Also with Pittsburgh: the Hoffmann (sp.) family’s exclusive window to purchase the Penguins has expired. Doesn’t mean the sale can’t (or won’t) happen — I’ve heard they are still pushing to close — but the process is once again open to other bids.

The Penguins were reportedly valued at $900 million when FSG purchased a controlling stake in November 2021, Pierre LeBrun reported for The Athletic.

The previous ownership group of Mario Lemieux and Ron Burkle were reportedly also interested in re-purchasing the Pens, but the value of the franchise has increased so much since they got out that it might be cost-prohibitive a property for them to jump back into these days.

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/general/7...exclusive-window-to-purchase-pens-has-expires

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

Penguins waive Matt Dumba

The Pittsburgh Penguins added two roster players in the big trade to bring in goalie Stuart Skinner and defenseman Brett Kulak in exchange for just one going on the door in goalie Tristan Jarry. That math means someone has to depart the Pens’ roster and the team announced it will be veteran defender Matt Dumba who has been removed from the roster and will be going on waivers when the list comes out at 2pm today.

In a corresponding move, defenseman Matt Dumba has been designated non-roster for the purpose of being placed on waivers at 2:00 PM. https://t.co/MLnTV9ZFgd

— Penguins PR (@PenguinsPR) December 12, 2025

Dumba was acquired for Dallas over the summer, looking to drop his $3.75 million cap hit. Pittsburgh picked up a future second round pick for their troubles. Dumba had been rotating in and out of the lineup on the third pair, averaging 14:56 per game and scoring one goal and two assists over 13 contests. His results, much like his past few seasons, have not provided much among a rebound.

Matt Dumba on waivers. pic.twitter.com/4SydoE4PKu

— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) December 12, 2025

Should the 31-year veteran go unclaimed, he would join the long line of veterans like Danton Heinen and Ryan Graves that have been assigned to Wilkes-Barre this season. Both of those players have been recalled when injuries and their impressive AHL play have necessitated it. Dumba’s contract expires at the end of this season. Pittsburgh took him onto gain an extra draft pick but now need his roster spot to see if Kulak will add more to the lineup.

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/news/70173/penguins-waive-matt-dumba

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

Pens goalie situation is ‘wide open’ after trading Tristan Jarry

The Penguins have had a Tristan Jarry problem for a while now. The 30-year old is on the books through the 2027-28 season at a $5.375 million cap hit. Pittsburgh doesn’t have salary cap issues for the future, but Jarry’s involvement with the team has been through the ringer ever since he was waived and sent to the AHL early in 2024-25. The Pens boast Joel Blomqvist and Sergei Murashov, two promising young goalies who have done well in the minor leagues. Having a high-priced vet like Jarry around muddied the waters in terms of the roster moving forward for a team that also acquire 24-year old Arturs Silovs over the summer.

Needless to say, trading Jarry to the Edmonton Oilers solves that issue in one fell swoop. Removing Jarry and his contract opens things up in a major way, considering the goalie he was acquired for, Stuart Skinner, is an impending unrestricted free agent this summer. It’s clear on the surface what GM Kyle Dubas said in his comments, the future is wide open and now that the Pens have moved on from Jarry, it clears a hurdle for the next wave of younger players to fit in.

Dubas, on the goalie situation overall: "Beyond this year, there's no real commitment. The door is wide open for competition between (Skinner, Silovs, Murashov and Blomqvist)… There's a lot of incentive there… We'll see who can climb to the top and take it and run with it."

— Pens Inside Scoop (@PensInsideScoop) December 12, 2025

Dubas mentioned for now that Skinner and Silovs will be the NHL goalies with the team monitoring Blomqvist and Murashov very closely in Wilkes-Barre. They already got a brief glimpse of their prize 21-year old rookie Murashov for four games this season in the NHL due to an injury to Jarry.

The other bright spot for the Pens with this trade is the addition of Brett Kulak to add to their blueline.

Dubas said the message to the #LetsGoPens locker room is essentially, "we're trying to mitigate the loss in that we do have two very talented young goaltenders coming; we have a talented young goalie here in Arty; and we're improving our team and adding assets that we could use…

— Pens Inside Scoop (@PensInsideScoop) December 12, 2025

Dubas would continue on about Skinner:

“The message to the room is that Stu Skinner has had a very good run in Edmonton as well,” Dubas said. “I know this year didn’t start off the way that he or the team would have wanted it to, but I think, especially of late, he’s been back playing his game to the level that he’s expected.

“That’ll be up to Stu and (goalie coach) Andy Chiodo and our performance staff and coaching staff and our whole group to support him, have him come in and play well. Obviously, I think if you’re in his shoes, it’s a lot to prove. I mean, they’ve made the move to go away from him, and we’ll give him the best opportunity we can to be at his best.”

Skinner has been a heat magnet for his role as Edmonton’s starting goalie, like Jarry he has been trending down for a few years, but also like Jarry there is the capability to ramp up with a string of quality starts. Ironically enough, Skinner has been in one of those hot flashes lately with a .937 save% and +6.8 goals saved above average in his last five games.

