Good day Penguins fans and welcome to the latest edition of the Big Dave's Pens Pregame show. This afternoon, the Penguins host Jordan Staal and the Carolina Hurricanes in a seemingly must-win game for the home team. Coupled with the Steelers second playoff game, it is a huge afternoon for the Steel City.
Puck drops on Pens/Canes at 3pm at Consol today, but the Pregame is available now....
Today's "Big Dave's Gameday Jam" comes from one of my favorite bands of late. This song comes off their "Consolers of the Lonely" album. That's right! Some more Jack White today as we get ready for this game with the Raconteurs and their song "The Switch and the Spur." Enjoy!
The State of the Penguins
The Penguins have had quite a busy couple days, even though they've only played one game. It was announced on Thursday that center Nick Bonino would miss about a month with a broken hand. While he has been atrocious offensively, Bonino has been solid in the faceoff circle and on the PK. The Penguins were looking to fill his shoes.
Add that to the fact the Penguins were coming off a disappointing overtime loss in Carolina on Tuesday, making Friday's game all the more important in the grand scheme of things. While there is still roughly half a season to play, the playoff pictures are beginning to form. Entering Friday, the Penguins were one of the teams on the outside looking in.
The Penguins needed a win in Tampa on Friday night in my opinion. Though they have played better of late, they entered the evening at 4-2-3 since the Christmas break, they had dropped several points in several winnable games. At this point of the season where every point begins to count a little more, every point is crucial.
Unfortunately, the Penguins weren't able to leave the Sunshine state with two points. The Penguins ultimately lost a high-scoring affair to the Lightning in overtime by the final score of 5-4. Vladislav Namestnikov scored a hat trick for the Bolts, while Valtteri Filppula and Anton Stralman added to the winning total. For the Penguins, Sidney Crosby, Patric Hornqvist, Kris Letang and Evgeni Malkin continued their hot play of late. Hornqvist had a goal and three points on the evening, while Malkin added two assists, Letang two points and Crosby an assist.
While I do like the fact the Penguins fought back from a 3-1 deficit to score three unanswered to take the lead in the third period, I do not like how they closed the game. In fact, I am worried about their lack of closing skills again. They had this issues a few years back where they couldn't finish off wins and it seems to be an issue again now. While Marc-Andre Fleury was notably off on Friday, the defense did him few favors, particularly down the stretch. And while the OT is more of a luck situation, the Penguins could have avoided the whole thing with better defensive coverage late in regulation.
It was a disappointing loss for the Penguins, one that will make today's and tomorrow's games all the more important. The Penguins need to win these next two games outright and stop giving up points. They were 2 points out of a wild car spot entering Saturday and four points out of third in the Metropolitan. A win over the surprising Hurricanes today and the solid St. Louis Blues tomorrow would go a long way for this team down the road.
And the Penguins will look to take four points in two days with a new face on the roster. The Penguins announced late Friday, early Saturday that they acquired left winger Carl Hagelin (pictured above) from the Anaheim Ducks for winger David Perron and defenseman Adam Clendening. Perron has been atrocious on the score sheet for the majority of the season, while Clendening has failed to crack the lineup more than 9 times all year. Though Hagelin hasn't been lights out for the Ducks either, his incredible speed and penalty killing ability will add a lot to this team. For more on the deal, check out my post from yesterday here: http://bigdavespenspregame.weebly.com/blog/pens-acquire-hagelin-in-overnight-deal
The Pens have a new winger. They are home for the day before jumping a plane to the Gateway City. It would make that plane ride a whole lot better if they boarded with a win over Metropolitan rivals Carolina this afternoon.
Spoil Sports: The Carolina Hurricanes
That is the role the Hurricanes are looking to play down the stretch of the 2015-16 NHL season. I wrote on Tuesday that the Penguins could not take the game against the Canes lightly if they had hopes of winning. Unfortunately, they took the first 25 minutes off of Tuesday's game and were forced to play catch-up. They were lucky to send the game to overtime, before a lazy Evgeni Malkin penalty, and ensuing Jeff Skinner power play goal ended the game and left the Penguins with only a point.
The Hurricanes are performing beyond expectations and it will get many people around the league wondering if it is for real. They followed up their 3-2 OT win over Pittsburgh by winning 4-1 in St. Louis on Thursday night before dropping a 3-2 game in overtime to the Canucks on Friday. The Canes enter today's game winners of four of their last five and have earned points in each of the last five games. They are trending up, which will make them a tough team to face down the stretch. By the way, the Penguins have two more games v. Carolina this year after today.
