Streaky teams are gonna streak.
But unfortunately, for the Penguins, they’re currently streaking in the wrong direction.
Pittsburgh has lost three straight games, allowing 14 goals in those games, as it gets ready to host a Rangers team that is trending the other way.
“Hockey is a funny game and it’s a long season,” Penguins forward Bryan Rust said Friday. “Just like any sport or any aspect in life, things can go great and all of a sudden they go wrong. You don’t really know where that turning point was, but then you’ve got to try to get back on track. That’s where we’re at now.”
The Penguins and Rangers are separated by just one point in the Metropolitan Division standings. But Pittsburgh has played two more games than New York, making Saturday’s game all that more meaningful.
“Obviously they have a really good team,” Pittsburgh defenseman John Marino added. “They have a great goaltender, too. And a lot of dangerous players. It’s going to be a challenge, for sure.”
That goaltender is Igor Shesterkin, who sports a goals against average of 1.98 and a sterling save percentage that sits at .940. Those numbers are second, and first in the NHL, respectively.
“They’re goaltending is phenomenal,” Rust said.
Despite the three straight losses, the Penguins feel they can get back to a game that carries them to 17 wins in 19 games from December 4 to January 25.
That run was followed by a four-game losing streak, albeit one in which the Penguins earned three points. After that came four consecutive wins. But the defense has noticeably slipped, starting wit ha 5-4 overtime win over Philadelphia on February 15.
“We know we have to play better and be better in certain areas,” Marino said. “But there are a lot of good things, as well. We know what we have to work on and we know what we have to improve on.”
“Human nature is not easy to figure out sometimes,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan added. “That’s one of the biggest challenges of coaching. It’s our job, as a staff, to help our group get on the same page.”
The most recent loss, a 6-1 defeat Thursday to New Jersey, came with an early three-goal deficit through one period. In the previous two games, losses to Toronto and Caorlina, the Penguins trailed 1-0 after the first period.
“Our starts recently haven’t been great,” Rust said. “We have to be a heck of a lot better there. We have to dig in more, and work harder, work smarter.”
This will be the first meeting between the Penguins and Rangers since April 8, 2021. And the Penguins will have to handle a dynamic group of skaters, led by Artemi Panarin, who has 55 points this season. New York has won five of its last six games and earned a point in six straight.
“They’re a real good team,” Sullivan said. “They’re a deep team, they’ve got a very explosive offense. Their power play is dynamic. They’re got a lot of speed, so their transition game is dangerous.”
“They have some really good players and we just have to be up to the task,” Rust echoed. “This is a team that’s high in the standings for a reason and we’re fighting for them for positioning. This game is going to be a good test.”
Injury Updates
Sullivan confirmed that Penguins defenseman Mike Matheson will be out week-to-week with an upper-body injury. Matheson has seven goals and 14 assists this season and is seventh on the team in average ice time.
Meanwhile, another defenseman, Mark Friedman, has been recalled from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton after playing in two games as part of a conditioning assignment.