It is finally Thursday and our Penguins are back on the ice again at Consol Energy Center. Tonight, they host defending Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson and the Ottawa Senators!
The puck drop for tonight is 7:00pm locally, but Big Dave's Pens Pregame begins write now...
Tonight's "Big Dave Gameday Jam" comes from one of my favorite "indie" bands out there. They are Seattle band The Head and the Heart. If you like the sound of Mumford and Sons or Of Monsters and Men, you should like these guys. Very mellow music, which is always good now and again. This song is off their self titled album from 2010, it is called "Winter's Song."
The State of the Penguins
After dropping their first two games of the season on the road to Dallas and Arizona, the Penguins hoped to right the ship Tuesday night in their home opener. Unfortunately, despite all the fan fair, red carpets and ceremonies, things continued to get worse for the tenants of Consol Energy Center.
The Pens needed to get off to a better start, but they were flat again in the first period. They fought hard in the second, taking a tied game into the second intermission, before being completely out played in the final twenty minutes. In the end, the Penguins dropped their opener and their third straight game.
The state of the Penguins is without a doubt disarray. They continually are getting out worked over the course of their games. Head Coach Mike Johnston just can't seem to get his top lines to buy into his "system," instead they play for the stagnant breakout with thirty foot stretch passes that lead to numerous chances for the opposition. The power play has been blacked out, hit by an EMP for almost a full calendar year now. Johnston is coaching scared and the team is playing at a shocking low level.
Even with the disappointing results, there have been a few bright spots.
Defenseman Kris Letang has been phenomenal. The 28-year-old has been the consistent shining star for a star studded team. Letang leads the team in ice time, averaging roughly 27 minutes a night and has had 15 shots on goal over the first three games. He is one of three Penguins to score this year and is playing well in the defensive zone as well.
The bottom six has also been a bright spot. The Pens have gotten solid play out of oft-injured winger Beau Bennett. His best game came Tuesday night against Montreal, when he scored a goal on six shots on goal and also had four hits. He played alongside offseason acquisition Nick Bonino in all three games.
Bonino has also been solid. After missing part of the preseason due to illness, Bonino has come on strong in the last two games. He had two excellent scoring chances in Arizona and added four more shots in Tuesday's contest. He has been solid in the faceoff circle and his defensive play has been second only to fourth line center Matt Cullen.
Speaking of Cullen, he has lived up to expectations. The 38-year-old was brought in to be a dependable, veteran on the fourth line. He has played excellent defense, excelled on a struggling penalty kill and has created some solid offensive chances on the fourth line.
While there has been things to be pleased by, the majority of the year has been disappointing.
Sidney Crosby has struggled. He played well Tuesday night, but his performance in the first two games were bad. Evgeni Malkin hasn't been good over the three games, despite the assist on Tuesday. Phil Kessel played well on the road, but was definitely tentative in the opener. Chris Kunitz has been a non-factor and Olli Maatta has looked average on the back end.
The Penguins need to right this ship. They are saying the right things in the room, but they are not putting their money where their mouths are. They need to play full games, something they haven't done in what seems like years. They will have a tough test again tonight, when Erik Karlsson and the up-and-coming Ottawa Senators visit Consol Energy Center.
What Rebuild?: The Ottawa Senators
The 2014-15 version of the team was supposed to be bad. In fact, they were supposed to be so bad that many thought they'd be in the Connor McDavid sweepstakes. However, no one told Erik Karlsson and the boys on the ice that the season was supposed to be a loss.
Instead, the Senators got off to a slow start before becoming practically unbeatable down the stretch. They went 23-4-4 over their last 31 games to snatch the first wild card spot in the Eastern Conference. The turnaround was thanks in large part to their call up from Binghamton, goaltender Andrew Hammond. The "Hamburglar" as he became known, went 20-1-2 in his 23 starts coming down the stretch. He was nearly unbeatable and it got the Senators into the playoffs.
Meanwhile, others were helping the playoff push. Defenseman Erik Karlsson led the team in points enroute to his second Norris Trophy. He posted 65 points on the season. Rookie Mark Stone emerged as a top line winger, scoring 26 goals and 64 points in all 82 games. Kyle Turris took a big step forward, also scoring 64 points on the year. While Mika Zibanejad emerged as another offensive weapon for the Senators. All four return for the 2015-16 season.
The Senators stood pat in the offseason, re-signing core guys for the future. The move has paid off. The Sens have opened the season just as they finished last, playing very good hockey. They took out the Sabres on opening night by a score of 3-1 in upstate New York. Two days later, they won a shootout with the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-4 before dropping the second of back-to-back games against the Canadiens 3-1 on Sunday.
The Scoop on the Senators:
- The Senators are 3-1-0 on the season.
- They have won all three of their games on the road so far this season.
- The Sens were 20-13-8 on the road in 2014-15 season.
Scoring Leaders:
- D Erik Karlsson - 7pts (0G-7A)
- C Kyle Turris - 6pts (4G-2A)
- RW Mark Stone - 6pts (1G-5A)
- LW Mike Hoffman - 4pts (1G-3A)
- C Mika Zibanejad - 4pts (1G-3A)
Injury Report:
- D Chris Phillips (back) is OUT tonight.
