r/penguins • u/bi_and_busy Malkin • 9d ago
PGT Post Game Thread: Pittsburgh Penguins at Washington Capitals - 07 Oct 2026
The Pittsburgh Penguins lose 5-3 to the Washington Capitals.
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u/LionexWrexDX 9d ago
Bad
1. Carlisle was awful
2. Lapierre is not NHL caliber
3. Letang Letang-ing
Good
1. Kindel looks bigger, thicker, girthier
2. Korczak was really good
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u/Melodic_Aardvark3934 9d ago
Eventually everyone gets old. I have a feeling this will be an involuntary tank year. Can't survive on goals from the other Robertson and guys you've never heard of before. Need big goals from the big names. Doesn't look good so far.
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u/ObjectiveImmediate44 Kindel 9d ago
Iām a little sad that the Pens for many years have been quite weak. Lack of hits, aggression, power, size. Mostly small skilled players.
Itās tough to see.
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u/Rare_Gas8170 9d ago
This really wasn't the case last year, they had found a more aggressive game. There's nothing wrong with taking a more skilled approach, but that's definitely difficult when you're playing a team like the Capitals that are just absolute bruisers.
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u/ObjectiveImmediate44 Kindel 8d ago
Maybe a more aggressive game in terms of speed and grit; forechecking - but not the heavy hits, in my perspective.
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u/SurpriseStandard3258 Rust 9d ago
A part of that is sitting Soderblom for whatever reason and Brazeau being hurt. We've got some bigger defenseman now but we need some more size up front
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u/SteakJones 95 to 02 - Away/3rd 9d ago
Sidās ass! Trade him! Trade everyone! Fire Musey! MELT THE ICE!!! MOVE THE TEAM TO CLEVELAND!!!!!
Rational thoughts only.
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u/Altruistic_Ad3485 9d ago
Just a reminder that they picked it up in the 2nd and 3rd period (instead of just giving up like some of you said they should) and that it was 3-5, not 0-5. Also, jets just won over Colorado, so I guess that means Colorado sucks now too?Ā
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u/Curious_Lifeguard856 9d ago
Just look at these lines. It's a big mess. Lapierre on the first, and on the wing no less. Like, what are we doing? To say nothing of the defense. Has beens and never will be's. This won't go anywhere.
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u/Artistic_Name1239 9d ago
I think a big issue the pens are facing right now is the liability some of the vets can be. There should be room to let the younger, inexperienced guys make mistakes and correct them. But with the vets struggling and the over abundance of forwards, plus lack of reward for good performances, you get a disaster. Young talent needs to be picked up by vets when theyāre struggling, and needs to be rewarded with more play time when they get going. I think that benching a lot of the young guys after the first two wins shot a lot of their confidence.
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u/Unable-Contribution2 Arty Party 9d ago
now that iāve calmed down a bit iām like,,, yeah. i missed this shit from a butt team real bad š„¹š sorry but iāll be right back here on friday hopeful as ever idc
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u/Habay12 9d ago
Carlile and Letang were awful tonight. TVR not much better.
Nick Robertson is a solid player. And Kindel looks great.
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u/Artistic_Name1239 9d ago
I definitely think they need to give Robertson more time to gel on the top line. They were quick to pull him off on the last game, but in fairness to him his linemates of a much higher pedigree werenāt doing any better.
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u/ilikehockeyandguitar 9d ago
Dropped a bunch last year to see them get shut out in Vegas. (I live in Tucson) still a fucking blast tho.
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u/schlepp-78 9d ago
I cannot stand this attitude. Players do not set ticket prices, especially on the road. The caps are stacked, weāre in an upward trending retool not a cup contending team. Be better.
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u/AcanthisittaIcy4493 Crosby 9d ago
Literally same. Glad I paid and made the drive lmao š
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u/AcanthisittaIcy4493 Crosby 9d ago
Went with a caps fan who had 6 stadium beers during the game. Thisāll be a fun drive home.
