Playoff dreams dashed and searching for consistency, the Penguins witnessed Tristan Jarry deliver a stellar 5-0 shutout against the Blackhawks, a performance that offered a glimpse of the prowess that could have propelled them further. The very same Blackhawks who had just sealed the Penguins’ playoff fate in Chicago on Sunday also managed to break their own five-game losing streak in that prior encounter. Beyond the final score, Jarry continued his strong recent play, securing his second shutout in four games, as well as his 21st in the NHL, and Kevin Hayes punctuated the Penguins’ offensive effort with a pair of goals. The Penguins head to New Jersey on Friday, and the Blackhawks will be going to Boston on Thursday to take on the Bruins.
Pittsburgh Penguins Lineup:
McGroarty – Crosby – Rust
Rakell – Malkin – Koivunen
Dewar – Hayes – Heinen
Nieto – Koppanen – Acciari
Grzelcyk – Letang
Timmins – Karlsson
Graves – Shea
Jarry
Nedeljkovic
Chicago Blackhawks Lineup:
Donato – Bedard – Mikheyev
Teravainen – Nazar – Bertuzzi
Slaggert – Moore – Kurashev
Reichel – Veleno – Foligno
Vlasic – Rinzel
Korchinski – Murphy
Kaiser – Levshunov
Knight
Soderblom
Sidney Crosby put home his 31st goal of the season in the final minute of the opening period, just six seconds into a power play, putting the Penguins ahead 1-0. He turned in front of Alex Vlasic to chip in Rickard Rakell’s pass after Bryan Rust, who had been near the left boards when he received a pass from Matt Grzelcyk, and sent it to Rakell, who made a quick pass to Crosby. This was also Crosby’s 12th in 14 games.
Early into the second period, Erik Karlsson made it 2-0 for his 200th NHL career goal, as well as his 11th of the season. Ville Koivunen got a hold of the puck after taking a pass from Karlsson before handing it over to Crosby, and it popped out. Rust skated after it, picking it up and passed it back to Koivunen, who was on the right side and sent it across to Karlsson for a wrist shot near the left post at 15:15.
Kris Letang put an end to his 20-game goal drought to give Pittsburgh a 3-0 lead on his ninth of the season at 15:32 of the third frame off a pass from Evgeni Malkin when he fired a wrister from the right face-off circle. It had been his second goal in 43 games. At 12:18, Kevin Hayes found the back of the net off a pass from Connor Dewar, extending the Penguins’ lead to 4-0 when his shot went off the glove of Spencer Knight for his 12th of the season. Hayes struck again for his second of the night and his 13th goal of the season when he deflected a pass from Danton Heinen later on into the third with 1:47 left to play for the 5-0 final.
Tristan Jarry on his shutout/the win overall, if there is a challenge in staying motivated/offering a complete effort when their hopes for the postseason have expired, and things that are different/things he feels better about: “I think, first and foremost, we had a good bounce-back game. Obviously, I think Chicago played well in their building. I think we were able to play well in ours, so it was kind of back and forth, but I thought the guys were doing a really good job tonight, just letting me see the puck and giving me the shots that I needed. I think it really helps me when I’m able to get into it early like that,” – “That’s the toughest part. You’re playing to play those extra games after April and beyond. I think that’s the toughest part, trying to stay motivated in these last three games we have now. I thought the team did a great job tonight. I think it’s just sticking to it and keep improving. …I think I’m just playing more of my game. I think at the beginning, I was worried a little bit too much about the technical aspect of it. It was a lot on my mind, and just these last 20 games or so that I’ve been here for, I think it’s just been playing my version of myself and making sure I’m stopping the puck rather than the other things surrounding it.”
Game Notes:
– Tristan Jarry made a total of 26 saves for Pittsburgh, and Spencer Knight made a total of 22 saves for Chicago. …Jarry ranks third in Penguins history with 21 shutouts and sits behind both Marc-Andre Fleury (44) and Tom Barrasso (22).
– With his opening goal, Sidney Crosby now has points in 14 straight home games, which is the third-longest streak of his career (20 points; nine goals, 11 assists). …Crosby’s opening goal had been his 285th, tying Mark Messier for fourth in NHL history. They sit behind Wayne Gretzky (328), Jaromir Jagr (326), and Gordie Howe (320). His goal had also been a power play, which marked his 183rd power-play goal, and he tied Evgeni Malkin for second in Penguins history. They trail Mario Lemieux (236).
– Ville Koivunen recorded his third assist, all three coming in the past five games. Bryan Rust and Danton Heinen each picked up a pair of assists.
– With 51 seconds remaining in the middle frame, Rutger McGroarty left after sustaining a lower-body injury when he used his left skate to block a shot from Teuvo Teravainen. He is still being evaluated, according to Assistant Coach David Quinn.
– Erik Karlsson recorded the 200th goal of his career, becoming the 23rd defenseman in NHL history to reach the milestone. He is the second active to do so and joins the Carolina Hurricanes’ Brent Burns, who has 261 goals. …He’s also the second Swedish defenseman to score 200 goals. Karlsson joins Nicklas Lidstrom (264).
– After the game, the Blackhawks held a team meeting lasting about 20 minutes.
– The Blackhawks have lost 13 of 15 games (2-11-2) dating to the 8th of March.
– Philipp Kurashev left in the third period with 3:15 remaining after he took a puck to the face. There has not been an update provided.
– PGH: 32-35-21, CHI: 22-46-10
ITR 36: Coaching Carousel – Inside The Rink
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