Stuart Skinner, acquired by PIT, is a goalie. #LetsGoPens pic.twitter.com/g1KPWPnhow

— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) December 12, 2025

Here’s how Jarry stacks up in the same outlook:

Tristan Jarry, acquired by EDM, is a goalie. #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/anq4wOMWE5

— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) December 12, 2025

Overall they have a very similar profile; Jarry has been better on the PK and his highs (excellent starts) are much higher. Skinner’s lows (bad starts) have been lower and his consistency has lagged, yet Skinner ranks as a better puck stopper in high, medium and low danger shots. He’s not a goalie to wow or stand on his head and single-handedly win games yet a lot of his metrics tend to be just as good or better than Jarry’s.

That the Pens were able to complete this deal — which also includes them receiving a second round pick four drafts from now in 2029 and not having to retain any salary at all on Jarry has to be considered a massive win. Jarry was radioactive just months ago, now Pittsburgh was able to bring back assets for him while wiping the slate clean for the future in terms of the salary cap as well as the depth chart.

For Edmonton, the move looks like a Hail Mary pass play. For those that don’t follow football, that has a low percentage chance of working out. Now boxed into Jarry’s cap hit — which ranks 19th among all NHL goalies and goes for 2.5 more seasons — the Oilers have thrown their lot hoping the Alberta resident can maintain his game and provide an upgrade over what they have been missing in net.

Time will tell if that works out or not for the Oilers, but on the Pittsburgh side of things the transaction represents a win that could help them out in the short and longer term to pull off this deal at this time.

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/analysis/...tion-is-wide-open-after-trading-tristan-jarry

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

Penguins/Sharks Recap: Pens prove a four-goal lead is the worst in hockey (for them)

Pregame​

Rickard Rakell is back, which provides a big boost to the forward lines. The Pens shake Tommy Novak, Anthony and Kevin Hayes all down a little bit, give Ben Kindel, Rutger McGroarty and the returning Rakell bigger roles than the past. Pretty good there. The newly acquired players from Edmonton are hung up with immigration, so Sergei Murashov returns to the NHL, but Arturs Silovs gets the net in the first game of the post-Tristan Jarry era.

How we're lining up today vs. San Jose pic.twitter.com/hiY8vp78pN

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 13, 2025

The visiting San Jose Sharks have this lineup for the day. Alex Nedeljkovic watching from the bench in his return to Pittsburgh.

We've got your lineup right here. pic.twitter.com/OGjwRoQ0Wv

— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) December 13, 2025

First period​

It’s a fairly non-descript start for both teams. Connor Clifton is off to the penalty box early to offer San Jose with a power play, they get some zone time but can’t score. That power play seems to throw the Penguins off and keep them from getting into the flow of the game, Tyler Toffoli goes onto score from distance on a shot that Silovs doesn’t pick up in time with the traffic buzzing around. 1-0 Sharks.

TYLER TOFFOLI! pic.twitter.com/VL7qeoiraB

— NHL (@NHL) December 13, 2025

Sidney Crosby holds the puck while his team changes behind him, eventually sending a pass for Ville Koivunen. Sam Dickinson has to trip Koivunen, giving Pittsburgh their first power play of the game. Crosby wins the faceoff and soon after Anthony Mantha bounces a shot off the pads of Yaroslav Askarov. The rebound goes right to Crosby and he makes no mistake throwing it back into the net. 1-1 game courtesy of a quick strike from the power play.

That's 19 goals this season for Sidney Crosby pic.twitter.com/DUzCQZzWYV

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 13, 2025

SJ takes another penalty and the Pens’ power play is really feeling it. They’re snapping the puck around like crazy, Bryan Rust hits the cross-bar flush in a near miss. Silovs doesn’t really bang his stick as the power play is expiring and wouldn’t you know Will Smith gets out of the penalty box and an instant breakaway. Silovs makes the save to bail himself and everyone out.

SILOVS SAYS NO pic.twitter.com/CXsHTbIS0V

— SportsNet Pittsburgh (@SNPittsburgh) December 13, 2025

In the dying seconds of the period Crosby and Noel Acciari are in on one of the most mis-matched personnel to ever get a 2-on-1. Wisely, Crosby calls his own number and takes the shot, Askarov’s turn to stay up and make the save.

Shots are 13-6 in favor of the Penguins through 20 minutes. Score is tied, which is a shame, Pittsburgh has been the better of the teams so far.

Second period​

The Sharks started their second line featuring Alex Wennberg, so the Pens opted to match that with their own second line to keep Crosby matched up against the Macklin Celebrini line. Worked out well, Rutger McGroarty fires in his first goal of the season 18 seconds into the second period after dancing Nick Leddy and gaining enough room to release a shot. Pittsburgh takes their first lead of the game, 2-1.

