{"id":132903,"date":"2026-03-08T15:13:11","date_gmt":"2026-03-08T15:13:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/132903\/"},"modified":"2026-03-08T15:13:11","modified_gmt":"2026-03-08T15:13:11","slug":"muse-must-make-d-changes-good-things-drowned-in-bad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/132903\/","title":{"rendered":"Muse Must Make D Changes; Good Things Drowned in Bad"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Pittsburgh Penguins<\/a> are in deep trouble. Small wounds are growing into festering boils. Primary players are playing terribly. And the mistakes are what coach Dan Muse would call loud. <\/p>\n

Very loud. <\/p>\n

When the Penguins\u2019 anemic power play failed to score with a 4v3 chance late in overtime, the result was more predictable than a romance novel but without the good parts, as the game went to the shootout and for the ninth time in 10 attempts, the Penguins lost in the shootout 4-3 to the Philadelphia Flyers at PPG Paints Arena.<\/p>\n

Without Sidney Crosby <\/a>(injury) and Evgeni Malkin<\/a> (suspension), no one was kidding themselves into thinking it would be easy. Yet the Penguins allowed just 11 shots in the first 50 minutes to Philadelphia, but they were tied 3-3 largely because the Penguins made life so much harder on themselves.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey played hard and, give them credit, they played really hard and in our face,\u201d said Bryan Rust. \u201cI don\u2019t think we handled that as well as we could have.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tommy Novak and Rickard Rakell<\/a> had perhaps their best games since the Olympic break. Kris Letang and Sam Girard had their worst, and it was brutal.<\/p>\n

Indeed, the Penguins harpooned themselves with horrific mistakes, poor puck management, and defensive zone coverage\u2013but the efforts were largely concentrated amongst the small group of players.<\/p>\n

The Penguins were either very good or very bad on Saturday.<\/p>\n

Oh, they had opportunities to put away the hapless Flyers. Three times, the Penguins claimed the lead. Three times they lost it, and twice they gave it right back in about one minute\u2019s time.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere were parts in the game where we got out of our structure a little bit and gave them easy looks that they capitalized on,\u201d said Rakell. <\/p>\n

Penguins Analysis<\/p>\n

Lineup construction without Malkin and Crosby could be little more than a guessing game for Muse. So many of the combinations the situation forced upon him had no history together.<\/p>\n

Largely speaking, Muse guessed well and found something he might want to keep: Playing Egor Chinakhov <\/a>with Rakell. That pairing was especially good as they played on the rush with speed, getting behind the Philadelphia defense and creating offensive zone time with chances. <\/p>\n

In the recent games with Rakell at center, the top line had an exceedingly tough time creating and sustaining offense, but Saturday\u2019s inclusion of Chinakhov changed the dynamic, and both had some very good opportunities.<\/p>\n

Rakell was tied with Connor Dewar to lead all players with four shots. <\/p>\n

Novak and Justin Brazeau were assertive, as well. Brazeau was better on the wall and created space for his linemates. Novak distributed the puck well as the line cycled through the offensive zone. <\/p>\n

When the Penguins were playing well, they were able to attack Philadelphia with a speed game, playing on the rush. <\/p>\n

However, that rush game was too scattered as the breakouts were rushed, chaotic, or otherwise sloppy. Mistakes led to Philadelphia\u2019s three goals, all three times shortly after a Penguins goal.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve got the momentum, and we\u2019ve got to keep it for those next two, three, or four shifts. They are big. To keep momentum, we don\u2019t need to score again, but we can\u2019t give them life,\u201d Rust said. \u201cWe\u2019ve got to play hard. We\u2019ve got to play simple. We would like to play in their zone. So that\u2019s obviously not good.\u201d<\/p>\n

Muse didn\u2019t mince words with his critique of the Penguins\u2019 efforts, especially in the second period. It\u2019s one thing to play without two superstars. It\u2019s another to play carelessly.<\/p>\n

And careless might be an understatement. Muse delivered a stinging rebuke of his team. <\/p>\n

\u201cI thought through too much of the second period, especially, it was just\u2013I thought it was casual. I think we had opportunities to\u2013rather than being in good positions to support pucks, we\u2019re kind of drifting. We were getting away from it,\u201d said Muse. \u201cOverall defensively, not just in the second but even going back to the first, I thought it was the detail behind (our game). It wasn\u2019t good enough. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe might be in areas, but we weren\u2019t really there. We weren\u2019t covering, we weren\u2019t taking a look. I thought we gave (them chances). I thought some of their opportunities, and especially some of the shifts, where they generated momentum\u2013You know, I just thought (our) urgency wasn\u2019t there. So, yeah.\u201d<\/p>\n

Penguins Report Card<\/p>\n

Team: D-<\/p>\n

They scored three goals. And there were good performances scattered throughout the lineup. They earned several opportunities to put away the Flyers. At times, they showed speed, connectivity, and even some creativity. <\/p>\n

