This one was, to be frank, an embarrassment.
The Penguins, to a man, skated, weaved, and powered through the tissue caliber defense — if you want to call it that — time and again Sunday, unloading a remarkable eleven goals in a runaway 11-2 win over Detroit.
Pittsburgh was good, no question. You don't score eleven without having a strong night as a team.
But the Red Wings, which looked less competitive than an AHL team might have, were downright abysmal.
The Penguins led, 2-0, after a period, but quickly seized complete control of the game, scoring five goals in the second period and four more in the final frame.
"We had some pretty good looks, and obviously it's nice to score goals," said Penguins coach Mike Sullivan. "It's good for a lot of our guys, it's good for there confidence, it's good for our power play. There's a lot of positives you can take out of it, for sure.
"If you're involved in the game long enough, you end up on both hades of that. I've been on the other side of that myself. It's a humbling experience."
Of the Penguins' 12 forwards, nine scored goals, including new addition Rickard Rakell, who netted his first goal since being acquired at the trade deadline.
Pittsburgh scored three power play goals and also hit the net shorthanded.
Evgeni Malkin netted his 14th career hat trick. He also added an assist. This after not playing Friday against New York due to illness.
Malkin, however, has scored six goals in his last four games played and appears to be rounding into form after rejoining the team in mid-January following offseason knee surgery.
"He deserves so much credit for the effort and the commitment that he put in," Sullivan added of Malkin, who did not speak to the media. "That rehab process was long and tedious.
"I think he's getting better with each game he plays."
The win, and the 11 goals — the most scored in the NHL in 19 years and most by the Penguins since 1993 — felt needed for the group following a 5-1 beat down by the Rangers in Madison Square Garden Friday.
"Tonight was substantially more fun than the other night," Penguins forward Bryan Rust quipped. "To kind of play on our toes and not be on our heels all night, again, also very fun.
"We've got to take what we did well in this game, build off it and take the confidence from this game and keep moving forward," Rust added. "We've got another game Tuesday.
The Penguins host the Rangers Tuesday night at PPG Paints Arena.
