Game Preview: Penguins vs. Jets (02.06.24)

The Penguins return to action from the bye week to take on the Winnipeg Jets at 7:00 PM.

Doors open at 6:00 PM.

Tonight is the Penguins' Black Hockey History Game, presented by CNX. Fans in attendance will receive a Black Hockey History Game Rally Towel, courtesy of CNX.

Team Records: PIT (22-17-7) WPG (30-12-5)

Winnipeg is 14-5-3 on the road this season. The Jets are currently in 3rd place in the Central division, and looking to get off a three-game losing streak. Just four days ago, Winnipeg acquired forward Sean Monahan from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for the Jets first-round selection in the 2024 NHL Draft and a conditional third-round selection in the 2027 NHL Draft. The Jets have put together their best record before the All-Star break in franchise history with a .691 points percentage.

Lineup Notes

Mike Sullivan said he anticipates that Jesse Puljujarvi (signed to a two-year deal on Sunday after coming in on a professional tryout in December), Reilly Smith, and John Ludvig will all be game-time decisions.

Smith, in his first season with the Penguins after being acquired from Vegas in the offseason, has missed the last six games with an upper-body injury. The forward showed some immediate chemistry with Evgeni Malkin and had a strong start to the year, but from there, Sullivan called it “a little bit of a mixed bag” from a consistency and production standpoint.

“Hopefully, this will just give him an opportunity to come in with a refreshed mind and a refreshed level of energy and a forward-thinking outlook,” Sullivan said. “He’s a good player. We're excited to get him back in our lineup.”

Meanwhile, Ludvig has missed the last 10 games with an upper-body injury sustained in a fight with Islanders forward Matt Martin. This is the second longer-term injury the rookie defenseman has dealt with in his first season with the Penguins, who claimed him off waivers from Florida in October, but he doesn’t plan on adjusting his hard-nosed style.

“The way I play, it happens, injuries are gonna happen. I have to accept that. But the goal is to try and stay healthy and win some games coming down the stretch here,” Ludvig said. His coach agreed.

“When you play the game that Luds plays, there's obviously risk associated with it because he's getting involved in the battles and he uses his body physically, whether it's body checks or otherwise to try to help us be harder to play against,” Sullivan said. “So, I don't think he can get away from the game that brings him success. That's an element I think he excels that, and that's an area where he can help us.”

--Michelle Crechiolo

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Game Notes

Only Alex Pietrangelo (6G-24A-30PTS) has more points against the Jets among active defensemen than Kris Letang’s 29 (5G-24A).

Evgeni Malkin enters tonight’s game riding a five-game point streak (1G-4A), which marks his longest point streak of the 2023.24 campaign.

Jake Guentzel has points in 18 of 23 home games this season, and leads the Penguins with 25 points at home (11G-14A).

Reilly Smith has notched 17 points (8G-9A) in 19 career games against the Winnipeg Jets. His 0.89 points-per-game average against them is his third highest against any one team (Seattle, 1.33; San Jose, 0.94).

Tonight, Head Coach Mike Sullivan is set to appear in his 800th NHL game as a head coach. Sullivan has split his head coaching career between Pittsburgh (635) and the Boston Bruins (164), going 429-260-15-95 in those contests. Sullivan has accumulated the 11th most wins through 800 games coached in NHL history.

Marcus Pettersson scored the game-winning goal in overtime against Montreal on Jan. 27 to send the Penguins into the All-Star Break with a win. The goal marked Pettersson’s first game-winning and overtime goal of his career. Pettersson’s goal also tied his single-season career high in goals (2).

Evgeni Malkin tallied an assist on the overtime winner against the Canadiens. The assist was Malkin’s 40th career point in overtime, tying him with Alex Ovechkin (40) for the second-most overtime points in NHL history, while Malkin and Ovechkin trail only Sidney Crosby (43) for first place. Malkin’s 27 career overtime assists are the most in NHL history. 

On Sunday, the Penguins signed forward Jesse Puljujarvi to a two-year contract. Puljujarvi, 25, signed a professional tryout with Pittsburgh on December 10 and has played in 13 games with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League this season, tallying four goals, five assists, nine points, and a plus-8. The 6-foot-4, 201-pound forward spent the 2022.23 season split between the Edmonton Oilers and Carolina Hurricanes, tallying five goals, 11 assists, and 16 points in 75 games. In total, he has recorded 51 goals, 63 assists, and 114 career points in 334 NHL games with Edmonton and Carolina. Puljujarvi has also registered three goals, three assists, and six points in 27 career NHL playoff games. Puljujarvi’s best NHL season came in 2021.22 with the Oilers when he tallied 14 goals and career high assist (22) and point (36) totals in 65 games.

Jake Guentzel is set to appear in his 500th NHL game tonight against Winnipeg. Guentzel has notched 219 goals, 244 assists, and 463 points through 499 games. Guentzel, who was drafted in the third round (77th overall) in the 2013 NHL draft, has the most goals through 500 games among his draft class.

Sidney Crosby tallied his 50th point this season against Montreal ahead of the All-Star break (27G-23A) for the 17th time in his career. Crosby is only the 20th player in NHL history to tally 50 points in a season at least 17 times. Among active players, Crosby is tied for first with 17 50-point seasons.

Crosby enters tonight’s game with 577 career goals, and currently sits tied with Mark Recchi (577) for 21st place on the NHL’s alltime goals list. Of Crosby’s 577 goals, 405 have come at even strength. His evenstrength goal on Monday against Arizona tied him with Mario Lemieux (405) for the 16th-most even-strength goals in NHL history.

Exactly 70.19% of Crosby’s goals in his career have come at even strength. Among all 29 players in NHL history with at least 550 goals, only five of them have a higher percentage of even-strength goals to their total goals – Guy Lafleur (403/560, 71.96%), Bobby Hull (437/610, 71.64%), Johnny Bucyk (393/556, 70.68%), Gordie Howe (566/801, 70.66%) and Jaromir Jagr (538/766, 70.23%).

Black Hockey History Game Rally Towel Giveaway

All fans in attendance will receive a Black Hockey History Game Rally Towel, courtesy of CNX.

Black Hockey History Night

Fans can expect the following festivities tonight in celebration of Black History Month:

• A pre-game pep rally outside of PPG Paints Arena hosted by the City of Pittsburgh/School District of Pittsburgh ‘One-Band-One-Sound’ All-City Marching Band.
• A pre-game VIP Reception with the Black Girl Hockey Club (Tickets available here).
• Co-branded CNX BHM rally towels for all fans in attendance.
• A CNX community spotlight honoring and recognizing Black leaders and change agents in Pittsburgh.
• Honorary national anthem singer (Lyndsey Smith) and color guard (Troop 710 of H.O.P.E for Tomorrow Inc., Boy Scouts of America, Laurel Highlands Council).
• First Intermission Performance of the Black National anthem by the Mt. Ararat Baptist Church Choir
• Informational tables throughout the concourse which includes organizations tied to advancing Black excellence and supporting the Black community in Western Pennsylvania.
• Various auctions from the Penguins Foundation which include specialty jerseys, pucks and locker room name plates.
• Emmai Alaquiva, an Emmy Award-winning photographer and the creative force behind Ya Momz House, Inc., brings his unique vision and expertise to capture the essence of the Black Hockey History Day game.

To read more about the Penguins' Black History Month initiatives, click here.

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