What a shot from Rutger McGroarty for his first of the season pic.twitter.com/c0JJONxXOL

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 13, 2025

Game continues to go crazy with teams trading chances at either end of the ice, Pittsburgh is OK with playing wide open with the fast and young Sharks. Connor Dewar slips behind the defense, they have hook him and it’s another Penguin power play. No luck.

Pittsburgh survives a sequence where Ryan Graves lets a Shark clear around him and then breaks his stick leading to some rare extended zone time for SJ. The Pens get back to work and find a New England-styled goal with Noel Acciari setting up a wide open Kevin Hayes at the back door. Good awareness for Hayes to open up in the right spot and a nice pass from Acciari. 3-1 game.

A BIG GOAL FROM BIG HAYESY! pic.twitter.com/1KeYXg5Ee0

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 13, 2025

Crosby takes a punch to the face from Dmitry Orlov, the refs call it a high-stick but it’s the thought that counts. The Pens go to work on the power play, a SJ player breaks their stick, Crosby isolates on where he’s at and passes over to Bryan Rust. That makes it easy but Rust still puts a perfect top shelf shot in. 4-1 game a just before intermission.

Another PPG for PGH

…AND WE GET 1/2 OFF RUSTY’S SHAKE AT THE @MShakeFactory TOMORROW! pic.twitter.com/phbQCZRhen

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 13, 2025

Big time job by the Pens to get another one late and give it a three-goal cushion, despite their sketchy relationship with holding big leads.

Third period​

Graves again gets blown by, this time by Skinner. Graves grabs a handful of jersey and then gets his stick in for a hook too for a penalty that could have been a goal if not for a big save by Silovs.

Parker Wotherspoon bodies off Smith along the wall, Smith gets hurt on the play and a couple of Sharks jump Wotherspoon for hurting one of their top players, including Celebrini defending his good friend. San Jose takes an extra penalty as a result and the play cycles back to 4v4. When it cycles through to the power play, Anthony Mantha pounds it in for a 5-1 lead.

That's three PPGs for PGH! pic.twitter.com/2YsWFqPHwP

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 13, 2025

Dewar is sent to the penalty box and Erik Karlsson is sent off for the rare delay of game for playing the puck with a broken stick to grant the Sharks some 5v3 time. They make it count, John Klingberg walks in a little and fires a wrister from the top of the circles. 5-2 game with 12:27 to play, and the Sharks still have 1:21 of a 5v4 power play to work with.

John Klingberg gets one back. pic.twitter.com/nulUJi3b4w

— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) December 13, 2025

The Pens survive that but the Sharks aren’t going away. Silovs makes about 3 or 4 great saves while sprawled out but Crosby and Letang can’t provide any puck support. William Eklund gets on the scene and chips the loose puck over Silovs and into the net. 5-3 game, 5:41 to go.

Eky puts it home. pic.twitter.com/BcQb35AyGW

— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) December 13, 2025

SJ pulls Askarov with over three minutes left in the push for more offense. The Sharks get zone time but eventually Crosby sets Rust up for an open net chance – hits the post. That comes back to haunt the Pens, Celebrini makes his first really big moment of the night by bombing away and scoring. The lead has shrank away to 5-4.

Mack's goal for ya. #TheFutureIsTeal pic.twitter.com/4xToqPfOES

— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) December 13, 2025

Pittsburgh uses their timeout to regroup and break the momentum as try to stop yet another lead from slipping away. Good idea but it does pay off. The Sharks pull Askarov again, and they score again. Celebrini with the big shot. Ryan Shea swings around aimlessly. Toffoli finds the loose puck and chops it in. 5-5 game with 1:34 to go.

IT'S A TIE GAME pic.twitter.com/FfZStct3L8

— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) December 13, 2025

Overtime​

The Penguins already seemed pre-stunned this game has even made it to overtime. It’s not hard to guess what happens next. Celebrini and Klingberg work a great give-and-go past Letang after Klingberg easily avoided Crosby. San Jose completes their comeback, the Pens are left, again, to wonder what the hell happened to their big lead.