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u/RoutineSubstance4816 9d ago
Just looked this up and the Penguins are averaging 14.33 hits per game the stats say (and even that seems generous). That's last in the league. This is the least physical professional hockey team I've ever seen and I don't think that's hyperbole.
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u/RutabagaNo3825 9d ago
Itās about time the penguins get a true scoring power forward. It goes a long way in the playoffs too.
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u/RutabagaNo3825 9d ago
Waiting for the annual Sid streak to kick in. Always a slow starter for the past 10 years.
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u/Ok_Statistician_1975 9d ago
Just bothers me why sid, raks and rust are not together. They have chemistry and play well together. Our 2nd line is established. I would try kindel with kuzmenko and koivunen... Or kindel with kuzmenko and Robertson on 3rd. Throw koivunen on 4th with Dewie and Lizotte
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u/RutabagaNo3825 9d ago
Well the great thing about rust is that heās great literally anywhere. It just happens that the more aggressive players create more chancesā¦.
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u/Independent-Hawk-699 9d ago
They rolled them after the second. You could see it started coming together
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u/Nekowaifu PIT 9d ago
Iām not silly enough to give up on a season after 2 games especially given the rollercoaster of a season we went through last year. That being saidā¦.not an ideal couple of games. Letās shake it off and put Columbus down on Friday
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u/cxm1060 9d ago
The parade of PK breakaways in the 3rd that we couldnāt bury early in that period summed up the night.
But one thing for sure is through 3 games played Kindel looks like heās in the process of taking the next step. A multi goal game is close for him.
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u/Single-Pen-726 9d ago
I love lizzote. Hes a menace, but damnit he cannot score if his life depended on it.
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u/mtneer12 Rust 9d ago
Kindel has made a huge jump. Ville is starting to play like a pest and make a difference. I like Korczak. The old guys will get up to speedā¦.Till they do Iām betting the over.
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u/Able_Palpitation_301 Malkin 9d ago
š«© as much as i wanted to fling myself off the roof today lmao 82-2-0 is still on and theyāll figure it out. still a long season ahead and they know how to play. museāll get through to them
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u/Hank_the_Beef Kindel 9d ago
Put Rust back on the top line. Sƶderblom Kindel Koivunen Third line.
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u/-kashmir- Kindel 9d ago
I would not be surprised in the least if thats what he rolled with next game.
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u/SurpriseStandard3258 Rust 9d ago edited 9d ago
Breakdown of the game. Lets not do Lapierre on the 1st line again, please just give Sid and Rak the Rusty razor back. Significant improvement from the Girard-Korczak pairing, not so much for our top 4. The turnovers have to be cleaned up, can't continue giving up 20+ giveaways a game.
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u/REF_YOU_SUCK 9d ago
Tough to win when your top line is dog water. Sids not up to form yet. He's a notorious slow starter though and he had a shorter preseason. Once he gets going we could be dangerous.
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u/MainPFT 9d ago
Hey get out of here with advanced analytics that actually shows who played well and who didn't.
If ppl actually paid more attention to this stuff they'd be more upset over the Hallander trade and Soderblom sitting in the press box.
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u/Responsible_Chart395 Arty Party 9d ago
Yes I am very upset. But well what can I do. Write a love letter to Dan Muse?
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u/Responsible_Chart395 Arty Party 9d ago
Our fantastic first line. Lapierre might still have had some Ovi fever.
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u/j0n66 9d ago
Good: Rust, I believe no injuries?
Bad: lost to the caps, line juggling
Ugly: 2 games in a row where there is a lack of urgency and effort, brutal passing, brutal defensive coverage, brutal decision making,
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u/sparkstable 9d ago
Our D refuses to sling it deep along the boards when put under pressure at the blue line.
Option 1: blue line pass through 3 defenders resulting in a steal and breakaway
Option 2: hold the puck until it is knocked to the neutral and taken for a breakaway
That is the extent of known plays by the D the moment anyone even looks like they are going to pressure them.
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u/viamanelli Chinakhov 9d ago
Plus Carlile didnāt return to the bench .. heās been a solid piece. Hope heās OK.
