With Thursday’s 5-2 win over the Buffalo Sabres, the Pittsburgh Penguins have reached the Olympic break and will get a short pause in their very interesting season.
Hockey fans in the beginning of the year did not expect to see the Penguins in the spot they are in today, second in the Metropolitan division. First-year Head Coach Dan Muse has proven himself to not just the fans, but also to everyone throughout the NHL.
The season has had its ups and downs, but recently fans had seen the team come together. They recently were on a six-game winning streak – but then they lost to the Senators on Monday and the Islanders on Tuesday. Yet the Penguins rebounded with the victory over Buffalo, one of the league’s hottest teams.
The season had started strong, but the team struggled a lot in December. Yet through January, they were seen as a powerhouse, winning games and putting teams away.
Few would have expected the Pens to be in a playoff position right now. But they have some areas they need to address.
Most significantly, they struggle with getting overtime and shootout wins. Their overall shootout and overtime record is 4-12 this year. They have the most shootout losses in the league.
Goaltender Stuart Skinner was a good pickup, as he was playing strong and helping the team secure victories. But lately he has seemed off his game, making games closer than they need to be, and sometimes even costing them games.
Sidney Crosby, who has been great through most of the year, has also seemed to be off lately, as he is not producing at his normal rate. In his last six games, he has only recorded two points. Hopefully playing for Team Canada in the Olympics can get him back to where he was.
As fans look forward to the Olympics, they hope to see their team’s stars win. For Pittsburgh fans, that means Crosby; Erik Karlsson and Rickard Rakell (Sweden); and goaltender Artūrs Šilovs (Latvia). But fans also hope that the stars do not get hurt.
After the Olympics the Pens have only 26 more games to play. They have to come out of the break ready to play and in hopes of making a strong playoff run.
