Hello Penguins fans and welcome to the latest edition of the Big Dave's Pens Pregame show. I appreciate you stopping by for another night of Pittsburgh hockey. Tonight, our Penguins head north of the border to take on the struggling Montreal Canadiens at the Bell Centre in Montreal.
Puck drops on Pens/Habs at 7:00pm, but you can begin enjoying the Pregame right now...
Tonight's "Big Dave's Gameday Jam" comes from many people's least favorite Star Wars film. I got all the soundtracks for the Star Wars series for Christmas and have been rocking hard to it over the last two weeks. As I said, this song comes from almost everyone's least favorite movie, "The Phantom Menace." Though the movie is far from good, it did produce one of the best pieces of music from any of the films to date. This song, composed by the legendary John Williams and the London Symphony Orchestra is entitled "Duel of the Fates." Enjoy!
The State of the Penguins
That is one way to describe the Penguins home-in-home series with the reigning Stanley Cup champs at midweek. The Penguins emerged from those two games by earning just one point, but the games could not have been more polar opposites.
In Tuesday's game in Pittsburgh, the Penguins dominated the Hawks from the word go. The Pens should have won that game, and likely would have had Corey Crawford not been so stellar in net. The boys peppered the net, created a ton of scoring chances and fought back from a 2-0 deficit to force overtime. How could they dominate if they needed to come back? The Hawks took advantage of the few mistakes the Penguins made on this night. In the end, the Pens earned a point, but didn't get enough luck to win the game for Marc-Andre Fleury.
Wednesday's game was atrocious. I thought I was watching a Mike Johnston coached game on that night. It was dull, boring, numbing. I couldn't wait for it to be over. The Pens were flat. They generated few chances and they made it look rather easy for the Blackhawks. If it weren't for Marc-Andre Fleury, they would have been trounced in this game.
The Penguins are getting closer to where they need to be, even if these two games weren't the results we wanted. Before the poor showing Wednesday, the Penguins were 3-1-2 since Christmas break. That is a pretty good mark. Sidney Crosby finally looks like the dynamic player we've come to expect year in and year out. Marc-Andre Fleury is back from his concussion and has looked incredible. Kris Letang seems to be back in form as well, and Evgeni Malkin continues to be the steady scorer he's been all season.
These guys need some help though. Phil Kessel is priority one in this department. The sniper needs to start firing more pucks on net and stop forcing passes back to his center. David Perron, who has played well despite not scoirng much, needs to start scoring more. Same for Patric Hornqvist. Hornqvist has been better of late, but he should be doing much more, regardless of the line he is put on. Nick Bonino, who I will discuss more in my #AskBigDave section below, needs to start playing like the guy who played for Vancouver an Anaheim before that. Brian Dumoulin needs to get back to his high level of play; he has fallen off a little of late. Olli Maatta and Trevor Daley need to be doing more as well.
The good news for the Penguins is, the teams around them are helping out. The Devils lost Wednesday to the Canadiens. The Flyers traded away Vinny Lecavelier and Luke Schenn on Wednesday, and the Jackets sent their top center Ryan Johansen to Nashville for Seth Jones. Those two teams are selling and the likes of the Devils and Canes shouldn't stick around much longer either.
Tonight is a big game for the Penguins. They are facing a struggling Canadiens team in Montreal with the chance of righting the ship after a disappointing mid-week showing. If they can get a win tonight, they enter a schedule where they play a mix of playoff teams and bottom dwellers over the next two weeks.
Les Canadiens en difficulté: The Montreal Canadiens
It is a phrase you would likely find in any newspaper across Quebec at the moment. The Habs that the Penguins will see tonight, are not the same ones they faced earlier in the season. The Canadiens the Penguins hosted in October and November were riding high. They started the season on a 9-game winning streak and had a huge first month. Things seemed perfect for them. They were winning. They were scoring and their defense was solid.