Tears in our eyes too, @sharkvoice. pic.twitter.com/Rlrp7JR3ZQ

— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) December 13, 2025

Some thoughts​

• The Penguins are so, so bad at protecting leads these days. It’s always more than one area going wrong, there’s no simple solutions (besides the truth, everyone needs to play better and try harder for longer) or easy fingers to point, it’s everywhere. They take penalties at bad times, they get caught puck watching, they don’t get a save when they need it, they get a chance to score into the empty net to seal the deal and fail. Happens so often it’s just a part of the game for them at this point, across the board and regardless of who is out there. Now we’re left to debate what’s worse between blowing a 5-1 lead with 13 minutes to go or giving up the tying goal with 0.1 seconds left. And that’s only in within the last three games!
• It’s kind of crazy to put coherent thoughts together, so luckily I did the rest as the game was going on. This team is so confounding when it comes to not being able to convert the easy things, like having a 5-1 lead with 13 minutes to go. That has to be a win, every time. But no lead is safe these days with a team ready to melt away.
• To the Sharks credit, it was a heck of a comeback. Their confidence grew, they grabbed momentum and they made it happen. Still can’t believe Rust didn’t angle his body a little better to hit that empty net. Oy.
• One of the Philadelphia writers tweeted that Crosby got some good luck when he scored a rebound goal earlier this month against the Flyers. When you watch Crosby enough (or acquire even the slightest bit of puck knowledge) and see him score again soon after on almost the same play like today against the Sharks, it’s clear that luck has very little to do with it. It’s the consistency of managing to get to the right place at the right time, which is the namesake of Crosby on the hockey rink, which he’s been doing since the early ‘90s in some form or another. Sure, with a bouncing and rolling puck there’s always some element of good fortune required but Sidney Crosby would be buying more Powerball tickets if he was nothing but this lucky. It’s like the old Thomas Jefferson quote about becoming luckier the harder one works, which brings it into perspective about why Crosby can appear to be so darn lucky all the time.
• That Crosby setup to Rust too was so damn cerebral. You could see it in real time too, Crosby figured out where the weakness was for the PKer who didn’t have a stick and then exploited it immediately. Rust held up his end of the bargain with a great shot, perfect stuff. It’s not a stretch to say that Crosby has to be one of the most intelligent players of all-time, the way he can read and diagnose situations like that as they develop in real time is unreal.
• Those two points put Sid at 1,721 for his career. Mario’s at 1,723. The Pens were angling and hoping that the changeover might happen during this homestand that has two more games so that Crosby can get recognized right away for it. (Wouldn’t it be something for Tuesday night’s games against McDavid and Tristan Jarry, ha).
• McGroarty and Ben Kindel combine on a goal, may it be the first of many times! Was great to see those two stay together and even drop their anchor and get a new third forward for the group. The goal followed.
• The sooner Brett Kulak can get his paperwork in-line to join the Pens, the better. Ryan Graves is reverting back to human pylon, nearly costing the team a couple of goals due to his lack of lateral quickness. Wasn’t the finest night for Shea or Wotherspoon either, the left side, and blueline as a whole could really use a defensively competent addition to the mix.

The Pens have to be reeling after all these blown leads. They’ll need to have a quick memory, the Utah Mammoth are coming to town for a game tomorrow. If they’re smart they’ll let the Pens get a 3, 4 or maybe 5 goal lead and start pulling their goalie..

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/game-reca...our-goal-lead-is-the-worst-in-hockey-for-them

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

Game Preview: Utah Mammoth @ Pittsburgh Penguins 12/14/25

Who: Utah Mammoth (15-15-5, 33 points, 5th place Central Division) @ Pittsburgh Penguins (14-8-8, 36 points, 6th place Metropolitan Division)

When: 3:00 p.m. eastern

How to Watch: Broadcast locally Sportsnet Pittsburgh, Utah16, streaming on ESPN+

Pens’ Path Ahead: Connor McDavid and Edmonton come to town on Tuesday and then the Pens hit the road to play in Ottawa on Thursday. Then next weekend will be Canadien-centric with a game in Montreal next Saturday (12/20) and then MTL/PIT rematch on Sunday 12/21 in Pittsburgh.

Opponent Track: The Mammoth were last in action Friday at home winning 5-3 against Seattle. Prior to that they had lost three straight games, however. Tonight is the start of the on the road with stops coming up in Boston and Detroit.

Season Series: The Pens take their trip out to Utah on March 14th.

Hidden Stat: Utah is 1-0 all-time in Pittsburgh, having won 6-1 last November in the franchise’s only game under this iteration.

Getting to know the Mammoth​

Projected lines

FORWARDS

Clayton Keller – Nick Schmaltz – JJ Peterka

Lawson Crouse – Barrett Hayton – Dylan Guenther

Michael Carcone – Jack McBain – Danil But

Liam O’Brien – Kevin Stenlund – Kailer Yamamoto

DEFENSEMEN

Mikhail Sergachev / Sean Durzi

Nate Schmidt / John Marino

Ian Cole / Olli Maatta

Goalies: Karel Vejmelka and Vitek Vanecek

Potential scratches: Kevin Rooney, Nick DeSimone

Injured Reserve: Logan Cooley, Alex Kerfoot, Juuso Valimaki

• Tough break for Sidney Crosby Little Penguin alum Cooley to hurt his leg last week crashing into a goal post. He’s out a minimum of eight weeks, which that seemed like it could have been a lot worse if that’s about all it is.
• That defense has a lot of “hey, I know him” names on it.
• All Czech goalie crease? That’s a rarity.

Season stats
via hockeydb

• Utah was doing great on the injury front until Cooley went down, barely any of their key players have missed time at all before that point aside from that incident and Durzi missing a chunk of the year and Kerfoot out for all of it so far. 11 of their players still have perfect attendance this deep into the season, that’s no small feat with injury time going up across the league this year.
• Cool to see 34-year old Andrew Agozzino (who played 17 NHL games in Pittsburgh in 2019-20) still kcking around. He’s not at the NHL level currently.
• Tanev has a great agent and reputation to get multi-year contracts deep into his 30’s.