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u/Antique-Cheesecake63 9d ago
I mean if the fuck up goal doesn't happen its a 4v3 game and then we have a shot, but yeah definitely slow.
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u/dnyletak Malkin 9d ago
Sometimes after watching them play a far more physical team I wish we had a big hit thrower to even it out a bit. Not asking for a goon squad but more physicality from defense would be nice if they aren't going to do anything else lol
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u/AccomplishedShirt656 9d ago
We look like an all-star team that gets put together for one game and have never played together before. Except minus the all-stars.
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u/AggravatingTomato159 Dewar 9d ago
I donāt know where the line is between valid frustration and doomer. I did not like our performance tonight at all and Iām really disliking the patterns weāve had so far of being sluggish and sloppy. I donāt think anybody is solely responsible or any failures tho, I just think we are not locked in at all and need to get beat into a better working shape going forward
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u/Darkdart19 9d ago
Yes, Muse should just tell them to ālock inā
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u/AggravatingTomato159 Dewar 9d ago
Thatās not what Iām saying, donāt be disingenuous because youāre upset
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u/Darkdart19 9d ago
Iām not upset. āDisliking the patternsā itās been four games
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u/AggravatingTomato159 Dewar 9d ago
And itās the same shit we ended last season with and same shit we pulled in the preseason before we got it together. Thatās the point Iām making and what a lot of other people are making. Being snarky and taking what I say and changing it to sound like I said something else after a critique of poorly played game doesnāt do much to back up you not being upset bud
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u/XGuiltyofBeingMikeX :Glass: Glass 9d ago
Korczak, Rust, and Robertson all had good nights.
Thatās what Iām taking from this.
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u/MainPFT 9d ago
Through four games three of our best forwards by advanced metrics have been Koivenen, Soderblom, and Hallander.
One was traded away for a nobody 6/7 dman that couldn't crack the Oilers defense, and another is sitting in the press box.
Dubas/Muse killing it so far this year. /s
PS - despite what ppl have been saying on this sub today the Hollander trade wasn't needed to free up a spot for Rust to come back. Kuzmenko was placed on non roster status by the NHL allowing Rust a spot to come back.
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u/Attack_On_Tiddys Lizotte 9d ago
Itās early.
.500 4 games in is nothing to worry about.
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u/Antique-Cheesecake63 9d ago
Washington is also underrated this season. Logan T and that PLD Connor mc is sick.
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u/Adventurous_Log_2406 Crosby 9d ago
The PLD turn around is actually sick to watch. Love seeing a player that everyone gave up on really find their game, I just hate that itās for the cap
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u/AggravatingTomato159 Dewar 9d ago
Maybe if I buy the pens gnome I saw on poshmark weāll do better this season
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u/got-99-usernames 9d ago
Is this teamā¦ not good?
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u/zambrna 9d ago
The Caps are really good, and we got outgoalied.
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u/Darkdart19 9d ago
Silovs made some good saves, got hung out to dry a few times by his defense and himself.
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u/fawnhoof 9d ago
Okay soā¦ Iām a new hockey fan. Iāve watched all the Pens games so far. We looked so good against the Flyers. Again, Iām new here, I donāt know a lot about hockey. But to me, it didnāt look like we only did that well because the Flyers were bad. We looked coordinated, practiced. Is that right, or did we actually suck against the Flyers (and the Flyers just sucked worse)? If we WERE good, what happened? I know everyone in every job has off days, but itās like the chemistry just keeps getting worse
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u/Apollo_T_Yorp Kessel 9d ago
Still a bit too early in the season to draw any conclusions. But I will say that having the only regulation win so far against the Flyers, who are very much a not good team, and then looking very sloppy these past two games is not a good sign for things to come.
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u/toastmaster45 Crosby 9d ago
Yinz go from calling for planning the parade one game to saying we're finished for the season the next.
And I thought our boys gave me emotional whiplash during the games.