Then the injuries hit. Reigning Hart Trophy winner Carey Price went down with a groin issue and has played sparingly since. In fact, his career may be in jeopardy if they don't solve this groin issue correctly according to reports I've read. Mike Condon has performed well in his place, but you cannot replace a Carey Price easily.
The scoring, which gravely overachieved in the early going, has come back to earth. While Max Pacioretty continues to score, the likes of Dale Weise has returned to his typical level of output. He also finds himself on the shelf at present with an injury. Alex Galchenyuk and Brendan Gallagher are producing, but the team as a whole has struggled over the last month or so. As a result, they have gone 3-7-0 in their last 10 games and lost their grip on the Atlantic Division to the streaking Florida Panthers.
The Habs need to do something. They need to shake things up to get going again. They made a move Thursday morning with Anaheim, sending Dustin Tokaski to the Ducks for Max Friberg. A minor move, one to likely fill in for Dale Weise in the interim. However, don't expect the Habs to be done making deals. There were rumors in December they were interested in Carolina's Eric Staal and now there are multiple reports they are heavily pursuing Tampa's Jonathan Drouin. Expect them to make some sort of move for the push and playoffs.
The Lowdown on the Habs:
- 23-16-3 overall, good for 49 points and 2nd in the Atlantic.
- The Habs have struggled of late, going 3-7-0 over their last 10 games.
- Montreal is great at home, going 12-6-2 at the Bell Centre so far.
Scoring Leaders:
- LW Max Pacioretty - 33pts (17G-16A)
- C Tomas Plekanec - 31pts (8G-23A)
- D PK Subban - 28pts (1G-27A)
- C Alex Galchenyuk - 27pts (10G-17A)
- RW Brendan Gallagher - 22pts (11G-11A)
Injury Report:
- G Carey Price (lower-body) is OUT tonight. The reigning league MVP is still sidelined with a groin injury, but he is expected to return this season. There were reports that it could possibly be career ending if not treated properly this time.
- RW Dale Weise (upper-body) is OUT tonight. The veteran winger is expected to miss 2-3 weeks with the injury he suffered during the Winter Classic on New Year's Day.
- D Tom Gilbert (lower-body) is OUT tonight. The defenseman has been out for nearly three weeks with a lower body injury.
Projected Lines:
- Max Pacioretty - Tomas Plekanec - Brendan Gallagher
- Daniel Carr - Alex Galchenyuk - Sven Adrighetto
- Lars Eller - David Desharnais - Paul Byron
- Brian Flynn - Torrey Mitchell - Devante Smith-Pelly
Pairs:
- Nathan Beaulieu - PK Subban
- Andrei Markov - Jeff Petry
- Alexei Emelin - Mark Barberio
Mike Condon is expected to start in net tonight for the Habs.
News & Notes From Around the Penguins
- No updates on Beau Bennett who has been out for the last month with an upper body injury.
Roster Moves:
- Penguins re-assign F Conor Sheary and F Scott Wilson to WBS
- Penguins recall F Tom Kuhnhackl and F Bryan Rust from WBS. This is Rust's third recall. Kuhnhackl will make his NHL debut whenever he plays in a game and will wear number 34. He has 7 goals and 15 points in 23 games in WBS this season.
Penguins/Canadiens Notes:
- Last regular season matchup between these two teams.
- The Penguins are 1-1-0 this season against the Habs, earning a 4-3 shootout win in Pittsburgh on November 11th. The Habs won the first matchup of the season 3-2 in Pittsburgh.
- This is the only game between these two teams in Montreal in the regular season.
- The Pens have won 3 of their last 4 at the Bell Centre.
- Evgeni Malkin has a 5-game point streak at the Bell Centre.
- Letang, Crosby, Malkin and Kessel all have two points v. Montreal this season.
- Max Pacioretty has 3 points and leads all scores in the series this year. Andrei Markov, Brendan Gallagher and PK Subban each have 2 points.