Key matchup: Utah offense vs. Pittsburgh defense

This would be a big red blinking warning light even if the Pens didn’t blow a big lead yesterday and head into today with an unknown and uncertain state, while the Mammoth didn’t play yesterday. Utah is a great 5v5 offensive ream, they generate a ton. They also have the speedy forwards that can exploit the weaknesses of the Pens’ defense: Dylan Guenther scored two goals and added an assist in his lone game against Pittsburgh last season. JJ Peterka is another gifted offensive player with incredible wheels, he scored two goals over three games last season vs PIT (while with Buffalo). Clayton Keller collected three assists in the two games against the Pens last year.

Another “watch out for Guenther” segment

The Hat Trick

Another lesson in goaltender interference as Utah made a wise challenge.
Dylan Guenther has caught fire at the right time.
Nick Schmaltz offered one of his most complete performances of the season.https://t.co/9OcLofUYBX

— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) December 13, 2025

Guenther has four goals in three games since Cooley has gone down. He was massive against Seattle on Friday night.

“He’s been great,” Nick Schmaltz said. “He’s one of our best players, he makes a ton of plays, he scores a lot of big goals for us.”

“We’re happy to have him. I think he’s been great for us all year.”

It might be Guenther’s two-goal, three point game last year in PPG Paints Arena, but seriously. Circle No. 11 on the board, underline it, bold it and make sure he’s accounted for as much as possible. Easier said than done, of course, but this is the player that could wreck the game if he’s allowed to do it.

And now for the Pens​

Projected lines

FORWARDS

Rickard Rakell – Sidney Crosby – Bryan Rust

Rutger McGroarty – Ben Kindel – Justin Brazeau

Ville Koivunen – Tommy Novak – Anthony Mantha

Connor Dewar – Kevin Hayes – Noel Acciari

DEFENSEMEN

Parker Wotherspoon / Erik Karlsson

Ryan Shea / Kris Letang

Ryan Graves / Connor Clifton

Goalies: Arturs Silovs and Sergei Murashov?

Potential Scratches: Danton Heinen, Jack St. Ivany

IR: Blake Lizotte, Evgeni Malkin, Filip Hallander, Caleb Jones

• It remains unknown if Stuart Skinner and Brett Kulak can get their visa situation squared away in time to join up for today’s game. Murashov was recalled under the emergency circumstances to get on the roster, he’s free to be used at any time (just has to be returned to the AHL once the emergency has subsided and Skinner rejoins the team).
• The IR list is getting notably shorter in recent days, at least. Malkin’s absence has been felt, though Rakell’s return at least provides a trickle down effect to create a fairly formidable group on paper compared to some of the lineups over the past few weeks.
• The team may well choose to have Crosby, Malkin and Kindel on three different lines when all are healthy at the same time, but it seems an easy prediction to make that Kindel won’t be playing on a third line for very much longer. At some point it might make sense to “Jordan Staal age-18” Kindel and put him on a scoring line as a winger considering he definitely is one of the team’s best six forwards.
• This could be a danger game for the Pens, based on frittering away a 5-1 third period lead in a historic fashion. There’s a bad recent precedent, earlier this week when Pittsburgh blew the Anaheim game by conceding the tying goal with 0.1 seconds left they ended up starting slow and losing 4-2 to Montreal as a follow up. It’ll be interesting to see if they can scrub the memories of their latest blown lead but that is typically a difficult thing to instantly move on from.

Penguins seeking answers​

"The common thread is we get away from what works… I have to clearly be better."

Coach Muse following today's loss pic.twitter.com/7IfeiAVrUt

— SportsNet Pittsburgh (@SNPittsburgh) December 14, 2025

Dan Muse has a big problem on his hands when it comes to figuring out how to get his team to perform for full games. Given the condensed schedule, they’re going to have to try and figure it out on the fly. In a way they’re left trying to finish building the aircraft while it’s already in the air, but such is life in an 82-game NHL season. How the rookie coach is able to handle this moment could go a long way in defining how the season goes.

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/penguins-...iew-utah-mammoth-pittsburgh-penguins-12-14-25

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

Penguins/Mammoth Recap: Past the point of ridiculous, Pens blow another three-goal third period lead, lose in OT

Pregame​

Same forwards and defensemen for the Penguins as yesterday’s meltdown, rookie Sergei Murashov is pressed into action since Stuart Skinner and Brett Kulak are still tied up with their paperwork coming into America.

Today's lineup vs. Utah. pic.twitter.com/Bhuk5BQ0RF

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 14, 2025

The visiting Utah Mammoth make their first appearance known as the Mammoth in Pittsburgh with this lineup.

Let’s rock. pic.twitter.com/1C8uHgdScV

— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) December 14, 2025

First period​

You never know what is going to happen in a Penguin game, so you’d better not miss much. Pittsburgh gets the first goal just 48 seconds into the game when Justin Brazeau’s centering pass jumps off a Utah player and into the net. Sure. 1-0 home team early.