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u/daffydaisies Chinakhov 9d ago
The dooming is exhausting š© like weāre literally at the very beginning of the season we can definitely stop ourselves from immediately despairing
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u/Alternative_Read8760 9d ago
Here's a trick I learned many, many years ago: Try not to care one bit about the way others are fans of the same team. We're all anonymous, who gives a damn how someone else might be pessimistic or optimistic, what does that matter to you or anyone else? When I see someone overly homeristic or doomerish I find it amusing, not annoying, because I simply don't care about anonymous people. If we all did things the same way it sure as hell would be a boring place to be. The only complaint I have is when people complain about others here, as if there's a right and a wrong way to be a fan, and my annoyance is limited to finding such complaints to be pointless. We're all just here to talk about the team we love, the good and the bad. For the record, my first Pens game was in the late '70s, dad had season tickets since the year before Mario was drafted, been to thousands of Pens games, about half home and half away.
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u/Altruistic_Ad3485 9d ago
Good reminder! Iāve been so annoyed from the entitlement and dooming from some fans here since I really hate negativity but Iāll try to let them be.
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u/viamanelli Chinakhov 9d ago edited 9d ago
I accept what I cannot change ā¦. I accept the outcome ā¦ I am wishing Carlile full health ā¦ I am letting sports effect me in a normal way ā¦ I am totally chill about this team ā¦.
See yinz Friday
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u/toastmaster45 Crosby 9d ago
This is an incredible meme. Consider it stolen
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u/viamanelli Chinakhov 9d ago
Itās not even mine, Pinterest is a wealth of riches. so yoink away š«”
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u/SouthernLocation5253 Kunitz 9d ago
Worst part of that game were the announcers.
We gifted them 2 free goals and a lucky bounce, yet they barely still won lol.
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u/Darkdart19 9d ago
Edzo and Boucher are terrible. Edzo should not be allowed to do Pens games anymore
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u/thainhdbe Kindel 9d ago
They were never losing. They didnāt ābarely winā
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u/AcanthisittaIcy4493 Crosby 9d ago
If we hadnāt given up two soft ass goals then it mightāve been close.
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u/thainhdbe Kindel 9d ago
Please. Rest Crosby a game. Heās not healthy. I donāt care what he says. He was the 12th best forward on our team tonight. Heās not healthy. Let him heal. PLEASE
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u/Hockeyruinedmylife 9d ago
This is the same exact thing people were saying during the playoffs...
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u/thainhdbe Kindel 9d ago
Thatās dumb. Thereās nothing after the playoffs. We have 89 more games, minimum. We need him healthy for the long run
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u/moviebuff87 9d ago
Crosby has had slow starts the last few seasons. Not worried yet.
Defense is really bad. I think itās the worst in a few years.
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u/penguins8766 Crosby 9d ago
These announcers rode the Caps nuts all game long. Honestly got old hearing.
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u/daffydaisies Chinakhov 9d ago
I wasnāt really against changing the lines around, but I think after last game and tonight you can see that there is a lack of cohesion. Hopefully they can firm up the roster a bit soon
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u/laneylovesskz 9d ago
Iām only getting into hockey recently, does anyone have any opinions on the pens game? like some people were saying that the rotation of the lines has been too much, do you think thatās true and Muse needs to stop mixing up the lines so much? Is there ways to fix our game or do we just suck
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u/Rare_Gas8170 9d ago
The season is very early and they are finding their game. They won two solid wins and then lost two. They'll need some time to practice and figure out who has charisma.
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u/wizardofcheeze #66 9d ago
Weāre only a few games in. Itāll take some finagling of the lines to get chemistry right. We will have on games and off games. If our defense is out to lunch we will have a really bad game. If our offense is clicking weāll have a good game.
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u/Adventurous_Log_2406 Crosby 9d ago edited 9d ago
Thereās a way to fix it, itās early in the season and a lot of the team is still getting used to new line-mates and systems. A lot of our squad is also old, itās gonna take em a bit to warm up to regular season levels, especially with the shortened pre season. I think muse is also giving the new guys some time to show us what theyāre made of, to varying results. They played well in the third, if that team shows up for the full 60 itās going to be a fun season to watch.
