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A Loss, A Big Injury and A "Goalie Controversy" |
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We have ourselves a series again. Tampa Bay flashed out to the lead on the game's very first shift and did not relinquish that lead and as a result the series will be 2-2 heading back to Pittsburgh.
Tampa Bay scored four unanswered goals over two periods but it was the second period where they cranked up their level of play and really made Pittsburgh pay the price for their mistakes. Pittsburgh had chances to make it a one goal game in the second period but the Lightning played one of their better even-strength periods and forced the Penguins into some poor choices.
Kris Letang losing his cool highlighted those poor choices. He took a double minor penalty and it led to a Jonathan Drouin goal. This isn't shocking to anybody who follows the Penguins. Letang is an emotional player and this side of him will eventually come out. Sometimes it is at a time that doesn't matter and other times it is in the Eastern Conference Finals.
The Pittsburgh Penguins did mount a comeback in the third period. It was a period which saw Marc-Andre Fleury return to the net. He made saves on all seven shots he faced including a high danger chance on the first sequence he had to defend. Fleury used his famous pokecheck to thwart the opportunity.
Sometimes people will credit a goalie change for a "spark". Personally I find that concept insulting to the team. A team who is supposedly known for being "resilient" would try harder because the person playing goalie for them changed?
In reality the events that played out in the third period were remarkably predictable.
Score-effects are a real thing especially with the larger the deficit. Tampa Bay hung back in the third period and stopped attempting to push play. They went into the classic shell defense.
In the 2015-16 season under Mike Sullivan when the Penguins were down 3+ goals they drove play to a tune of 59.3%. When down two goals that skyrocketed up to 67.5%. The point is the Penguins were going to push back the Lightning in the third period regardless of who was in net.
I have no problem with the coach pulling Murray I just think crediting the comeback to the goalie change is disingenuous.
Matt Murray should start Game 5.
There was a play in the game that is probably going to have some long term ramifications. Trevor Daley went out with a lower body injury. It is feared that the lower body injury is a fractured ankle which would more than likely end his playoffs. Daley plays a lot of minutes for the team and the idea of Ian Cole getting his minutes elevated doesn't sound like the solution. So what is the solution?
Pittsburgh is in a tough spot here. On one hand they have a player who is like a steak you forgot about in the freezer for a month and a half and now you want to thaw it and cook it for dinner which is in an hour. The steak is of decent enough quality but you haven't given yourself enough time to prepare it and now it is going to be rough.
The other guy is the steak you forgot about in the fridge for over a week. You could eat it but you are probably going to have a bad time.
The frozen steak is obviously Derrick Pouliot who the team has let sit for a long time and the week old steak is Olli Maatta who is clearly hurt and not close to being fresh.
So what do you do? In my estimation this is a situation that screams seven defensemen. I would dress both Maatta and Pouliot. This will play into my other suggestion for the forward unit as well.
Tom Kuhnhackl has been wearing a walking boot to and from games lately. His overall impact on games has been minimal. He would be the guy to take out to accommodate the seven defensemen approach. Eric Fehr is another candidate to sit but he can play both center and wing and having that flexibility is important with only 11 forwards. In shaving the forward number down to eleven I would hope this would force Mike Sullivan to get a little more creative with his line combinations. He was guilty of some poor coaching in the third period of last night's game.
Mike Sullivan has clearly done a nice job with the team since taking over. That does not mean that he is immune to criticism, especially in high leverage situations. The Penguins did a tremendous job in getting three goals in the third period. They made a game out of a situation that was incredibly dire. I thought the coach failed to give them the final push they needed.
This is a pretty bad mistake. With two minutes and change left in the game you have Evgeni Malkin still taking shifts with Bryan Rust and Sidney Crosby taking shifts with Conor Sheary. Why? It literally makes no sense. Stop rolling the lines like a robot. For all the criticism Dan Bylsma received for not making "adjustments" this sure seems like a situation that called for an obvious adjustment and it never came.
Evgeni Malkin didn't play a flawless game. He had turnovers. He also looked like a superstar ready to break out in the third period (and kind of did with a goal). You live with some warts when you have a player who was on the ice for 24 shot attempts and only 9 against and that player has all-world skill.
You want to render the goalie decision a moot point? Put the superstars in a position to absolutely take Game 5 over on Sunday night. That means putting them together.
Phil Kessel scored again. It was his eighth goal of the playoffs. That is one shy of the playoff lead. He literally hopped off the bench, took a few strides, and let a laser beam go.
Chris Kunitz scored for the second consecutive game and continues to do small things that contribute to possession. He would be the guy I would put with Sid and Geno at 5v5. Here he is clearing out a path to the slot for Malkin on his goal
Pittsburgh gave Tampa Bay some life in the series with their undisciplined ways in the second period last night. The Lightning are a very good team and if you aren't playing at a high level you'll get scored on. Last night was great evidence of that.
It should be quite the atmosphere for Game 5 in Pittsburgh. The winner is going to be in a great spot.
Thanks for reading!
Pittsburgh Penguins Blogger • 
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