Hot start pic.twitter.com/8Lo2DyaT35

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 14, 2025

After the great setup on the opening goal, Ben Kindel heads to the penalty box to give the Mammoth the first crack at the power play. Their power play does not look in good condition, multiple clears by the Pens makes short work of it.

The Pens get a power play of their own, not much to write about.

Utah the better of the teams for most of the period but Murashov is there to tend the goal.

The Mammoth turn the puck over on a failed breakout and out of no where Bryan Rust gains control deep in the offensive zone. He just kinda flicks a shot and the goalie Vejmelka isn’t sharp enough to get all of it and the puck slips in. 2-0 game.

Rusty has six points (3G-3A) over his last three games

AND… WE GET 1/2 OFF RUSTY’S SHAKE AT THE @MShakeFactory TOMORROW! pic.twitter.com/D4Zgobe4cN

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 14, 2025

Sidney Crosby draws a power play on the rush when his old teammate Ian Cole piefaces him with a free hand.

Shots are 8-6 Utah, which sounds close enough. Shot attempts are 24-9 Utah, painting a better picture of where the puck was for a lot of the period.

Second period​

The game settles in, an opportunistic Penguin move creates another goal. Ben Kindel changes on the fly and due to the bench alignment in the second period is behind all the Utah defense. Ryan Shea hits Kindel with a long stretch pass and it’s a free and clear breakaway. Kindel makes no mistake on the right-glove catching Vejmelka to shoot to his blocker side and extend the score to a dangerous 3-0 lead, considering how the Penguins have been going at this point..

Le jeune Ben Kindel s'échappe et donne une avance de 3 à 0 aux Penguins pic.twitter.com/bEvXQgwJwn

— TVA Sports (@TVASports) December 14, 2025

Ville Koivunen is off to the penalty box for hooking, Murashov makes a huge save on Michael Carcone to help the kill out.

ROBBED BY MURASHOV pic.twitter.com/GDQwLMalJ1

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 14, 2025

The Pens keep playing with fire in terms of going short-handed, this time it’s Connor Clifton off for two minutes. Pittsburgh again survives.

Not a lot of offense for Pittsburgh, just three shots on the period compared with 10 for the Mammoth. The mammoth performer so far has been Murashov, stopping all 18 shots his way so far. Pittsburgh up 3-0, which should be comfortable but can’t be with the form this club has been in.

Third period​

Oh boy, Utah opens the door 1:07 in. The sequence is started with the forwards changing and Parker Wotherspoon advanced the puck instead of hanging back and waiting for reinforcements. The Pens never touch it again. JJ Peterka throws a puck on the net, the rebound kicks out to Nate Schmidt and Murashov can’t recover in time. 3-1.

Utah is on the board! pic.twitter.com/XnDaUwKReQ

— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) December 14, 2025

Right off the next faceoff, it happens again. Carcone races around Clifton and shoots one that Murashov can’t control. 3-2 game. Uh oh.

Carcs gets one

3-2, Pittsburgh. pic.twitter.com/UOpN7Vr8uP

— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) December 14, 2025

Pittsburgh goes to the timeout to calm things down. Doesn’t really w0rk. Utah scores another with 14:25 to go. Ryan Graves pushes into Kevin Stenlund in front of the net but doesn’t remove him. Sean Durzi uses the screen to fire in a goal. Out of desperation, the Pens challenge for goalie interference. Stenlund’s skate is in the blue paint but he doesn’t really physically interfere with the goalie, the refs find. Good goal and Pittsburgh is penalized for delay of game.

Durz makes it 3-3!

Things are getting exciting here in Pittsburgh. pic.twitter.com/vb1fdKQJut

— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) December 14, 2025

Carcone makes Pittsburgh pay for the challenge with a power play goal. Murashov is sinking, not square to the shot, but Shea and the PK are letting any and everything through too. 4-3 Utah.

Michael Carcone for the lead! But picks up his first @NHL point with the assist!

4-3, Utah! pic.twitter.com/Ja2EFpEzgY

— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) December 14, 2025

Bad gets worse when Rust is sent off for hooking. Durzi did clamp down on Rust’s stick but it has to get up there in the first place to make that happen. Pittsburgh kills it off at least.

There’s still some fight in the Pens, their second line gets a good shift and Brazeau tips in an Erik Karlsson point shot to tie the game back up. 4-4 with 5:54 to play.

BACK IN IT. pic.twitter.com/oe9FsMzXTS

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 14, 2025

It’s Pittsburgh looking as good as they have for a sustained bit in a while with Kindel and his line leading the charge to find a late winner, but regulation expires first.

Overtime​

Kindel starts OT with Rakell and Karlsson. Kindel wins the faceoff but turns the puck over to the wrong guy. Dylan Guenter motors in alone and shoots a long-rage shot that beats Murashov. That kind of day for the Pens, which ends in a loss.

