In the midst of two straight losses, the Penguins stick to the process
CRANBERRY TWP.鈥� Going into Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final on Thursday, many Penguins players used the word 鈥榙esperate鈥� or something similar to describe the team鈥檚 mentality after two straight losses. Now that the Predators have tied the series, making it a best of three going forward, that mentality and sense of urgency only makes sense.
Mike Sullivan prefers to refrain from using that word. The Penguins coach believes that the word 鈥榙esperate鈥� comes with a connotation of hopelessness, and at this juncture, the team is far from feeling that way.
Beyond a 4-1 loss in Game 4, the Penguins saw some positives. They saw a misleading score, one that wasn鈥檛 indicative of the scoring chances they were getting. In fact, it was the first game of the series that the Penguins had more scoring chances than the Predators 鈥� 34 to 29 鈥� and that alone, the team believes, shows that their play is heading in the right direction.
鈥淭his is a long series and the fact that we鈥檙e starting to play better and get more chances is a good sign,鈥� Penguins winger Conor Sheary said. 鈥淛ust because we didn鈥檛 get the result doesn鈥檛 mean too much. It鈥檚 a three-game series now, we鈥檝e just got to win the next one.鈥�
The difference between the first two games of the series and the last two games can be boiled down pretty easily. In the first two, the Penguins made good use of their scoring chances with nine total goals, and Predators goalie Pekka Rinne was doing far from his best to stop those chances. When the series shifted to Nashville, the Penguins stopped burying their chances, in large part due to Rinne鈥檚 uptick in play.
鈥淚 thought we had a lot of chances last game, they just didn鈥檛 go in. Their goalie played well, obviously,鈥� Penguins winger Phil Kessel said. 鈥淚 think if we get the same shots again it could be a different story.鈥�
With that in mind, Sullivan has preached to his team to stick to the process. Just continue to work at improving, continue to generate chances and the results will come, the Penguins believe.
In that regard, there鈥檚 been some promising progressions that could bear fruit soon. Like Kessel, who hasn鈥檛 scored a goal in six games, but came close in Game 4. As Kessel put it, 鈥淚 always get a chance or two, I鈥檝e just got to make them count.鈥�
鈥淚f he鈥檚 getting those looks, I like the chance of the puck going in,鈥� Penguins center Sidney Crosby said. 鈥淲hen he shoots, good things happen. Whether it鈥檚 him scoring or (creating) for other guys. He鈥檚 got a great shot. It鈥檚 hard for goalies to handle.鈥�
Then there鈥檚 the power play, which is 1 for 16 in the series, and 0 for 13 in the last three games, but showed progression in Game 4 with three shots, 11 shot attempts and seven scoring chances in three power plays.
鈥淚 thought our power play really looked good. We didn鈥檛 score, but the movement, the momentum it got for our team I thought was where it needs to be,鈥� Sullivan said. 鈥淛ust focusing on controlling the process, those guys are moving in the right direction.鈥�
With the uptick in chances, the Penguins had two fewer shots than the Predators, their smallest deficit of the series. They also had more shot attempts than the Predators, which is indicative that they鈥檙e getting more zone time.
鈥淚f we play the same, we鈥檒l score more, for sure,鈥� Penguins center Evgeni Malkin said.
In the process, though, there are some things that are lagging behind. The defense still isn鈥檛 quite up to par, and the team isn鈥檛 getting into its transition game as well or as frequently as it would like. But the Penguins believe those things will come along, too, if they stick to the plan.
鈥淲e鈥檝e just got to play our game and things will work out,鈥� Kessel said.