The Canes continue to spread their scoring around. Their 4-1 win over the Blues saw goals from Jeff Skinner (17), Brett Pesche (4), Brock McGinn (3) and Riley Nash (2). Skinner also added an assist while Victor Rask also added an assist to his breakout year totals. Eddie Lack got the win in net on that night. Friday saw more spreading of the wealth. Kris Versteeg added his 8th goal of the season while John-Michael Liles added his fourth. Jordan Staal remained hot by assisting on the Versteeg goal and Victor Rask added his 17th assist of the year on Liles' goal. Cam Ward was handed the loss, but he still earned a point for Carolina in the effort.
The Penguins tend to take the Canes lightly, and it always comes back to bite them. They simply cannot afford to do that today. Carolina is playing some good hockey right now and they are just jumping at the chance to play spoilers for the Penguins. Don't be surprised if the Canes steal another one from the Penguins, it certainly wouldn't shock me.
What You Need To Know About Carolina:
- 20-18-8 on the season, good for 48 points and one spot out of wild card position entering Saturday.
- Have gone 5-2-3 over their last 10 games.
- Winners of 4 of 5 entering tonight and have earned points in each of those five games.
- Carolina is 10-10-3 on the road this season.
Scoring Leaders:
- D Justin Faulk - 32pts (14G-18A)
- C Eric Staal - 28pts (9G-19A)
- RW Kris Versteeg - 28pts (8G-20A)
- C Victor Rask - 28pts (11G-17A)
- LW Jeff Skinner - 25pts (17G-8A)
Who's Hot for Carolina:
- Former Penguin Jordan Staal has been hot of late, posting 5 points over his last 5 games. He had an assist in Carolina's OT loss Friday.
- Victor Rask has assists in two of his three games since returning to the lineup. He has had a breakout tyear to this point with 28 points from the 3rd line.
- Jeff Skinner has 2 goals in his last three game and four points in his last 5 played.
Injury Report:
- D Brett Pesche (lower-body) is a game-time decision tonight. Pesche played Tuesday v. Pittsburgh and Thursday v. St. Louis but missed Friday's matchup with Vancouver.
- LW Phil Di Giuseppe (concussion) and D James Wisniewski (lower-body) remain OUT tonight.
Projected Lines:
- Kris Versteeg - Eric Staal - Elias Lindholm
- Joakim Nordstrom - Jordan Staal - Andrej Nestrasil
- Jeff Skinner - Victor Rask - Riley Nash
- Brad Malone - Jay McClement - Nathan Gerbe
Projected Pairs:
- John-Michael Liles - Justin Faulk
- Ron Hainsey - Noah Hanifin
- Jaccob Slavin - Michal Jordan
Cam Ward is expected to start in net today for Carolina.
News & Notes From Around the Penguins
- C Nick Bonino has a broken hand and will miss roughly a month according to multiple reports.
- D Kris Letang (undisclosed) will be a game-time decision today. He missed practice Saturday after taking a rough hit in the 2nd period of Friday's game. He stated x-rays were negative and he couldn't "hurt it anymore" by playing. So we will see if he's in there today.
- RW Beau Bennett (upper-body) will likely miss another 1-3 weeks according to reports. Mike Sullivan stated he was progressing, but still not considered "day-to-day."
Transaction News:
- Penguins acquire LW Carl Hagelin from Anaheim for LW David Perron and D Adam Clendening. Hagelin has 4 goals and 12 points through 43 games this season, including 4 points over his last 4 games.
Pens/Canes Matchup Notes:
- Carolina has won both matchups thus far this season.
- The Canes have outscored the Pens 5-3 and have converted on 4 of 7 power play opportunities.
- Sidney Crosby leads Pittsburgh scorers with three assists in the first two games. Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang and Chris Kunitz have the three Penguin goal v. Carolina this year.
- Elias Lindholm leads Carolina scorers with three assists. Eric Staal, Justin Faulk and Kris Versteeg each have two points in the season series.
- Cam Ward has won both starts v. Pittsburgh this year.
- Newly acquired Carl Hagelin has great numbers v. Carolina with 10 career assists and 15 points.
Miscellaneous Notes:
- D Trevor Daley is playing in his 800th NHL game. 756 games were with Dallas.
- C Sidney Crosby has points in 9 of his last 12 games.
- C Evgeni Malkin has 9 assists during his last 8 games.
#AskBigDave
Wow, this is another tough one. Lets see here...
I think I would go with Geno as the owner. I can just see Geno sitting up in the box, drinking wine, with his feet up watching the game. He just seems to have that laid back, owner mentality. So I'll go with Malkin as the owner.
