The Pens return to Consol Energy Center tonight after two road wins in Washington and Nashville. Tonight, they look to make it three in a row v. their old coach Dan Bylsma and the Buffalo Sabres.
It's Pens, Sabres tonight at Consol. 7:00pm puck drop for the game, but Big Daves Pens Pregame stars right now...
Tonight's "Big Dave's Gameday Jam" comes from one of the biggest bands out there right now. This song, however, comes off one of their older albums. It's a slower song, but better than the "big hits" you hear incessantly on the radio these days. From Fall Out Boy comes their 2007 song, "The (After) Life of the Party." Enjoy!
The State of the Penguins
The Penguins have scored 16 goals in 9 games. That averages out to 1.78 per game. That is still second worst in the league and completely unacceptable. Think it is just a funk? Look back at last season coming down the stretch. The numbers were just as bad then too.
The power play continues to be atrocious. The Penguins are 2-for-31, good for 6% and last in the NHL. Would you ever have thought that possible with Crosby, Malkin, Kessel, Hornqvist and Letang on that unit? I wouldn't have.
Then there is the fact that they still aren't playing sixty minutes. The Pens played very well for about 10 minutes last night. The other 50 minutes was mediocre at best.
Why are they playing like this?
The NHL is not the scoring league it once was, there is no denying that. However, besides the Ducks, few other teams are having this much trouble scoring and the majority of those teams are not nearly as talented as the Penguins. How can it be that they are struggling this much to score?
I think the biggest reason is that the Penguins are not attacking opponents. They are simply trying to survive these game; hoping they can get a goal or two and let the defense and Fleury take care of the rest. That is not the brand the Penguins have ever tried to sell, nor should they start. It is a direct result of Mike Johnston coaching scared, hoping to hold on to his position. Which, you can't fault him for trying to save his job, but this method is barely working either.
The Penguins, with all their talent, should play cut-throat, attacking style hockey, frankly a style similar to the Capitals. They shouldn't try to survive, they should impose their will over their opponents. Take the game and shove it down their throats. Did the Penguins win every night playing that way in the past? No, but they sure as hell played better than this and it was much easier to watch.
How do the Penguins get back to that brand of hockey?
Unfortunately, at this point for that to happen I think it will cost Mike Johnston his job. He and his staff are coaching for the 2-1, defensive win at this point. I'd love to see them play the system he put in place last October, but they haven't done that since, well, last October. I think while Johnston is the head coach, we will continue to see this dull, mediocre play from some of the league's most talented players. It is a shame that this is the situation, for Johnston is a smart coach and knows a lot more than I ever will about the game. But I am all about the logo and if the Pens firing Johnston leads to better, more consistent play with more goals, then putting off that move is doing the players and the fans an injustice.
Tonight, the Penguins take to the ice in their first back-to-back action of the season. Jeff Zatkoff will get his first start of the season and we will see whether this team will take this opponent lightly and fail to play an entire 60 minutes again. For while the Sabres are struggling, you can bet your last dollar that Dan Bylsma will have them ready to beat his old team tonight....
The Eichel Effect in Upstate NY: Buffalo Sabres
That goes without saying considering they had registered just 106 combined points over the last two seasons in the standings. Last year, they tanked for the hope of getting wonderkid Connor McDavid from the Erie Otters to turn the franchise around. The Sabres were robbed, and there is not questioning that, when Edmonton won the lottery and Buffalo ended up number two in June's draft.
That being said, the consolation prize was pretty good.
The Buffalo Sabres drafted Jack Eichel out of Boston University with the second overall pick. Eichel has been a highly praised prospect for years and he had a huge year for BU last season. He put up 71 points in 40 games at the collegiate level and followed that up with 4 points in five games at World Championships following the season. Eichel is going to be great and he will be key to the Sabres future and turn around for years to come.
So who do the Sabres have to surround Eichel?