But invariably, they self-sabotaged. <\/p>\n

Power Play: D-<\/p>\n

Power play unit No. 1 was brutal. Ineffective. Poor zone entries. Flat-footed spectators. And that\u2019s just the good parts. <\/p>\n

PP1: Erik Karlsson, Rickard Rakell, Anthony Mantha, Bryan Rust, and Egor Chinakhov. <\/p>\n

Power play unit No. 2 had moments of efficacy that not only put one goal on the board but also derived some momentum from the opportunity. <\/p>\n

PP2: Letang, Ben Kindel, Ville Koivunen, Tommy Novak, and Justin Brazeau. <\/p>\n

Performances to Like<\/p>\n

Egor Chinakhov: He played fast, with the puck on his stick, and was dangerous in the offensive zone. He could have been a little sharper with his shots, but it seemed he was trying to find the perfect play.<\/p>\n

Rickard Rakell: He was a plus-2, had four shots, and five other attempts. Chinakhov brought out his best. With respect to Avery Hayes, straddling Rakell with a pair of grinders didn\u2019t work. Muse would do well to keep the skill beside Rakell. <\/p>\n

Ville Koivunen: He was noticeable. Koivunen was on the puck, made good decisions\u2013quick decisions\u2013and battled hard on the walls. He didn\u2019t disappear, but also didn\u2019t attempt a shot. He has to get more involved at the end of the play. <\/p>\n

Tommy Novak: After a few quiet games, Novak was appropriately noticeable, as well. He also won five of 10 faceoffs. <\/p>\n

Ben Kindel: D<\/p>\n

Kindel had a rough go Saturday, too. It\u2019s been tough sledding for him since the break, but the Penguins badly need his best. He was on the ice for all three Flyers goals, and one was his man (Owen Tippett, 1-1). Another was also his man, but he was left holding the bag for Kris Letang\u2019s lapse in judgment (Denver Barkey, 3-3).<\/p>\n

Shootout: Nothing Can Be Done<\/p>\n

Stuart Skinner<\/a> stopped one of two attempts. The Flyers didn\u2019t need their third shot because the Penguins were again blanked in all three attempts. That has become the norm. <\/p>\n

However, there is nothing that can be done. The Penguins simply do not have players who are good at it. They should NOT have let the game get to the shootout, but no amount of practice or video or \u2026 prayer is going to help. The questions and wailing about the 1-9 shootout record are complaints about something that cannot be changed. <\/p>\n

Girard-Letang: F<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, the Report Card\u2019s trepidation with the pairing when Muse first put them together following the trade has mushroom-clouded into the worst-case scenario. They don\u2019t read each other well. Girard does not seem to be in the right spots and is searching in vain for his connections. Saturday, among the many mistakes, Letang was beaten for a breakaway and took a penalty. Later, he left his station to double-cover a player, and Barkey tied the game from the spot where Letang should have been.<\/p>\n

Muse didn\u2019t exactly defend his pair. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe game just ended. I mean, this is a process. I\u2019m not (ready to answer) right now. I think it does take time. I think there have been (good) moments that we\u2019ve seen with them, too. They\u2019re adjusting to each other, reading off of each other. I thought there were large stretches of the game where I wouldn\u2019t say just that pair (was bad), but too much of the team wasn\u2019t sharp,\u201d said Muse. <\/p>\n

\u201cSo I\u2019m not going to throw that on that one pair. After every game, we look at it, we have discussions, and we make decisions. Go from there.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was a mess and getting worse on Saturday. The growing number of defensive mistakes has compounded the scarcity of good breakouts and offensive push. Given the lack of right-handed options and Letang\u2019s senior status, Muse is handcuffed there. But it might not be surprising to see Ryan Graves draw into the lineup for Girard against the Boston Bruins Sunday.<\/p>\n

Something has to give. The Penguins\u2019 skaters didn\u2019t lack energy Saturday. No, they lacked everything else. <\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTags: Kris Letang<\/a> Penguins Analysis<\/a> Penguins game<\/a> Philadelphia flyers<\/a> Pittsburgh Penguins<\/a> <\/p>\n

Categorized:Penguins Analysis<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Pittsburgh Penguins are in deep trouble. Small wounds are growing into festering boils. Primary players are playing…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":132904,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[15643,7006,6617,4845,73,75,74,1067],"class_list":{"0":"post-132903","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-pittsburgh","8":"tag-kris-letang","9":"tag-penguins-analysis","10":"tag-penguins-game","11":"tag-philadelphia-flyers","12":"tag-pittsburgh","13":"tag-pittsburgh-headlines","14":"tag-pittsburgh-news","15":"tag-pittsburgh-penguins"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/132903","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=132903"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/132903\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/132904"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=132903"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=132903"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=132903"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}