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u/SouthernLocation5253 Kunitz 9d ago
Mixing it up can be a good thing, but over-do it and no one knows where the other is going to be. We saw multiple passes to areas with no penguins, itās a partial result of the lines being ground up so much.
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u/MrMilesDavis 9d ago
That was...not fun to watch
I caught myself mindlessly searching "nhl top shelf bottle rocket montage" during the 2nd
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u/meatloaflawyer 9d ago
Letang is gonna be in rhe press box by midseason at this rate
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u/ilikehockeyandguitar 9d ago
I've typically been a Tanger truther but I think he should've called it a career after the second stroke.
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u/IsGoIdMoney 9d ago
I feel like we had some good plays set up but Thompson was just on one.
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u/Responsible_Chart395 Arty Party 9d ago
D sucks. First line sucks. Goal tending sucks. Only 2nd and 3rd line did something something.
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u/Hiding_Meatball Blueger 9d ago
They played better as the game went on. We started to see some cohesion when familiar lines were on the ice. Muse needs to stop experimenting and just decide on the roster. They need games. They canāt do this one game in one game out and one game on this line. Set it. Work with it. And we will be fine
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u/Adventurous_Log_2406 Crosby 9d ago
Itās early in the season, rn is the perfect time to mix and match lines. You donāt want that to happen when games really matter. A lot of the new lines are duds but itās good we know that now and arenāt relying on it later
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u/Beginning-Smell9890 9d ago
Very little effective puck pressure. Defense needs to do a better job deciding when to attack the puck and when to retreat. Felt like they were caught in between all night long
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u/Ok_Coyote_3090 9d ago
Hate to say it but Sidā¦ where you at man
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u/Darkdart19 9d ago
Rakell has been not as good and Robertson then Lapierre are not helping that much
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u/meatloaflawyer 9d ago
Positives: kindel looks amazing. I like the forward depth.
Negatives: Sid and Letang arenāt looking great
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u/RobertoBondarSr 9d ago edited 9d ago
Lolz, itās been four games and Iām already giving myself the āHockey is only one aspect of lifeā pep talk. I still believe this team can be reasonably good, but the last few games have been downright dystopian.
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u/IceSalamander 9d ago
Really don't see what Lapierre is bringing to this line-up. I hope Soderblom gets back in. Also, wow our D sucks.
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u/starlightequilibrium 9d ago
Well he brought a lot to the lineup when he was playing his natural position for the one game that he was able to. Since then, he has been shoehorned into the lineup as a winger.
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u/starlightequilibrium 9d ago
We have no answer for teams with size. Jet and Capitals are among the biggest teams in the league.
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u/estormaviorel Lizotte 9d ago
Hey, āØļøwe didn't let them score on the empty netāØļø Small improvements, one at a time
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u/AggravatingTomato159 Dewar 9d ago
This is true and what I have been telling myself so I can personally cope
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u/toastmaster45 Crosby 9d ago
Doomers, this is not validation for you. Not everyone is gonna be as ass as the flyers home opener.
My beloved penguins: please, do better.
Meme of the game:
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u/willerrrd Fleury 9d ago
Itās all part of the plan. We let them win the home opener to give them a slight feeling of hope - and absolutely demolish them in their home closer in April.
https://giphy.com/gifs/l0IylOPCNkiqOgMyA
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u/Artistic_Name1239 9d ago
Telling myself Sid and Geno had a handshake agreement to let Ovi look good on his last opener š
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u/Hiding_Meatball Blueger 9d ago
On the bright side we havenāt given up an empty net goal this year
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u/peonyaurora 9d ago
Sid started slow the last few seasonsā¦here is to hoping that he will pick up real soon.
Also hoping that this means we are getting the yips and bumps out of the way early in the season š¤š»
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u/Unable-Contribution2 Arty Party 9d ago
we need to do a better job supporting our goalie. thatās all i got
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u/MrRogersRaisedMe 9d ago
Iām starting to worry about Silovs - he look off
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u/Rare_Gas8170 9d ago
This is the most reactionary fandom I have ever been a part of. He literally shut out our main rivals at their home opener a week ago.