Gunner doing what he does best! OT Winner!!! pic.twitter.com/Q5YsH4DEZO

— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) December 14, 2025

Some thoughts​

• Haven’t always liked Rust’s total game this season at times given away from the puck play, but he’s winding into form now and the offensive contributions can’t be denied. Today’s goal marked the third in a row that he’s found the back of the net, and he’s got six points in the last three. With Malkin out and Rakell still working on his timing and game form, the Pens need Rust at the top of his game, he hasn’t disappointed lately.
• Good to see Brazeau score a goal for the first time in his return from injury in his fifth game back, let alone add another huge goal in the third period to tie the game back up. Overall it’s his first goals since October 28th. The Pens improve to 5-1-3 on the season when Brazeau records a point which I’d bet is starting to get out of just being random noise. They’re probably going to do well on that day when players like Brazeau are producing. Today of course falls into that coulda/shoulda/woulda category that’s growing too much.
• That’s two games in a row with a primary assist for Kindel (and another in the third period) to double his season output of assists from three to six after this weekend. All three assists of the recent helpers came at even strength, where he only had one ES assist the entire season as of yesterday morning. The upgrade in QoT to not play with the Tomasino/Koivunen/Novak types these days are starting to pay off.
• And how about that breakaway goal for Kindel? Sometimes back pressure makes that a different situation from penalty shots but in this one Kindel knew he had all the time in the world, made a deke and confident, strong shot that scored. Pittsburgh shouldn’t play another shootout in the foreseeable future where they don’t pick Kindel to go out there for it. He might not be a mortal lock to score but he’s shown more in this (and winning the team shootout competition last month in Sweden) to be involved.
• Another maddening collapse, the Pens were flirting with disaster all game but were able to survive for a while with Murashov making a pair of saves from the puck hitting the top of his stick. Add in some penalty kill time, minimal offensive pressure and spending way too much time in their own end and well, who needs to explain it when it’s happened so often lately.
• You can understand the helpless Muse trying to empty the tank with timeout usage and challenges just in case, but nothing is working anywhere to prevent the collapses. It might not have even mattered but I didn’t like that specific challenge, there was not a lot there to review besides Graves not being good at defense and it served up a golden chance to fall behind. Which they did. So even the coaching inputs are hurting more than helping at this point.
• By the first TV timeout in the third period Utah had 4 goals since intermission, the Penguins had 2 shots. Uuuuuuuugly.
• Given how bad the Pens have been with leads lately, this might be one of the few times you could accurately say with a straight face that it’s a wonder that the team up 3-0 at the start of the third period even made it to overtime considering that they were losing 4-3 fairly deep into the game. Stealing this one would have been nice to steady the ship, but frankly considering the 37-16 shot differential, it’s not a game that they exactly deserved to win following another backbreaking collapse.

Checking the schedule it’s Edmonton up next for Tuesday. That will have some extra attention on it, given the swap of goalies between the two teams.

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/game-reca...other-three-goal-third-period-lead-lose-in-ot

 

[Pittsburgh Penguins]

The week ahead: How will the Penguins bounce back from a baffling, insane week?

When we looked ahead to this past week on Monday, I said it would have been a good week if the Penguins could collect at least five or six points in the four games that were ahead. After all, things were looking good. The Penguins had just completed a wildly successful three-game road trip through Philadelphia, Tampa Bay and Dallas where they went 2-0-1 against three good teams, and found themselves near the top of the league and Eastern Conference standings.

The games they had on the horizon were tough, but winnable, and all of them at home.

The Penguins actually put themselves in good positions to win most of those games.

But that 3-2 overtime loss in Dallas, where they lost a late lead and lost another game in a shootout, should have been a warning for what was about to come in the games ahead.

Actually, the Tampa Bay game, where they blew a 3-0 lead, and then nearly blew another late lead, should have been the real warning.

Because they kept doing things exactly like that.

It was a maddening week.

Let’s break down all of the insanity.

• The week began with the Penguins holding a 3-2 lead against the Anaheim Ducks, in a game the Penguins mostly carried, with 17 seconds to play, a power play, and an offensive zone face-off. That should be a regulation win 100 times out of 100 in that situation. The Penguins even won possession of the puck off of the face-off and dumped the puck back into the Anaheim zone with under 10 seconds to play. They still somehow allowed a game-tying goal with 0.1 seconds left. Then they lost in a shootout.
• On Thursday their game was delayed for 30 minutes because of an accident on I-279 in the city that prevented players from getting to the arena on time. While they showed up in body, they were not there in mind and were just absolutely rocked for most of the night by the Montreal Canadiens.
• On Friday, the Penguins and Edmonton Oilers swapped starting goalies with Tristan Jarry going west, following weeks of rumors, for Stuart Skinner and Brett Kulak. Jarry already made his debut with Edmonton and got a win. Skinner and Kulak are still dealing with the immigration process and have yet to join the Penguins.
• On Saturday the Penguins seemed to be in a position to wash the bad taste from the previous three games out of their mouths and had a 5-1 lead against a bad San Jose Sharks team — a Sharks team that lost one of its best players in Will Smith to injury — with 14 minutes to play. They allowed the Sharks to pull off their first four-goal, third period comeback in franchise history, tying the game and then ultimately winning it in overtime, 6-5.
• Just 24 hours later the Penguins went into the third period with a 3-0 lead against a Utah Mammoth team — that had to help push a car out of the snow before the game! — and seemed to be in a position to redeem themselves. The Penguins were not playing well, but Sergei Murashov was shining and they had a chance to show they could, in fact, hold a big lead late in a game. And then Utah scored four goals in seven minutes to take the lead. The Penguins were able to show at least an ounce of pride and tie the game late, sending it to overtime, where they lost 44 seconds in.

