Rome Wasn't Built in a Day

Bryan Rust said that one of the topics discussed amongst the group after Monday's 7-1 loss to Dallas was "responding to certain adversities." He led the charge in that regard during Pittsburgh’s next game on Wednesday versus Detroit.

The winger scored a timely goal to help the Penguins recover from a second-period deficit and come away with a much-needed point, as they fell to the Red Wings in overtime, 3-2.

“Obviously, a loss is a loss. But I think the way we responded – we went down two - was a hell of a lot better than the way we responded the other night,” Rust said. “Rome wasn’t built in a day. We’re trying get this thing going in the right direction as fast we can. That was a good step.”

After the Penguins gave up six goals to the Stars in the first period of that matchup, they got solid goaltending early in this one to keep the game from snowballing. Alex Nedeljkovic was steady between the pipes for Pittsburgh as Detroit built a decent edge in shots. The Penguins started to tilt the ice as the period went on, and went into the first intermission scoreless.

But the Red Wings were opportunistic in the opening minutes of the middle frame, taking a 2-0 lead just 5:15 in. But Rust took matters into his own hands from there, scoring a beautiful, momentum-shifting goal that got the Penguins going back in the right direction.

“I've seen that goal I don't know how many times now. He's got a knack for it, beating guys wide like that and finding the far post,” Nedeljkovic said. “That was huge. Got us going, obviously.”

Rust is a key member of Pittsburgh’s core leadership group, winning back-to-back Stanley Cup championships with the franchise and becoming a respected veteran. He’s an honest player and tremendous competitor and cares so much about the Penguins and helping them have success.

With the group experiencing some tough times right now, as they’ve struggled with inconsistency and their defensive play while losing four of five and 10 of their last 13, it’s no surprise Rust was leading the charge for Pittsburgh.

“Been around this league for a long time. Obviously, been on this team for a long time,” Rust said. “Like to put things on my shoulders when things aren’t going well and hopefully try and help get this team out of it as best I can.”

The Penguins spent a lot of time in the offensive zone from there, and Anthony Beauvillier was able to even the score with his fifth goal of the season. That’s tied for third on the team with Evgeni Malkin.

“I hope he can continue to help us there because certainly, we're going to need it,” Sullivan said of the 26-year-old forward, who signed a one-year deal with Pittsburgh in the offseason. “Those are the reasons we've tried him with (Sidney Crosby) or the top six. Regardless of where we play him in the lineup, he's going to bring that element."

While the Penguins continued to push and generated a lot of chances, they couldn’t find the go-ahead goal in the final frame.

“I thought we dominated the third period. Puck just wasn't going in,” Nedeljkovic said. “You're going to have nights like this. You're not always going to get the result, maybe that you deserve, the guys in front of you deserve. But you can take something like that as opposed to the other night."

“The other night was embarrassing,” Rust added. “Tonight, we adapted. We got down two and we just tried to push back. We were really good in the second half of the game. Obviously, we didn’t get it in overtime. But we showed a lot more guts tonight.”

NOTES

* Sam Poulin made his season debut after Lars Eller was traded back to Washington on Tuesday. The veteran forward is a consummate professional and incredibly respected by his teammates, and they were disappointed to learn the news.

“Obviously, he great on the penalty kill and reliable defensively,” Drew O’Connor said. “He was a great guy to have around for the last year or so, and was an awesome guy for me, personally, to learn from. I played a lot with him over the course that he was here. He's an awesome teammate. So, it's sad to see him go.”But with where the Penguins are in the standings, they understand movement is inevitable.

“Hockey is a business. When things aren’t going as you like, obviously things happen and you’ve got to adjust,” Rust said. “Got to take it on the chin and move on.”

* Blake Lizotte left the game late in the first period after a shot from O’Connor caught him up high. It was tough to see, especially since the forward had recently recovered from a concussion suffered when he was struck with a puck while sitting on the bench in the Hockeyville game.

Sullivan said Lizotte is currently being evaluated, and they’ll see where it goes.

* The Penguins honored Malkin for his 500th goal with a pregame ceremony. Full story to come.