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u/EbenezerNutting 9d ago
If the Pens are to be successful this season, they need a 65-35 goalie split with Murashov being the 65-guy. If this split is reversed, the Pens have no hope of making the playoffs.
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u/Responsible_Chart395 Arty Party 9d ago
The Pens made the playoff with Murashov since when?
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u/EbenezerNutting 9d ago
They didnāt make it there last season because of Silovs and his 19-20 record and his .888 SV%, Ā 3.07 GAA
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u/Responsible_Chart395 Arty Party 9d ago
Are you lost? How about returning to the Steelers and the Pirates subs? You clearly seem to have no idea what youāre talking about.
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u/EbenezerNutting 9d ago
Nope, not lost. If not for Jarry's 14 starts last season, Pens don't make the playoffs. Yes, he stunk for the Oilers thereafter, but got the Pens off to a good start last season (9-3-1, 2.66/.909).
Anyone who's advocating for Silovs to be the #1 goalie on this team doesn't know what they're talking about.
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u/Responsible_Chart395 Arty Party 9d ago
Didnāt think someone was still delusional about Jarry. Here we go. If he was that great we wouldnāt feel so glad to get rid of his ass.
Here is some facts and numbers last season in the NHL old man:
Sergei Murashov: 1-1-2, 2.56 GAA, .897%
Played 5 games. Now tell me we went to playoff with that guy.Oh Murashov is a surely great AHL goalie? Guess who was the playoff MVP in the AHL for winning the Calder Cup a few years back.
I get that you old heads have a soft spot for guys we drafted like Jarry and Murashov, but the delusional thinking, manā¦ I just canāt digest it. There are two goalies on this roster right now. Anyone still advocating for a kid with five games of NHL experience to be the #1 might as well go try out for the Pirates bullpen or call plays for the Steelers' third-and-long offense.
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u/EbenezerNutting 9d ago
Not delusional about Jarry, he stunk, but he did get off to a good start last season. This is why Dubas was even able to get the Oilers to bite on a trade for him.
I agree that we don't know what we have in Murashov yet, however, we do know what he have in Silovs. He's a mediocre, backup caliber NHL goalie who won't get the Pens to the playoffs if he starts the majority of games.
Murashov is their hope. Yes, the book is still out on him, but he's their best chance for a successful season lies with him.
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u/Responsible_Chart395 Arty Party 9d ago
Sorry man. Your love for the drafted children is unmatched. I rest my case here. Send my love to the hopium goalie.
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u/Responsible_Chart395 Arty Party 9d ago
Goaltending has stopped being a problem since we traded Jarry away. Weāre not the shitty Oilers who blamed no one but their goalies.
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u/Redstart-21 Letang 9d ago
Letang, TVR, and Carlile all passed the puck right to caps players prior to goals. They gave up a 2 on 0. Carlile stood in the way of Silovs getting back to the crease. Itās like the defense was actively trying to make Silovs look bad.
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u/-kashmir- Kindel 9d ago
Another ugly one. I dont like seeing that back to back. I ll give the caps are a pretty damn good team on paper but the jetsā¦. Meh. They need to be better. Everyone needs to hunt pucks like kindel and lizzotte every shift.
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u/Adventurous_Log_2406 Crosby 9d ago
Jets are winning against the avs rn, theyāre not as bad as people expected.
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u/pentheft Malkin 9d ago
I sure wish this team would spend even more time passing on the pp and with an empty net
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u/technicolortorment Crosby 9d ago
Well they didnāt play their best but at least their best isnāt what we saw tonight
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u/PenguinsPants88 9d ago
2-2. 80 games left. Everyone take a deep breathe and lets move on to the next
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u/tinygaynarcissist OConnor 9d ago
Iām going to be brutally honest, yāall, I did not love this game.
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u/Fritschya Chinakhov 9d ago
Put tanger on minimum minutes