The Pittsburgh Penguins came out strong again on Monday against the Montreal Canadiens and once again faltered in the second period.
But this time, depth scoring was very important for the Penguins.
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Lars Eller scored two goals and Kevin Hayes scored the game-winning goal in the third period as the Penguins defeated the Canadiens 6-3. Rickard Rakell and Kris Letang also scored for Pittsburgh, and Evgeni Malkin added the empty-netter to seal the late victory.
Goaltender Tristan Jarry made 27 stops on 30 shots and had a strong performance for the Penguins late in the game.
Here are some thoughts and observations from Pittsburgh’s win on Monday:
– Rakell deserves a lot of praise for the way he has started this season.
His skating looks much better. His forechecking and board play have been spectacular, his defensive awareness remains strong and he is thinking about the game at a high level. He knows how to use his physicality and vision to create space, and he anticipates his position well to make plays.
And that’s not even Rakell’s strongest attribute. That would be his chance.
He fired a shot past Montembault to score the first half, but later also ripped two more rockets off the post. The puck jumps off his stick and his patented snap is absolutely lethal right now.
One of my predictions for this season is that Rakell would score over 30 goals (to be exact, I predicted 37, the highest number of his career). If you continue doing the things you’re doing now, you should get there relatively easily. It’s been that good.
– On that note, I don’t think there are enough good things that can be said about Malkin right now. He was shot like a cannon and has been the Penguins’ most dynamic offensive player so far this season.
You need to see the ice as much as possible right now, plain and simple.
– Having said all that, being in the top six as a whole is definitely a problem.
After a promising game in Detroit, Sidney Crosby’s line has been virtually ineffective. Michael Bunting has been a little too quiet in place of his linemates, although it was definitely more noticeable tonight.
It’s certainly not ideal to separate Malkin and Rakell right now, and I think it’s fair to give Bryan Rust a few games to get his legs back after getting hurt to start the season. However, I still believe that, especially now that Jake Guentzel is gone, Crosby needs a true finisher on his line.
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That’s not to say Crosby can’t do it alone. He is perfectly capable, as he has proven time and time again. But Malkin has always excelled more as an individual player when he’s on the line, and he certainly is now.
Crosby needs a game-thinker on his line and a guy who can finish, which is why Guentzel had so much success with him. Rakell is the closest player on this roster. Rust and Beauvillier are quick, forechecking north-south wingers, and while Rust is very good, a player like that works best in a complementary role with Crosby.
I wouldn’t mind seeing them play Rakell to Crosby’s left and push Drew O’Connor to Malkin’s right, as the Bunting-Malkin-O’Connor line worked quite well against Detroit on Thursday.
And, if we get into details here, the Rakell-Crosby-Rust line was the Penguins’ best line of the season in a small sample in 2023-24. In fact, Rakell was part of the Penguins’ top three lines last season:
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– These last six positions have improved a lot compared to last season, and I think it is something quite safe to count on for the rest of the season.
There was a lot of talk about moving Eller during the offseason. I think what has been proven all along is that Eller can be a very good third-line center when you put offensively talented players on his wings. The third line of O’Connor, Eller, and Jesse Puljujarvi was very good tonight, and they seemed to generate some chemistry throughout the night.
Puljujarvi is really a boost to the third line and I think he deserves a consistent spot in the lineup right now.
As for the fourth line? I really like what I’m seeing from them so far this season. I’ve praised Cody Glass and the tune hasn’t changed. But Hayes and Noel Acciari really seem like good complementary pieces in that vein. They are thorough defensively and can really do it in forechecking.
If the Penguins can find the right combination in the top six, this will be a formidable lineup.
Related: Is there a goaltending controversy in Pittsburgh?
– In terms of goaltending, Jarry’s night didn’t start ideally. They allowed a questionable first goal, and Montreal’s third goal was one of those “you could have made a save there” goals.
However, I give him credit for the way he closed the evening. Montreal came out very strong late in the game (Crosby’s line was locked in their own zone for over two minutes and completely exhausted) and Jarry made some big stops to keep the lead intact.
This was a big game for him. And I think he did enough in this game to keep his starting position for now.
– Someone who has really surprised me in a good way so far this season is Matt Grzelcyk.
He had some defensive problems against the Rangers (they all did) and Toronto. But he’s very good at joining the rush, has deceptive speed and moves the puck very well, something Sullivan has reiterated several times. He showed it in his pass to Malkin in the third period that led to Letang’s goal:
I like the results obtained so far. I think he and Letang could be a good couple.
– The Penguins play back-to-back home games against Buffalo on Wednesday and Carolina on Friday before beginning their Western Canada road trip on Monday against the Winnipeg Jets.
These two games should be a good test for Pittsburgh. Buffalo has promising young talent and a pretty dynamic offense, while the Hurricanes are a good defensively solid four-line team, as always.
Additionally, goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic has been skating with the team and appears close to returning. It will be interesting to see who scores on Wednesday.
Related: THN Penguins Predictions: Where Will the Team Finish in the Standings?
