Sully Says: We Did a Better Job Playing a Calculated Game

The Penguins had a 2-0 lead entering the third period in what was essentially a must-win game on Thursday versus Minnesota.
They've had their issues when it comes to holding leads in that final frame, but tonight, they got the job done … ending up with a 4-1 victory to stay in the hunt for a playoff spot.

The Penguins, who now have 88 points with 79 games played, are still technically on the outside looking in, as the two teams ahead of them in the Wild Card spots also won. The Panthers (89 points, 79 GP) beat Ottawa to stay in first, while the Islanders (89 points, 79 GP) beat Columbus to stay in second.
"We gotta keep it going," said Tristan Jarry, who made 27 saves for the Penguins. "Obviously, we're still chasing teams. We gotta bring it every game, and obviously every two points helps."
Down at the other end, beloved former Penguin Marc-Andre Fleury gave up four goals on 31 shots, with Kris Letang opening the scoring with just under five minutes to go in the first period. In the second period, special teams were the difference in a good way for the Penguins, which hasn't always been the case for them recently.
Rickard Rakell scored his team-leading 11th power-play goal of the year (and 28th of the season) on Pittsburgh's third man-advantage, while the Penguins came up with two-plus penalty kills. After they survived the remainder of Jason Zucker's penalty to start the third, the winger found the back of the net against his former team to give Pittsburgh a 3-0 lead.
The Wild did convert a 5-on-3 to cut the deficit to 3-1, which made things a little stressful… but Brian Dumoulin and Drew O'Connor did some great work to set up Jeff Carter for a tally that gave the Penguins some breathing room.
"With them scoring a goal there, to make it a three-goal game again [was huge]," Rakell said. "From there, we just had to pack it in."
Here's what Mike Sullivan had to say after the win before the team heads to Detroit for a rematch with the Red Wings after falling 7-4 to that same opponent earlier in the week.
You've talked a lot recently about your team's attention to detail maybe not being as good as it needed to be. Was tonight a step in the right direction in that regard, and what did you really like about this game?
For sure it was. I thought we did a much better job playing a calculated game. We just made better decisions on when we were aggressive, whether it be our D pinching on the wall, or our forwards doing a much better job just working to get above the puck and working to get above people. We didn't give up nearly the level of odd-man rushes. I think when we do that, we're a whole lot harder to play against. So, I thought it was a much more calculated game, and that's the game I think that we've got to try to emulate here night in and night out. On the same side of the coin, I felt like we were playing on our toes and still trying to play the aggressive game that we want to play. We just did it in a calculated way.
You guys go up by three goals, they get the one goal 5-on-3, but for the last 12-13 minutes, you guys limited them for the most part. Finishing out games hasn't always been this team's strong suit. What did you do differently tonight in that regard?
Well, I think it just goes along with what I was saying earlier, just about continuing to play on our toes and playing an aggressive style, but just doing it in a calculated way. We don't want to just sit back and let teams come at us. I don't think that sets us up for success. We're at our best when we're playing on our toes, and we're pursuing pucks up the ice. But I just thought we made good decisions, and I just felt like the group was connected. The forwards, the defense - we were on the same page. I thought we made good decisions, we supported one another. We were working to get on the right side of the puck, on the right side of people, on the right side of scrums - but still trying to play an aggressive game and pursuing pucks and trying to put Minnesota under pressure when we had opportunities to. And when we didn't, I thought we did a good job just staying within the structure, and that's going to be an important aspect. We can limit speed, we can limit transition opportunities, things of that nature - and that makes us a whole lot harder to play against.
When Minnesota did push back, what were your thoughts on how Tristan performed?
I thought he was great. I thought he made some big saves for us. They had a couple of sneaky, really Grade-A chances with deflections in the second period. A couple of those point shots that look harmless hit sticks in the slot, and those are dangerous plays. I thought he tracked it well, and I thought he was solid. He made some key saves for us.
Letang has been playing a lot of big minutes even by his standards the last few games. How impactful has he been recently, and especially so tonight?
Well, I think he's playing extremely well for us, and he is playing heavy minutes for us on top of that. He has such a high fitness level, and his capacity to play heavy minutes, I think is remarkable. He's just a fitness fanatic, and it seems like he doesn't tire. He just continues to play, and he's such an important player for us. He plays in so many situations on both sides of the puck. He scores a great goal for us tonight. He drives offense in so many ways 5-on-5 and on the power play, but we also rely on him to defend. He's playing against the other team's top players. He's playing behind our top guys a lot of times. So, we just rely on him in so many situations, and I just think he thrives when the stakes get high.
Going into Detroit where things obviously didn't go well last time, do you find a way to carry this into it? Or do you take a clean slate approach from your standpoint as head coach?
Well, I mean, I'll give some thought into that over the next 24 hours. I think our focus was on this one here tonight. But obviously, we've got to do a better job, we got to find a way to have success, and I know we're capable of that. I don't think they've seen our best, and so, that's what we need to bring. We need to bring our best each and every night. That's just the reality of where we're at right now.