The first big name is Ryan O'Reilly. ROR was brought in on the same day as Eichel when the Sabres made a huge deal to get him from Colorado. O'Reilly is a great two way player and is now leading this Sabres team on their top line. Next, you have the pieces on the wings such as Evander Kane, Brian Gionta and Matt Moulson. Kane will be out tonight, but it was a huge trade last year that brought the sniper to Upstate New York. Gionta and Moulson were brought in prior to the 14-15 season and will be key again this year. Zemgus Girgensons had a breakout year for the Sabres last year and he now slides down to their third line with the acquisitions of Eichel and O'Reilly. Finally, they added to the back end with the signing of Cody Franson, the trade for Kane that also netted Zach Bogosian and the trade for Robin Lehner in net from Ottawa.
While the moves should pay off in the long run, it hasn't to start the season. The major issue for Buffalo has been injuries. Lehner was hurt opening week with ankle injury and has yet to return. Evander Kane has an MCL injury and will miss the next few weeks and Bogosian has yet to play this season. Injuries have been a major factor.
The injury to Lehner has hurt, as have the injuries to Bogosian and Mike Weber on the back end. Those three guys are leaps and bounds ahead of their current replacements and until they return I don't think we will see the true Sabres. The Kane injury hurts as well, but there are still several solid pieces in place for them to score.
Now that we've talked about the players and current state, let's take a moment to discuss their new coach. The Sabres signed former Penguins head coach Dan Bylsma to take over the helm of this team last summer. Byslma is a good fit for this team and should really help Eichel grow as a player. His time was up here two seasons ago, but that doesn't mean he isn't a very good coach. I think he will get this Buffalo team turned around and have a shot at the playoffs before the end of his contract.
The Lowdown on the Sabres:
- Record: 3-6-0 (6pts) and seventh in the Atlantic
- Buffalo is 1-2-0 on the road this season.
- Enter tonight on a win, beating Philadelphia on Tuesday night 4-3 in Philly.
- The Sabres are a minus-9 goal differential entering tonight.
Offseason Acquisitions: C Jack Eichel (Draft, 2nd overall), C Ryan O'Reilly (Trade, Colorado), D Cody Franson (Free agency), G Robin Lehner (Trade, Ottawa), D Carlo Colaiacovo (Free agency, Philadelphia), C David Legwand (Trade, Ottawa)
Scoring Leaders:
- C Ryan O'Reilly - 8pts (3G-5A)
- RW Tyler Ennis - 5pts (3G-2A)
- LW Matt Moulson - 4pts (2G-2A)
- D Cody Franson - 4pts (4A)
- C Sam Reinhart - 4pts (1G-3A)
Injury Report:
- D Zach Bogosian (lower-body) has yet to play this season but is getting close. Could play tonight, but more likely to return this weekend.
- LW Evander Kane (knee) is out tonight. He will miss the next 4-6 weeks due to an MCL injury.
- D Mike Weber (undisclosed) will be a game-time decision tonight with an undisclosed injury.
- G Robin Lehner (ankle) is OUT tonight. A high ankle sprain will keep Lehner out for another 6-8 weeks.
Line Combinations:
- Nicolas Deslauriers - Ryan O'Reilly - Tyler Ennis
- Johan Larsson - Jack Eichel - Sam Reinhart
- Matt Moulson - Zemgus Girgensons - Brian Gionta
- Marcus Foligno - David Legwand - Jamie McGinn
Defensive Pairs:
- Josh Gorges - Rasmus Ristolainen
- Jake McCabe - Cody Franson
- Mike Weber - Mark Pysyk
Chad Johnson is expected to start in net for Buffalo tonight.
News & Notes From The Pens
- Eric Fehr practice again yesterday at the skate. He will not play tonight, because his LTIR status forces him to miss 10 games. That being said, he will likely rejoin the team and make his debut come Saturday in Toronto.
- F Bryan Rust is week-to-week with an upper-body injury. No word on the nature of the injury, just that he will be out "a while."
The Pens/Sabres Matchup:
- The Penguins swept the season series last season, including two shutouts. The Pens won 5-0 in Pittsburgh in November and then followed it up with a 2-0 and 6-1 win in Buffalo.