For the GM, I think I would go with Letang. I don't know if he's really a GM-type, but I'd rather lose him on the ice than Crosby. I think Letang has the hockey mind to build a decent team, but this decision is more so I can keep Crosby on the ice.
So with that, Sid stays the player. I think Sid would make a great NHL GM, but at the end of the day, he is a generational talent I want on the ice. Malkin is a hell of a player, but he's not as consistent as Sid. Letang too, but he never stays healthy. Sid has a rocky injury past, but he is by far the best player of the three. I'll keep him on the ice over the three so there you have it.
From Jonathan M. on the Tweety: "What do you think GMJRs status after this year? He stated that he was going be short term. Two years is long enough for me. He needs go."
There are a lot of people in Penguins nation that would likely agree with you. I am torn as to my feelings on the guy. I like some of the deals he's made and dislike others.
Honestly, only time will tell who the winners and losers of some of these trades are. I will say I can appreciate the moves he has pulled off. He has acquired some quality players, Kessel, Hagelin, Hornqvist, in some deals, but he's also given up some big pieces, top draft picks, solid prospects, James Neal and Simon Despres in others. For that, many will scream for his head and maybe rightly so.
As for this latest trade, I don't see it as a "panic trade" as some of the other bloggers are calling it. The fact of the matter is David Perron was grossly underperforming. His trade value wasn't that high, especially since he is an impending UFA and he will likely call for more than 4 million in free agency. For Clendening, he was not the answer to the Penguins problems on the blue line, so for everyone suddenly losing their minds over his inclusion in the deal is comical to me. If the Pens thought he was the solution to the blue line problems, he would NOT have been scratched the last 20 games. In Hagelin, the Penguins are getting a quality top-nine player. He's fast, a good two-way player and someone I could see becoming a Pascal Dupuis-type player for the Penguins. The fact that some are already saying this deal is garbage before he even plays is laughable. Give the guy the rest of the season and see what he can do. The nation afforded Perron 80 games, give this guy a few too before they lose their minds over the deal.
I will give GMJR a ton of credit for what he's done on the free agent market. I think the Cullen signing has been really good for this team and I think the Fehr deal will be good once he is properly utilized. The one-year contracts he gave out last year were solid too, for the Pens got pretty decent production out of Comeau, Ehrhoff and Downie, despite time missed due to injuries.
The fact of the matter is, I'd like to see Jason Botterill take the helm. He was ready two years ago after the Shero firing, but because he was Shero's top lieutenant he was passed over. I think it is time for Rutherford to step aside and let Botterill take over. Jason is a cap wizard and has the capabilities to be a good NHL general manager. He just needs to be given the chance.
So Jonathan, the jury is still out for me on Rutherford, but I wouldn't be opposed to him stepping down for the likes of Botterill.
From Michael S. on the Tweety: "Are the Penguins playing better? Why/not? I'm not complaining: I think they are 'gelling!'"
Great question Mike and I would have to agree with you; I think the Penguins are playing much better. Though the numbers aren't great since Sullivan's taking over, they are still only about a .500 team, I think the Penguins are playing much better hockey.
For one, the Penguins stars are playing like stars again. Sidney Crosby is finally back, he's averaging a point per game since Sullivan took over. Kris Letang had been on fire since the Christmas break. Evgeni Malkin continues to be solid and Patric Hornqvist is playing like a top-six winger again. That is all good for the Penguins.
Next, the power play has been miles better. The Pens have been firing at close to 35% since Christmas. Before Sullivan, it could barely enter the offensive zone. That is definitely a plus.
Then, there is the overall offensive play. The Penguins are finally playing an offensive game. They are averaging a ton of shots, night-in and night-out. Instead of the hum-drum defensive snore-fest Mike Johnston was selling, Mike Sullivan is letting his players actually use their talents. Just look at the difference in Crosby, Letang, Hornqvist and Malkin's play since the switch. Also look at the likes of Kunitz and Kessel, who are getting closer to breaking out again.
The one downside to this switch is the defense. That area has not been the same since Sullivan left. The Penguins are giving up more shots now, and the new style exposes the likes of Ian Cole and Ben Lovejoy, but with the right guys it will work. Letang has been better defensively with the switch. Maatta has been solid all year, but really good alongside Letang. Dumoulin hasn't been the same since the coaching switch, but he has still been solid. Trevor Daley has looked good too. The defense will improve, especially if another piece is added.
The one thing the Penguins need is more time. They were screwed when they made the switch because of the schedule; Sullivan had little time to implement his system with so few practices. If you watch closely, the Penguins are implementing more and more of his ideas. I think by the deadline, they will really be firing on all cylinders.