- The goal differential is even between the two this season, with each team scoring 6 goals.
Miscellaneous Notes:
- F Evgeni Malkin and D Kris Letang have been named to the Metropolitan Division All-Star team. This is Letang's third selection and Malkin's sixth.
- G Matt Murray, D Derrick Pouliot and F Dominik Simon have been selected to the AHL All-Star Game. Murray currently leads the AHL in save percentage (.942) and is 2nd in the league with a 1.74 GAA. Simon is 9th in the AHL in rookie scoring and leads the Baby Pens with 29 points. Pouliot is top-15 in scoring amongst defenseman in the AHL. This is Pouliot's second all-star appearance while Murray and Simon will be attending their first.
- Kris Letang has a 4-game point streak heading into tonight (3G-6A).
- Marc-Andre Fleury has been lights out in Montreal. He was 2-0 with a 0.48GAA last season and 6-1-1- in their last 8 starts at the Bell Centre with a 1.78 GAA.
#AskBigDave
This is a great question Josh and one that I have thought on a lot over the last few weeks. Many in Penguins nation had given up on Brandon Sutter following his three year stint in Pittsburgh. I for one, was one of the few who loved what he brought to the table. Then late July came and GMJR sent the kid to Vancouver for Nick Bonino and Adam Clendening. I was excited for the trade, as Bonino had good career number everywhere he'd been to that point. I was disappointed to see Sutter go, but excited for what Bonino could bring offensively to the third line.
To this point, I have been incredibly disappointed with what Bonino has done in Pittsburgh. I haven't seen the dynamic center who can score and play solid defense. So far all I've seen is a solid defender and a sub-par offensive player. I don't think this is the real Nick Bonino, but I am losing my patience waiting for the real one to show up. So far in Pittsburgh, Bonino has posted 3 goals, 9 points, a plus-3 rating and a 53.5% success rate in the faceoff circle.
As for Brandon Sutter, he was playing really well for the Canucks until he went down with an abdominal injury. Sutter hasn't played since November 10th and required surgery in early December. He is likely to return in the next two weeks. In 16 games for Vancouver, Sutter has 4 goals and 8 points. He has played well on the top line with Sedins and made an impact both on the PP and the PK for Vancouver. He may not rack up insane offensive numbers, but Sutter was someone you could count on to be at his peak during big games and in the playoffs. His playoff numbers with Pittsburgh were rather good, including 8 goals, 12 points and a plus-5 rating in 33 playoff games with the Penguins.
Now, Sutter has played better in fewer games than Bonino this year. There is no denying that considering Sutter has one less point in half the games Bonino has even played. But in the grand scheme of things, GMJR made the right move. He got a second round pick in the deal that will help this organization either in the draft or at this year's deadline. Adam Clendening is a solid 7th defenseman that I have no worries about on the bottom pairing if needed. Ultimately, I think Nick Bonino will play better and more up to what we saw last season in Vancouver and before that in Anaheim. Plus, Bonino is a much friendlier contract. The Penguins were never going to pay Brandon Sutter 4.5-5 million a season like he got from the Canucks, nor should they have.
At this point, if Bonino scores between 10-15 goals and adds 30 points on the season I will be happy considering the way he's played in the first 37 games for the Penguins. Will Brandon Sutter's numbers be better? Maybe, but as I said, in the grand scheme, it was the smarter move for the Penguins to make long-term.
From Mark A. on the Tweety: "How is Plotnikov still in the lineup and why does no one seem to be questioning that?"
Mark, I really have no problems with Plotnikov in the lineup. I would much rather have him in the lineup than Kevin Porter. Here is why:
Firstly, Plotnikov is still a rookie. He is still adjusting to life in America, the North American style of the game and he is still only a young kid. There is always a learning curve with these guys and I am willing to give him a longer leash because of that. Porter on the other hand, is closer to 30, a career minor leaguer and doesn't have the talent or the size of Sergei Plotnikov. He can kill penalties and that is the only reason he is in the lineup.
