After this season started off very promising the Penguins are beginning to look like the team that almost missed the playoffs last year before making a couple of trades and going on a tear in March to bring the Penguins back into the playoff picture. You have to wonder how the cup champions could possibly have so many holes in there lineup after looking invincible during the playoffs with basically the same roster. We did lose Gill and Scuderi to free agency, has that been what has caused the terrible defensive play over the last month? There replacements have been Mckee and Gogo. Mckee has done a great job taking over for Scuderi, but Gogo has been terrible on the defensive end. Gogo needs to put on some muscle and learn to play a more defensive game.
What else has been going wrong:
The PP continues to be bad, this plagued the Penguins for a large part of last season as well but I don't remember it being this bad. I just don't understand how a team with as many super stars as the Penguins have can be this bad on the PP.
Evgeni Malkin can't seem to break out of his goal scoring slump. This is a guy who won the scoring title last year in both the regular season and in the playoffs. This season he is not even in the top 25 point getters. I don't know why he is struggling so bad but the Penguins really need him to snap out of it.
The Penguins top line wingers can't score. We are getting more production from 3rd and 4th line wingers like Rupp, Kennedy, Dupuis, and Cooke than we are from our top line wingers. The only top line winger we have who has not been a disappointment is Bill Guerin.
Positives:
Crosby and Staal have been great for the Penguins, these two have carried this team so far this season. Crosby has reinvented himself as a goal scorer, he is 12 goals away from breaking his career high of 39 and we are only half way through the season. Jordan Staal is also finding his offensive touch, to go along with his already great defensive skills. I can't believe I wanted him to be traded last year, this guy should held onto by the Penguins at any cost.
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I really believe that the Power Play is the root of all our issues...okay, that and Fluery's normal 'I suck' period, but a solid PP will nullify that.
ReplyDeleteI do feel that if we could at least get our PP to 20th in the league, we'd be winning at least half of the games we are losing. Last night is the perfect example. Our PP sucked the life out of us especially after the 5 on 3 (and if memory serves, the Wild scored shortly afterwards). So, if we get a goal there, it's a totally new hockey game. I am amazed that it continues to be this bad, with no one trying to fix a damn thing. Whether it be firing Yeo, or just splitting players up, because no one on that team can say "We're making it right! Trust us", because, clearly, they ain't!
I was super pissed off after last nights game. The 'Power Kill' is an absolute joke. If I were the Wild's coach I would've lined cones to the penalty box and just told my team to follow the cones, and take a nice two minute rest. The Pens sure as hell weren't gonna make them pay. Awful
haha I love the last paragraph of your post. Your right if we can get the PP on track you wouldn't notice the other problems so much.
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