Line Combinations:
- Mike Hoffman - Kyle Turris - Mark Stone
- Shane Prince - Mika Zibanejad - Bobby Ryan
- Milan Michalek - Jean-Gabriel Pageau - Curtis Lazar
- Alex Chiasson - Zach Smith - Chris Neil
Defensive Pairs:
- Erik Karlsson - Marc Methot
- Cody Ceci - Patrick Wiercioch
- Jared Cowen - Mark Borowiecki
Craig Anderson is expected to start in net.
News & Notes from the Pens
- Pascal Dupuis (lower-body) did skate prior to the team's morning skate today.
- Eric Fehr joined the boys for morning skate today. Fehr I was a full participant.
- Beau Bennett missed the morning skate this morning. He is OUT tonight and will be re-evaluated tomorrow.
Transaction News:
- The Pens have recalled F Bryan Rust from WBS
- D Tim Erixon has been sent to WBS
The Pens and Sens Matchup:
- The Penguins went 2-0-1 in three games v. Ottawa in 2014-15. The Pens won 3-2 in December at Consol and then in a shootout in Ottawa in February. The Sens took the final matchup of the season 4-3 in overtime in April at home.
- Sidney Crosby was the Pens leading scorer against the Sens in 2014-15. He scored three goals and five points in the three matchups. Evgeni Malkin scored three goals over the three games including two in the December win at Consol. Malkin has also scored 10 goals in his last 9 home games v. Ottawa.
- Erik Karlsson had four points (0G-4A) in the three games v. Pittsburgh last season. Mika Zibanejad had two goals and three points in the three games.
- Phil Kessel has 50 career points against Ottawa. That is his personal best against any NHL team.
- The Pens are 6-1-1 in their 8 games v. Ottawa at Consol Energy Center.
Miscellaneous Penguins Notes:
- Kris Letang currently ranks second in the NHL in average ice time with 27:01
Projected Lines & Pairs
- Chris Kunitz - Sidney Crosby - Phil Kessel
- David Perron - Evgeni Malkin - Patric Hornqvist
- Sergei Plotnikov - Nick Bonino - Daniel Sprong
- Bobby Farnham - Matt Cullen - Kevin Porter
Pairs:
- Kris Letang - Ian Cole
- Olli Maatta - Ben Lovejoy
- Brian Dumoulin - Rob Scuderi
Marc-Andre Fleury is expected to start in net.
My Keys to the Game
2. The Breakout: Enough with the stretch passes. Play Johnston's "system" and move the puck in a pack. It worked last October and hasn't been seen since. The current set-up isn't working. Quit the insanity and try something different, especially the top two lines. They are the most guilty parties of not carrying the puck in a pack.
3. The Top Six: They need to be better in every aspect of the game. Their breakouts have been atrocious. They are passing too much. Their shots have been low quality and their defense subject. They need to buy into the "system" and stop with the stupid stretch passes and Madonna nonsense. Simplify and go hard every shift. We haven't seen that yet this season and its a reason for their struggles.
Honorable Mention - The Consol Crowd: If you are at the game tonight, get into it! The Opener was less lively than a funeral. It was quiet, people were disinterested and the plenty of people showed up 10 minutes late and left 10 minutes early. Thomas Greiss called you out on Monday and frankly, he was right. The Consol crowds are horrible. It's more of a social statement to be there these days than being their to support the team. So I am calling out each and every one of the people in the crowd tonight, either be loud and into the game, or don't go. A packed house of 10,000 people on their phones instead of watching the game is just embarrassing.
My 3 Players to Watch
2. Chris Kunitz: It is simply time to produce for the 36-year-old veteran. Kunitz has been a physical presence over the first three games, but he has done nothing offensively. Is it time to demote him to the bottom six? It may well be. Kunitz will continue to play with Crosby as long as Sid wants him on his line, but if Kunitz doesn't start putting the puck in the net, and playing the role he needs to on that line (aka working the corners and creating shooting opportunities for Kessel and Sid), it may be time to pull the plug and send him to the third line where he probably should be. Kunitz needs a big night like Malkin.
3. David Perron: Definitely looked better on Tuesday playing a top six role. He was flying out there and a hit machine. But, he still didn't score and that's definitely a problem. He has gone close to twenty games without a goal, he needs one in a big way. You can tell he is one goal away from going on a run, hopefully it comes sooner rather than later.
What to Know for Attending and Watching
- Gates open at 6:00pm for a 7:00pm puck drop.
- The Pens will wear their tradition home, black jerseys.
- Every fan in attendance will receive a 2015-16 team calendar presented by Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield.
- The Pens Gear gameday special is for all the ladies out there. It's 40% all GIII and Touch for Her apparel.
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.
- Don't forget, the fifth season of "IN THE ROOM" premieres tonight after the post game show on ROOT.
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
Thank you all for stopping by. The blog has gotten a couple thousand hits over the last week and it is because of you great followers. Thank you for constantly supporting the Pregame, Postgame, Twitter, Facebook and everything in between. It would be a lonely venture without you all.
I will NOT have a View From Where I Sat tonight. I will tweet post game thoughts later in the night.
I am hoping to have a Pregame for Saturday. I have a function I need to be at so I hopefully will be able to get it written and posted. It will likely be there, but if not, I will give you all the heads up.
Enjoy the game. Be loud if you're in the house tonight and remember, LETS GO PENS!!!!