Coming off a 6-0 loss on home ice Wednesday night (Oct. 9) against the New York Rangers, the Pittsburgh Penguins needed a bounce-back win and got it. With Joel Blomqvist making his first NHL start, the Penguins went into Detroit for the second of their back-to-back to begin the season on Thursday night (Oct. 10), coming away with a big 6-3 win.
Aside from the first period, they played a near-complete game. A ton of good came from the game, but three main takeaways stood out.
All four lines were rolling and contributed in their own way. The special teams for the Penguins looked solid as the penalty kill unit went 4-for-5 and the power play went 1-for-3. Last season, their special teams were a big issue as the systems they had just were not working to produce chances. While these did play a huge part in their win, there were more areas to their game that made a bigger impact.
Better Net-Front Presence
In their shutout loss to the Rangers, the Penguins lacked net-front presence, which made the life of Igor Shesterkin easy. Goalies in the NHL are too good to allow them the ability to see the puck. They did a much better job against the Red Wings of getting bodies in front to make the lives of Ville Husso and Cam Talbot difficult. The second goal was a perfect example of how big of a difference net-front presence makes. Marcus Pettersson did a solid job of gaining control of the puck off a faceoff win by Sidney Crosby and carried it down the left-wing wall. A simple shot on net was kicked out by the left pad of Husso, and landed right on the tape of Anthony Beauvillier. He fired the rebound home to give them a 2-1 lead early in the second period.
Getting three out of the six goals this way just goes to show the effectiveness of getting guys in front. It was not just effective on the goals, however. They had many chances to tack on more goals due to bodies in front, but puck luck just was not on their side for those chances.
Joel Blomqvist Is the Future
Since last season with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, Blomqvist has shown to be a promising goalie, but there were a few concerns. One was that it was his first season in North America, and the second was how young he was. With young goaltenders, it can be difficult to rely on them heavily after just one season in the American Hockey League (AHL). Throughout the preseason and into his first NHL game, he put those concerns to rest. When one hears about the 22-year-old, one hears a lot about his calm demeanor in the net, and he put that on display in the win.
Related: Penguins’ Joel Blomqvist Needs to Seize Big Opportunity in Front of Him
The first period saw Blomqvist need to be sharp early, and he was just that. He gave up one goal on 13 shots, while making a few huge saves that someone would not expect a rookie to make. His rebound control was incredible, but at times when there was a rebound, he did not panic and moved to make the second save. Not just while he was in the crease, but also while he was playing the puck. He did not see too much action in the third period as he faced just eight shots, but he stayed sharp, which can be difficult after seeing a lot of shots through the first two periods. Game one of his career showed how mature he is as a young goalie.
Board Battles and Faceoffs
Board battles and faceoffs are a combined 80% of the game, and determine if you win or lose. The Penguins’ loss to the Rangers and their win over the Red Wings proved that. Against the Rangers, they were losing board battles all over the ice, some of which led to goals. Against the Red Wings, they won 39 faceoffs and won a majority of the board battles. They battled hard to come away with the puck, and their sixth goal was a perfect example of that.
A shot attempt ended up behind the Red Wings’ net, and Cody Glass was the first one on it. After being pressured by a Red Wings’ defender, he used his strength and speed to come away with the puck to feed a pass out to Kevin Hayes, who buried his first goal of the season. The heart they showed in the win is exactly what they need to have a successful season.
Game two of their season was a huge step forward from game one. The Penguins are back at it on Saturday night (Oct. 12) against the Toronto Maple Leafs as they continue their three-game road trip. It will be another big test for them to see exactly where they are at with the top teams in the NHL.
