On Tuesday, the Penguins hosted the Los Angeles Kings, a team that entered the game with the NHL’s No. 2 defense. It was a tight game, but the Penguins persevered and came away with a 3-2 overtime win. They’ve now gotten points in eight of their last 10 games, going 7-2-1 over that span.
Rickard Rakell got the winner, while Matt Grzelcyk and Evgeni Malkin also scored for Pittsburgh. Alex Nedeljkovic made 29 saves. When the final buzzer sounded, the Penguins had moved into the second Wild Card playoff spot.
“Going back to last season where we (went) on that hot stretch at the end of the season, I think it’s kind of the same feeling that we had then,” Rakell said. “We’re starting to get it in this room right now.”
The Kings did get off to a hot start, with Adrian Kempe scoring 33 seconds into the first period. It marked Kempe’s eighth goal in his last four games against Pittsburgh.
“We just tried to focus on the next puck,” Nedeljkovic said. “Obviously, giving up the first one sucks, but there's a lot of game left, 59 more minutes to go to make up for it and play some good hockey, and we did. We responded really well.”
Malkin got Pittsburgh on the board just over six minutes into the second period, tying up the score. Michael Bunting, playing in his 300th NHL game, got the primary assist while Bryan Rust picked up the other helper.
“They don’t give up much. They play really hard. Their forwards always come back really hard. You’re not going to get too many odd-man rushes against them,” Rust said. “I thought we did a really good job of staying in a very patient game. We took what the game gave us, and we were able to get back in it.”
While Los Angeles regained the lead in the third period, the Penguins just kept battling - and found another goal off the stick of Grzelcyk, with the defenseman scoring his first as a Penguin. It was a tremendous finish on a beautiful feed from the captain.
“It’s a huge goal for us. A great shot by him and great pass by Sid,” Rakell said. “He’s been very close a lot of times. Still, he’s doing a lot of good things for us. Obviously, it probably feels good for him to score that first.”
Grzelcyk is one of the players getting more opportunity with Marcus Pettersson week-to-week with a lower-body injury, and he stepped up in a big way tonight.
"Obviously, Petey is such a great player for us and plays in so many situations, we've got to do it by committee,” Grzelcyk said. “I thought as the game went along, we started playing a little more simple as defensemen and tried to limit turnovers there. They did a good job early, but we stuck with it and came out with the big win.”
Almost two minutes into overtime, Rakell sealed it with his 14th of the season - adding to his team-leading total.
“It felt awesome,” he said. “After we got down early in the game, I thought we battled back in the game. And the third period, we were pushing really hard and tried everything to score a goal. Just grinding it out. That makes it feel better to get this win.”
Here is what Head Coach Mike Sullivan had to say following the game.
Setting aside the first shift, is this one of your more complete efforts? “I think so. It was a hard-fought game. LA is a hard team to play against. They're big. They play with structure. You got to fight for every inch of ice. It’s a man's game out there. The battles are in the trenches in all three zones. I was proud of the guys, because I thought we just stuck with it. We didn't get discouraged. We give up a goal early in the game, and we just kind of stayed with it. I thought our power plays looked pretty good for the most part, penalty kill did a good job. We got some timely saves from Ned. I just thought the group as a whole, we're just trying to play the right way. We're trying to play a style of hockey that's going to give us a chance to win, regardless of the night and regardless of the opponent. I think our guys are making a concerted effort at just commitment to some of the details. We have to defend. We got to be in the right side of the puck. We've got to be selective with when we choose to pinch down the walls in the offensive zone. There's a lot of detail that's involved with playing the game the right way, so to speak. So, I just think right now, the guys – they're believing, you know? I'm happy for them, because we've gone through a difficult stretch here early in the year. We've kind of dragged ourselves back into the mix here. We beat some good teams along the way, this team tonight being one of them.
Ned talked about how LA is really good at outdisciplining the opposition, and he thought that maybe you guys ended up beating them at their own game in that regard tonight. Is that how you saw it as well? What was the key to getting them out of their game in the third? "Well, give LA credit. They play a certain brand of hockey that sets them up for success. And, they have for awhile. They're a good team. They're hard to play against. Their defensive metrics are as good as any team in the league. So are their offensive metrics, for that matter. They generate. a lot of offense, also. They just got a complete game. But, I think their DNA has always been on the defensive side. They've always played the game with structure. And so, I think their players, they have a certain belief in that style of play and their committed to it. Give them credit, they're good at that. And, what we're trying to do in Pittsburgh is to make sure that we bring a certain style of play every night that brings necessary structure on both sides of the puck. And when we do, I think we can compete against any team in the league. You saw it tonight. It wasn't perfect, we had some breakdowns. But, for the most part, we had numbers back. We defended hard. We were trying to close on people. There's collective effort. There's a semblance of structure and predictability within our game plan, and that's an essential part of team play. And so, when we have the discipline and the commitment to stay the course, I think we play games like we did tonight. I didn't think we had a great start. They had a goal in the first shift. I thought we responded after the first five or six minutes. I thought our team got better. And, I thought our third was the best."
I don’t think any all-time great player has been able to affect a game without scoring goals like Sid has - was tonight an example of that, especially in the third period? And considering that he doesn’t have a goal during this run, what do you think the potential is for his team, since he’s probably not going to go the rest of the year without scoring? "I think he's so close. He could've had three tonight. He could've had three in the third period alone. So, I think it's a matter of time. It's going to go in the net for him. I think he's getting inside more. He makes a terrific play to Grz for the game-tier. He's probably the only guy in the rink that could make that play. It's a backhand sauce, lands flat right on the tap. There aren't a lot of guys that can make that type of play. I just think it's a matter of time. He still has an impact on the game, even when he doesn't score, in so many ways. The way he drives our offense. He played a lot against Kopitar's line tonight, not the whole time, but he played a fair amount against their line. They're hard to play against. They're big, they're strong. I think he can play against anybody in any situation. He's just a complete player. He's got a mature game. For me, he's so close to scoring and we're hoping when he breaks through here, it'll come in bunches for him."
How did the team handle the first game without Pettersson? “Yeah, I thought they competed hard. You look at some of the guys we have back there, and they’re young guys. I mean, Picks is 20 years old and he’s playing 20 minutes. He played a fair amount against Kopitar, Danault, and players of that nature, that's a handful. We think he's competing hard. He's not perfect, but he's competing hard. He's battling out there. I thought Ryan Shea came in and played a solid game for us. I thought Gravey played within himself. When we do it that way by committee, so to speak, I think our team play has the ability to insulate those guys a little bit. And then I think when Karl and Kris play the way they're capable of playing, they make the game so much easier for all those guys back there. And one of those guys is on the ice for 50 out of the 60 minutes. And I think those two guys have played extremely well.”
What has Grzelcyk brought offensively? “I think one of Gryz’s best attributes is his ability to pass the puck. He helps us on our breakouts. We knew that when we got him, that was the strength of his game. We thought he was a good puck mover, and he has some mobility. He could get back to pucks and help us get out of our end. I think he’s very good along the offensive blue line. He sees lanes when there are people down at the net, and he delivers pucks. He's not always shooting to score; he's shooting to create that next play, and I think that's an incredible skill in today's game, and it's timely. If you wait too long, the lanes close, and there are layers of shot blockers. And I think Grizz is very good along the offensive blue line. He recognizes the lanes when they're there when they're not. He has the ability to move laterally along the line to create the lane. And so, I think those two areas, I think he's really helped our team.”