- The Penguins outscored Buffalo 13-1 on the season.
- Sidney Crosby led the way with 8 points in those three games (all assists). Patric Hornqvist had three goals and three assists in those three games.
- Marc-Andre Fleury won all three games last season, including two shutouts and .985 save percentage.
- Zemgus Girgensons scored the only Buffalo goal in the season series.
Projected Penguins Lines & Pairs
- Pascal Dupuis - Sidney Crosby - Patric Hornqvist
- Chris Kunitz - Evgeni Malkin - Phil Kessel
- David Perron - Nick Bonino - Beau Bennett
- Sergei Plotnikov - Matt Cullen - Daniel Sprong
Pairs:
- Ben Lovejoy - Brian Dumoulin
- Kris Letang - Ian Cole
- Olli Maatta - Adam Clendening
Jeff Zatkoff gets his first start of the season tonight.
My Keys to the Game
2. Full 60 MInutes: The Sabres are a rough team and aren't going to contend this season. The Pens tend to take nights off against teams like this, especially after playing the night before. They cannot do that, especially tonight. It fits into number one, and it's really that important. Play a full game, full 60 and get a win. Period, no ifs, ands or buts about it.
3. Score, Score, Score: The Pens need to take care of business tonight against a back up goaltender and banged up blue line. There is no reason why they shouldn't post 40-plus shots on the night and multiple goals. I know they are only averaging 1.78 goals per game entering the night, but they need to break out eventually and tonight would be a great time to do it. If they cannot do it, then someone needs to go. Mike Johnston, your numbers up.
My 3 Penguins to Watch
2. Beau Bennett: Believe it or not, Bennett has been one of the Pens best forwards this year. He has goals in consecutive games and has definitely elevated his game since last year. I'd like to see it continue tonight. He has built great chemistry with Nick Bonino and I look at the two of them to generate some chances tonight again. If he can give the Penguins another goal out of the bottom six, that would be huge.
3. Pascal Dupuis: He's still shaking the rust off, but the Pens cannot afford him to do that for much longer. I think he has the ability to get Sid going and the sooner that happens the better off this team will be. I feel like Duper is going to net the first goal of the game tonight to get Consol rocking and hopefully the Penguins can build off of that the rest of the game.
What to Know for Attending/Watching/Listening
- The puck drops on Pens/Sabres at 7:00pm. Gates at Consol open at 6:00pm.
- The Penguins will wear their "Pittsburgh Gold" jerseys tonight for the first time.
- The Pens Gear "Gameday Special" is just $19.99 for the Pens halloween t-shirt.
- It's almost halloween and the Penguins want you to wear your costumes to tonights game. Join in on the fun and be sure to make it loud!
Here is what you need to know if you're watching tonight's game:
- ROOT Sports has the coverage tonight. Paul Steigerwald and Bob Errey with the call beginning at 7:00pm. Dan Potash will have the interviews.
- Penguins Pregame will precede the game coverage beginning at 6:30pm.
- Penguins Post Game will follow the game action.
Here is what you need to know if you're listening to tonight's game:
- 105.9 The X, the Penguins app, the Penguins website and iHeart Radio app are all places you can pick up the game tonight.
- Mike Lange and Phil Bourque will have the game call beginning at 7:00pm.
- Penguins Pregame will precede the game coverage at 6:00pm. Josh Getzoff will host.
- Penguins Hot Line will follow the game action.
Pens Points:
- Attending the Game: 50pts
- Concession Purchases: 10pts
- Merchandise Purchases: 10pts
- ROOT Sports Pregame Keyword: 5pts
- ROOT Sports Post Game Keyword: 5pts
- Pens Radio Keyword: 5pts
Thanks for stopping by for tonight's Pregame. I thank you all for your continued support of the twitter, facebook and blog. Yall are doing a marvelous job of spreading the word and I can't thank you enough.
I will have post game thoughts tonight, so be sure to check back for that.
Saturday I will have a Pregame, but no post game. Halloween and all that.
That'll do it for me. Enjoy the game and LETS GO PENS!!!!!