Next, I think Plotnikov is a good player being used in a wrong role. This guy is not a fourth line grinder. He is a top-nine scorer. He has the talent level to play in such a role, as he has done so on the national level for Russia alongside Malkin and Ovechkin. Now, he hasn't done much with Malkin this year, but most of that time has come under the Johnston regime that only allowed him 9 minutes a game. To add to this, I am going to lead you to a recent post on The Player's Tribune by Capitals center Evgeny Kuznetsov (http://www.theplayerstribune.com/evgeny-kuznetsov-capitals-russia-hockey/). The Russian style of play is not "dump and chase," grinding hockey. It is possession and stylistic hockey. If you look at his possession numbers, Plotnikov is actually one of the best on the team. But he is not in a role that will reward him for such things, playing the way the rest of that fourth line does.
Finally, I think the points will come for Plotnikov, but I like what he does away from the puck. He's big and lays good hits. He can get other players off their game using his size, something the Pens really don't have besides him.
He is still learning this style of game, and if he is put into a role where he can play the style he knows, he will succeed. Let me leave this out there, if the roles were reversed and Sergei Plotnikov went to the Hawks and Artemi Panarin came here, I think you would see Plotnikov succeed and Panarin struggle. Why? Because the Hawks are using Panarin in a role that complements his talents. He isn't asked to chip and chase, grind other lines down. No, he is asked to possess, dangle and shoot. He is given the right players to succeed. Imagine if the Penguins, now under Mike Sullivan, give Plotnikov the minutes Panarin is getting in a top six role and allow him to play to his strengths. I think the points would come.
From Michael S. on the Tweety: "If there is one thing the Pens can improve chances of winning, what would that be? Also, isn't it too soon after a coaching change to make roster moves (i.e. trades)?"
Interesting question Mike, a lot to think about with these two.
To answer your first question, one thing the Penguins can do to improve is to get more net front presence. They still do not have enough guys going to the net consistently to win hockey games. The games they win and play really well, one of the things they are doing is getting to the net. Patric Hornqvist is great at this. Kunitz and Perron are solid as well but the rest of the team needs to do it more often. I'm looking at guys like Cullen, Fehr, Plotnikov, Sheary, these guys need to go to the net. This is one aspect that drives me nuts and one I think could make a huge difference going forward.
Your second question is very important and I'm glad you asked it. Is it too soon to be making roster changes with a new coach? Right this second, it certainly is. I'd like to see Sullivan have about 15-20 games with this roster to see what works. However, come mid, late-January, they will know where they need to make moves to compete down the stretch. And don't think the Penguins will be quiet, I think they will be busy around the deadline.
Now, in your question to me you said you'd like to see them develop more from within. I agree, I think many would agree the Penguins should do that. However, they are not in a position to really do that as they are chasing in the standings not at the top. If the Penguins were in the Capitals position, they could develop younger players in the lineup and not worry about losing ground. As the Penguins sit right now, they are chasing and need points out of as many games as possible. It will be hard for them to develop young guys in such a situation.
As I said, I think the Penguins will be busy at the deadline. They definitely need to get another defenseman. Ian Cole has been way down after a huge stretch run last year and Ben Lovejoy has come back to earth after a solid start to the season alongside Brian Dumoulin. The Daley trade helped mightily, but they still need to get someone else for the blueline.
Also, at this point, I'd like to see them get a winger for the top six. I have completely lost faith in Kunitz's hands and David Perron isn't scoring nearly enough either. Patric Hornqvist keeps getting shuttled back to the bottom six because he isn't the instant fix and Matt Cullen is playing on the second line. That isn't going to work, especially in the playoffs. I don't know who is available, besides Tampa's Jonathan Drouin, to fill this role. However, the Penguins need to address the issue because it doesn't seem to be getting better.
