{"id":551765,"date":"2026-03-29T05:18:07","date_gmt":"2026-03-29T05:18:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/551765\/"},"modified":"2026-03-29T05:18:07","modified_gmt":"2026-03-29T05:18:07","slug":"karlsson-carrying-team-but-others-disappear","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/551765\/","title":{"rendered":"Karlsson Carrying Team, but Others Disappear"},"content":{"rendered":"

Through the course of the 82-game NHL season, there are wins and there are losses that don\u2019t match the effort. Saturday, the Pittsburgh Penguins<\/a> played a superior game at even strength but lost by their own hand as they could not stay out of the penalty box.<\/p>\n

The preponderance of the calls and was eventually too much to overcome. Five straight Dallas Stars power plays and a pair of power play goals in the second period were the difference, as the Penguins\u2019 comeback challenge lacked time and enough energy. <\/p>\n

Every Penguins player who spoke to the media Saturday lamented losing a \u201cwinnable game\u201d as Dallas also scored a pair of empty net goals for a 6-3 win over the Penguins at PPG Paints Arena. <\/p>\n

The Penguins\u2019 loss was not as damaging in the standings as it could have been, as the Columbus Blue Jackets also lost in regulation, maintaining the Penguins\u2019 one-point playoff cushion. However, with a win Saturday, the New York Islanders leaped over the Penguins for second place by one point, but the Penguins also have a game in hand on NYI. <\/p>\n

The Penguins and Islanders play Monday at UBS Arena. Buckle up.<\/p>\n

Saturday\u2019s March of the Penguins <\/a>was not through their opponent, unless you consider the humans in striped shirts to be their opponents. The Penguins took five penalties in the first 30 minutes of the game, leading to Dallas\u2019s third and fourth goals.<\/p>\n

Not that the Penguins didn\u2019t commit those infractions, but after the Penguins scored a power play goal early in the game on a soft call, Dallas got most of the breaks. Those frustrating moments that only led more Penguins faithful and even some connected to the organization to wonder the worst aloud including after seeing Dallas\u2019s fourth goal when Lian Bischel swiped Erik Karlsson\u2019s<\/a> stick, tossed it aside, then skated to the top of the zone to blast a slapshot past Penguins goalie Stuart Skinner.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou saw it. I don\u2019t think it does me any good or us any good by standing here and having excuses or pointing fingers,\u201d said Karlsson. <\/p>\n

Right in the Bichsel wheelhouse \ud83d\ude24 pic.twitter.com\/71Jax7FNTe<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 x \u2013 Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) March 28, 2026<\/a> <\/p>\n

As non-calls go, it was extraordinary, but in total Dallas had five power plays and the Penguins had four. And none of the calls on the Penguins were questionable, so chasing the officiating would be a fool\u2019s errand. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve got to we focus on what we can control. I don\u2019t think anybody is going to walk out today feeling good about our game. We\u2019ve got to be better,\u201d said Muse. \u201cAgain, it\u2019s all of us, myself included. The things that we have zero control over, we\u2019re not going to waste our time on that. We\u2019re focusing on our game and what we can do right now. Tomorrow, it\u2019s going to be to prepare for going to New York.\u201d<\/p>\n

By the end of the second period, the Dallas Stars led 4-2, and the Penguins\u2019 previously energetic legs were wobbly. <\/p>\n

The Penguins regained their footing in the third period and closed to within 4-3 midway through the third period when Elmer Soderblom<\/a> blasted a shot off Noel Acciari, but that was as close as they got. <\/p>\n

Penguins Analysis<\/p>\n

The Penguins effort was without captain Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, but Erik Karlsson had his second straight three-point game, scoring a goal with two more assists. He is the NHL\u2019s second leading scorer in March with 24 points and counting, <\/p>\n

Generally, the Penguins outplayed Dallas at even strength, but those power play chances meant Rickard Rakell and Bryan Rust spent a lot of time on the ice while shorthanded and Dallas had momentum. <\/p>\n

According to NaturalStatTrick.com<\/a>, the Penguins and Stars each had 18 scoring chances at even strength, and the Penguins had more high-danger chances (7-5). <\/p>\n

\u201cI think we got going in the third again. It was unfortunate that we couldn\u2019t pull through all the way to the end. We unfortunately didn\u2019t do enough today to win,\u201d Karlsson said. \u201cI think it was a winnable game for us, the way it was played. But kudos to them. They did a good job. They stuck with it longer than we did.\u201d<\/p>\n

Perhaps the biggest indicator of the special teams\u2019 parade, the even-strength shots on goal were only 10-7 for Dallas after two periods. <\/p>\n

That\u2019s a shame because the Penguins\u2019 fourth line grinders brought their lunch boxes and created zone time and pressure, which put the top line centered by Rickard Rakell in the offensive zone several times. <\/p>\n

