WHAT HAPPENED
The Penguins were handed their first regulation loss since Jan. 13, also to Los Angeles, when the Kings earned a 4-3 victory on Sunday afternoon at PPG Paints Arena.
Bryan Rust scored twice for Pittsburgh, while Sidney Crosby got his 12th of the season to put him just two away from becoming the second active player to reach 500 goals for his career.
Power Play Stays Hot in Loss to Kings
The Penguins tallied twice on the man-advantage in their 4-3 setback to Los Angeles
By
Michelle Crechiolo
Penguins Team Reporter
OVERALL ASSESSMENT
As Mike Sullivan likes to say, good teams never arrive. They're always looking for areas of improvement and ways to get better. And although the Penguins have picked up points in 19 of their last 22 games, which is an absolutely remarkable run, they have now gone 0-1-2 in their last three.
And what the Penguins head coach would like to see from his team is more consistency, particularly when it comes to giving up quality scoring chances. The Penguins struggled in that regard during the second period, where the Kings scored three times to take a 3-1 lead into the second intermission.
"I thought we hurt ourselves tonight," Sullivan said. "We were decent in the first, we were decent in the third. But obviously it's a 60-minute hockey game and we need a more consistent effort throughout. I thought in the second period in particular, we weren't as diligent. When the play is there to be made, we've got to make them. When they're not, we can't be stubborn."
That's what Rust sees when he looks at his team's play not just from today, but in the bigger picture. He said there have been times during these recent games where there's just one or two or three little plays - a strong wall play here, getting the puck in deep there - the Penguins were executing. As a result, they were keeping the puck out of their net and momentum on their side.
"We aren't making those (right now)," said Rust, who also said that simplifying their game is a big key. "I think we will get back to that. Just those little detailed things, those small things that people don't always recognize - I think that's just going to help us win games."
Defenseman Marcus Pettersson also feels that they need to be on their toes sooner, because once they get going - like they did in the third, recovering from that 3-1 deficit to tie it 3-3 at one point - they reallyget going.
"We have to do a better job at getting to that earlier," he said. "In the last few weeks here, we've kind of done harm to ourselves a little bit by not taking care of the puck and what not. I think we gotta stay aggressive and play up as a 5-man unit. That's when we're at our best. We haven't got off to a lead in a couple of games here, and that's tough to play that way, even though we're capable of coming back like we saw today. Just unfortunate that we couldn't hold onto it."
OTHER THOUGHTS, MUSINGS AND OBSERVATIONS
PP STAYS HOT
The power play continues to produce. They went 2-for-4 in the game to give them 14 goals on the man-advantage in their last 15 contests.
Ever since Evgeni Malkin returned to the lineup on Jan. 11 in Anaheim, that first unit - which also consists of Crosby, Rust, Jake Guentzel and Kris Letang - has been together, and that continuity has been huge.
"We're just getting more and more confidence, and we're getting more and more comfortable with each other," Rust said. "And we're just working hard for each other, taking what the game gives us. I think we've done a pretty good job of scoring in all sorts of different ways. If we just keep working hard and doing things for each other, I think that's going to keep going.
Sullivan credited assistant coach Todd Reirden, who oversees the power play, for getting that group on the same page and challenging them with some of the points of contention that the coaching staff has had.
"They're obviously scoring a lot of goals, they're dynamic, and I think as of late they've done a much better job of just making sure that they don't turn into a high-risk group where we're giving up too many opportunities against," Sullivan said. "That's an important aspect of our power play, because our power play has the ability to be a difference maker. And I think the guys that are on it have done a real good job."
HEINEN GETS HURT; ZOHORNA STEPS IN
Danton Heinen was originally supposed to play, but the forward came out after warmups with an upper-body injury and Sullivan said he is being evaluated. Radim Zohorna stepped in for his first appearance since Jan. 15 in San Jose, and the 6-foot-7 forward known as "Big Z" finished with seven hits in 14:32 of ice time.
"I thought Z played real well," Sullivan said. "He brought us some energy. I thought he made some plays. He used his big frame to protect pucks. I thought he was good on both sides of the puck."
GUENTZEL GETS 300
The winger's secondary assist on Rust's second goal was the 300th of his career.Guentzel, who was selected 77th overall by the Penguins in 2013, became the fastest member of his draft class (338 GP), and first selected outside of the top-10, to reach 300 career points.
Per Penguins PR, Guentzel is the seventh-fastest player in team history to reach 300 points from the start of their careers with Pittsburgh, and the 26th player overall to record 300 points with the Penguins.