So Michael, I think it's too soon to do it right now, but give it two-three weeks and the lines will be drawn and the needs will be glaringly apparent. Defense first I think, but a winger is needed as well.
From Reedie on the Tweety: "Who do you think would be a better fit, hypothetically, for the Penguins, Jonathan Drouin or Kerby Rychel?"
This will be a topic of conversation until this kid is dealt Reedie. If I were picking, I'd take Drouin any day. To be honest, I had to look up who Kerby Rychel even was.
Drouin has the numbers and the pedigree. He has played a full NHL season, though cast in the wrong role. He was a phenomenal junior player, performed well in the AHL and at the national level. The kid is worthy of the number 3 overall pick and I don't think he will struggle wherever he is dealt.
Rychel, on the other hand, has no room to be asking for trades. He may be as old as Drouin, but he's played a grand total 16 games in the NHL. Rychel has 3 assists this year and 3 last year, all while averaging less than 10 minutes per night. Rychel has also roughly averaged a point per game in the AHL this year, with 20 points in 21 games.
As far as I am concerned, Drouin is more ready to be playing in the NHL. Hell, he's already played a full year. Rychel has had a cup of coffee in the show and thinks he is too good to be in the AHL. Well, so is Derrick Pouliot but that's how these things go. You pay your dues and keep your mouth shut. Drouin at least was a regular player, I don't have qualms with him wanting out, Rychel, another story.
So as far as I am concerned Reedie, I'd take Drouin every time.
Projected LInes & Pairs
- Chris Kunitz - Sidney Crosby - David Perron
- Patric Hornqvist - Evgeni Malkin - Phil Kessel
- Bryan Rust - Nick Bonino - Tom Kuhnhackl
- Kevin Porter - Matt Cullen - Eric Fehr
Pairs:
- Olli Maatta - Kris Letang
- Ben Lovejoy - Brian Dumoulin
- Trevor Daley - Ian Cole
Marc-Andre Fleury will start in net tonight.
My 3 Keys to the Game
2. Special Teams: The PP and PK have been superb of late. I want to see that continue going forward. The power play will be key in this game because the Habs are a solid 5-on-5 side. Look for Malkin, who has 9 PPGs on the season already, to fire as many one-timers as he can.
3. Rebound: The Pens played like garbage on Wednesday night. Tonight, they need to rebound and get back to the level they played at in the previous six games. I think they can do it, especially with Mike Sullivan behind the bench.
My 3 Penguins to Watch
2. David Perron: He has played well the majority of the season, especially with Malkin and Kessel. Now, he is up with Crosby and Kunitz. Kunitz has been awful in my opinion, which means Perron needs to step up and start scoring to help Sid out. Perron still has the hands, he just needs the confidence. A few goals for him would go along way for him and his line. Maybe that starts tonight in his hometown.
3. Tom Kuhnhackl: The young German will make his NHL debut tonight. He was selected in the 4th round in 2010 because of his sniping hands and solid defensive play. He has continued to strong defense, but the hands have not been the same due to numerous injuries over the last few years. This year, he is healthy and finally gets a chance. I think he could be a solid player, with a lot of jump tonight in his debut. We will see. Congrats and welcome to the show kid.
What to know for Watching/Listening
- 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:
- ROOT Sports Pregame Keyword: 5pts
- ROOT Sports Post Game Keyword: 5pts
- Pens Radio Keyword: 5pts
- Miller Lite Nite at Celebration in Imperial, PA: 25pts
I'd like to thank you all for stopping by and participating in the #AskBigDave section. The page continues to grow because you all support and share the page with your followers. I cannot thank you enough for it, thanks again.
I will not have a post-game show, but may tweet post-game thoughts after the game. Depends on what I am doing and where I am watching.
The Pregame will return on Tuesday of the Pens matchup in Carolina with the Hurricanes.
Everyone enjoy the game. Enjoy the rest of your weekends. Lets Go Pens and Lets Go Steeler!!! #PartyHard