Xs and Os<\/p>\n

Tactically, the Penguins were well prepared for Dallas\u2019s structure. Muse detailed their strategy in the pregame talk with the media. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think this is a game where you\u2019ve got to have some patience with it. They\u2019re going to defend hard. They have good structure,\u201d Muse said. \u201cAnd so we\u2019ve got to make sure that we\u2019re doing the right things away from the puck. We\u2019re setting ourselves up to play more in the offensive zone. And I think it\u2019s just a team that plays a hard, grinding game. We have to have patience within our game and focus on our details.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Penguins avoided Dallas\u2019s neutral zone structure and defensive clog by altering their preferred breakout. The Penguins typically excel when they find the center-up pass to create speed past a forecheck. Saturday, the Penguins used the left wall especially well. <\/p>\n

The left side was the primary outlet, and the second forward then provided another up-outlet on the left side in the neutral zone. <\/p>\n

The Penguins followed their quick zone escapes with plenty of dump-and-chase hockey, at which they performed quite well. This is where the grinders came into play; the Penguins\u2019 fourth line and especially 6-foot-8 Elmer Soderblom figured prominently. <\/p>\n

Ultimately, those penalties, that time shorthanded, and the lack of reciprocity caught the Penguins. <\/p>\n

Skinner also alluded to opposing teams finding a crack in the Penguins\u2019 penalty killing, which is currently without Blake Lizotte. The Penguins\u2019 PK was quite good in the first period as they allowed little time or space and had three odd-man rushes. But they faded deeper into the game.<\/p>\n

\u201cI mean, I think teams are starting to, I\u2019m guessing, look at our PK and their pre-scout and trying to find some holes. I think some teams are making some really good plays,\u201d Skinner said. \u201cCaroline made some really good plays on us, sneaking pucks through the middle. I think at times we can give their team a little bit too much time and space. But in saying that, we\u2019ve got a heck of a PK. It\u2019s just not going our way right now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Penguins Report Card<\/p>\n

Team: Good?<\/p>\n

The Penguins did much good Saturday, but they mustered just nine shots in the first 40 minutes, a season-low, 12 shots on goal. They attempted plenty more, but Dallas is adept at filling shooting lanes with legs, bodies, and sticks. <\/p>\n

Dallas blocked 25 shots. <\/p>\n

On the positive ledger, the Penguins\u2019 puck pursuit was as good as it has been in some time. Their energy level and even their structure were on point in the first and third periods, but that second period was\u2013pun intended\u2013an iceberg. <\/p>\n

Those penalties were stick fouls and too many men on the ice; they were not soft calls and could have been avoided. <\/p>\n

Stuart Skinner: B-<\/p>\n

One softy and one bad luck goal. Skinner made some brilliant saves to keep the Penguins in the game. Dallas\u2019s third goal was just a storm of terrible timing; Skinner was peering around Matt Duchene in the slot. Just as Skinner leaned to his left and to his right to get a look at the puck. Just as Skinner leaned to his right, Robertson whipped the shot to Skinner\u2019s left. Adding to the unluckiness was penalty killer Noel Acciari was hurt blocking the previous shot. As Acciari hunched over in pain near the net, Robertson had acres of space at the top of the zone where Acciari would have been.<\/p>\n

Kris Letang: A<\/p>\n

Letang provided a little offense, making several good keeps at the blue line. He was also quite good in the defensive zone and good at getting the puck out of the zone. Credit Letang for nullifying a few scoring chances and playing with patience. His was a steady presence. <\/p>\n

Elmer Soderblom: A+<\/p>\n

The big man had a big game. He was all over the puck in the offensive zone. His pursuit created several extended offensive zone sequences, including the longest of the game when the Penguins controlled the O-zone for approximately two minutes, even executing a line change while they maintained pressure. <\/p>\n

Soderblom also set up the Penguins\u2019 second goal by creating a few loose pucks in the offensive zone on one shift\u2013Dallas simply couldn\u2019t escape him before Karlsson went bar-down from the slot for the goal.<\/p>\n

Erik Karlsson: A<\/p>\n

Consecutive three points games and the best Penguins month since Paul Coffey picked up the Mario Lemieux-less Penguins in February 1990. It\u2019s fair to compare Coffey\u2019s career stretch to Karlsson\u2019s. <\/p>\n

The Penguins\u2019 D-man is controlling the game in the offensive zone. He\u2019s defending well at even strength and even on the PK. He won\u2019t win the Norris, but he deserves votes. <\/p>\n

Bad Grades<\/p>\n

Tommy Novak: The Penguins lines centered by Novak Saturday combined for one shot on goal. It\u2019s becoming a far too recurring theme to grade Novak as invisible. He did not have a shot on goal, had just one blocked and one miss. His miss was a glorious chance from the slot that sailed over the net. At the risk of piling on, he also lost six of seven faceoffs. <\/p>\n

Justin Brazeau: See above. Repeat. <\/p>\n

Ville Koivunen: The table was set for the Penguins \u201cKids Line\u201d to have some fun. Koivunen played with Ben Kindel and Rutger McGroarty, but the puck touches were largely Kindel\u2019s. McGroarty had three shots blocked, but Koivunen only attempted one shot. He has a lot more to give, and the Penguins desperately need it without their top two players in the lineup. <\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTags: Dallas Stars<\/a> erik karlsson<\/a> Penguins Analysis<\/a> Pittsburgh Penguins<\/a> <\/p>\n

Categorized:Penguins Analysis<\/a> Pittsburgh Penguins<\/a><\/p>\n

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