From Reedie on the Tweety: "Is the Hagelin trade anything like what you were expecting?"
Honestly Reedie, no, it was not a trade I was expecting. I thought the Penguins would add a winger closer to the deadline, but likely not a bigger name or contract like Hagelin.
I still think the Pens biggest need is on the blue line. While Lovejoy fit in the Johnston system, he hasn't been very good in the Sullivan system. Ian Cole also continues to struggle, which isn't helping matters. While everyone thinks Derrick Pouliot is the magical fix, I personally don't. I think he is a talented offensive defenseman, but he still needs to refine his defensive game before he can make a huge impact on that blue line. I think the Pens need to add another defenseman to the mix. Whether they could give up a Ben Lovejoy or Ian Cole in that deal remains to be seen.
The Hagelin deal is good in my book. I think it will be a big help for this team and should get his game going after a slow start in Anaheim. But it is not the trade I expected and I still think they need to make a move on defense.
Projected Lines & Pairs
- Chris Kunitz - Sidney Crosby - Patric Hornqvist
- Carl Hagelin - Evgeni Malkin - Phil Kessel
- Tom Kuhnhackl - Eric Fehr - Bryan Rust
- Kevin Porter - Matt Cullen - Conor Sheary
Pairs:
- Trevor Daley - Olli Maatta
- Brian Dumoulin - Ben Lovejoy
- David Warsofsky - Ian Cole
Marc-Andre Fleury is expected to start in net for the Penguins today.
My 3 Keys to the Game
2. Net-Front: The Penguins lost one guy who goes to the net in David Perron, but Patric Hornqvist, Chris Kunitz, Eric Fehr and Tom Kuhnhackl can still do it and successfully for the Pens. Hornqvist is hot of late and all of it is from his play in front of the netminder. If the Penguins can get traffic in front of Ward, they should be able to knock a few dirty ones in.
3. Simplify: The Penguins need to simplify there game in several aspects. They need to stop the fancy, cross-ice and drop passes that have reemerged over the last few games and get back to north-south hockey. Cut the crap, get it in the zone and shoot. Fancy passes dont win games, pucks on and in the net do. This also is advice to newly acquired Carl Hagelin. Don't try to do too much. If you get a shot, take it. Don't look to pass it. Simplify it all.
My 3 Penguins to Watch
2. Sidney Crosby: Leads the Penguins in scoring against Carolina this season. He has been good of late, with points in 9 of his last 12 games. That is certainly more Crosby-esque. I like the addition of Carl Hagelin as well, who could provide speed that Sid loves to play with on the top line. Perhaps the two will find magic together or at least Sid continues his hot play today with Hornqvist and either Hagelin or Kunitz.
3. Chris Kunitz: There is no denying my feelings against him this year. He simply hasn't been the guy we saw for the majority of his tenure here. That being said, he's got goals in his last two games and has looked better. I still think he should slot down to the Malkin line with the Hagelin acquisition, but as long as he is producing points I don't really care if he stays with Sid. But that is the key, he needs to score points. Maybe he keeps the streak going today.
What to Know for Watching/Listening/Attending
- Puck drops on Penguins/Hurricanes at 3:00pm. Doors to Consol will open at 2:00pm.
- The Penguins will wear their traditional home jerseys.
- A reminder to fans, the Penguins will host a viewing party for the Steelers-Broncos playoff game following the action. Some concessions stands will remain open as well for those choosing to remain.
- “The Bulliest Dozer,” co-written by Penguins center Eric Fehr, is now available for sale at the Pittsburgh Penguins Foundation’s silent auction stand outside of the First Niagara Club. This children’s book about why bullying doesn’t pay is signed by Fehr for just $20. You can also purchase the book by using the Foundation’s mobile bidding app at bidpal.net/pens.
Here is what you need to know for WATCHING tonight:
- ROOT Sports has the coverage tonight. Paul Steigerwald and Bob Errey with the call beginning at 3:00pm. Dan Potash will have the interviews.
- Penguins Pregame will precede the game coverage beginning at 2:30pm.
- 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 3:00pm.
- Penguins Pregame will precede the game coverage at 2:00pm. Josh Getzoff will host.
- Penguins Hot Line will follow the game action.
Pens Points:
- Game Attendance: 50pts
- Concession Stand Purchases: 10pts
- Merchandise Purchases: 10pts
- ROOT Sports Pregame Keyword: 5pts
- ROOT Sports Post Game Keyword: 5pts
- Pens Radio Keyword: 5pts