They were in a position to get those six points.

Any team in the NHL, when given those situations, should have earned the six points. Probably 100 times out of 100. Certainly at least 99 times out of 100.

The Penguins managed to get only three points.

If that is not enough, the Penguins are only 2-1-2 this season when entering the third period with a three-goal lead. That is three losses in those situations.

The rest of the NHL this season is 73-0 when faced with that situation.

They are 1-9 in games that go beyond regulation, which, while still a major problem that is leaving potential points on the table, is not anywhere near as big of a problem as the fact they seem to be in their own heads and incapable of holding what should be an insurmountable lead.

I have no idea what to make of this.

Are the Penguins an overachieving bad team?

Are they a fragile, mentally broken good team?

Losses at this point would be easier to accept if they were just getting dominated from the opening face-off and losing regular, normal games. But that is not happening. The opposite is happening. While the roster is still obviously flawed in some big areas (the defense is not good; the goaltending is inconsistent and has been for years) they are still playing really well for long stretches of time.

They dominated Philadelphia.

They beat Tampa Bay, one of the best teams in the league, in their building, in regulation.

They outplayed Dallas, arguably the second-best team in the league, for most of Sunday’s game.

They controlled the play against a good Anaheim team for 59 minutes 59.9 seconds.

They were dominating San Jose for 40 minutes.

They dominated Toronto, in Toronto, for 40 minutes and had a 3-0 lead earlier this season.

Truly bad teams do not really do that. The Penguins are not uncompetitive. They are not lacking in talent. They can create and produce offense as well as any team in the league and have some of the best special teams in the league. That is worth something.

Even with these blown leads and this stretch of games, they are STILL on a 100-point pace for the season and still very much in the playoff race. By points percentage they are still 11th in the NHL and sixth in the Eastern Conference. A lot of that is due to the broken nature of the NHL standings that do not properly weigh regulation wins versus overtime and shootout defeats. But that is another topic for another day.

Go back to September training camp and tell somebody that in Mid-December the Penguins would be on that pace and in this spot in the standings you would probably say, “hey, maybe they are not so bad.” But there is no way you could have anticipated it looking like THIS.

It is truly one of the most baffling things I have ever seen in sports. Even if you want to conclude that the Penguins are not a very good team and are not as good as their 10-game start to the season, teams simply do not lose games like this, this often, and this frequently. Bad teams just lose games. They get beat from the start. Not even lottery teams give away games like this.

What is really a kick in the head with these recent game is they have come after the returns of forwards Rickard Rakell and Justin Brazeau. But those returns coincided with the absences of Evgeni Malkin and Blake Lizotte. The injury situation just keeps balancing out in the worst possible way.

What do you even do at this point?

The other concerning thing is that it is not really the young guys or the new guys that are causing a lot of this. It is the veterans. Look at the players that were on the ice for the ending of the Anaheim game. Sidney Crosby. Bryan Rust. Kris Letang.

Look at the players on the ice in overtime on Sunday.

Or the players that were on the ice for much of the San Jose meltdown.

It was the guys that should know better and be better and be leading by example. I have made the argument — and still believe it — that it is good for rebuilding teams to having good players that still give a damn around their younger players. Right now those players are the ones doing a lot of the damage in terms of their failure to hold leads and their inability to win in overtime. If these guys want to make the playoffs again in Pittsburgh a lot of this has to fall on them to start being better in these situations.

The Penguins have four games this week, including one more game this home stand against Jarry and the Oilers. With the way the week is going he probably shuts them out and scores an empty-net goal.

They then go on the road for two games against the Ottawa Senators and Montreal before returning home for another game against the Canadiens as part of a home-and-home.

The Oilers have not played up to expectations this season, but they still have Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. We saw what Montreal is capable of this past week with their young talent. Ottawa has been struggling lately.

I am not even going to try and think of what a reasonable week should look like because nothing about this team is reasonable.

Whatever their record ends up being this week we are really going to learn something about this team and where its mindset is. If they can regroup and find a way to win some games, that is a great sign. If they go in the tank and just lose games from the start, that is probably a bad sign. If they keep losing third period, multi-goal leads you might have to really start considering drastic changes. This can not continue.

Source: https://www.pensburgh.com/analysis/...guins-bounce-back-from-a-baffling-insane-week