Erik Karlsson and the Penguins Redemption
On Thursday, April 11th, at around 9:50 PM, PPG Paints Arena erupted into a screaming sea of black and gold. On the ice, Erik Karlsson, who had just scored the overtime winner, fell to his knees with his arms raised over his head, like he had just crawled to freedom through five hundred yards of sh*t-smelling foulness I can’t even imagine.
He wasn’t wrongfully convicted of murder. There was no rock hammer, no Bible, and certainly no poster of Rita Hayworth. But tonight, Erik Karlsson redeemed himself.
Let’s go back three hours.
Long before puck drop, there was a nervous energy inside of PPG Paints Arena. And why wouldn’t there be? Everyone knew that this game would likely decide the fate of the season for the Pittsburgh Penguins. But nerves or no, over 18,000 flocked to PPG Paints Arena tonight. I haven’t heard the building quite that loud in a long, long time. It was so loud, in fact, that when the Penguins took the ice, the roar of the crowd almost completely drowned out Boys of Winter.
Let’s recap the game:
PIT 1-0: Sidney Crosby made his presence felt just two and a half minutes into the game. Bryan Rust carried the puck into the zone and bumped it sideways to Drew O’Connor. O’Connor tapped it back to Rust— now along the half boards— who sent it along to Sidney Crosby, who was miraculously left alone in front of the net. Crosby went behind the goal, took Red Wings’ Captain Dylan Larkin for a spin, and passed back to Rust. Rust threw it towards the net, and O’Connor banged it home for his fifteenth of the season. It wasn’t initially called a goal on the ice. But that just meant that the fans inside PPG Paints Arena got to celebrate the same goal twice.
PIT 1-1: For the most part, the first two periods were ones to forget for Kris Letang, who made a series of mistakes on Detroit’s first goal. When gathering the puck behind the net, instead of finding an open O’Connor, he sent the puck ahead to Crosby. Crosby was immediately stepped into by Moritz Seider, who forced the puck deeper into the zone. Letang had his pocket picked by Alex DeBrincat, who fired the puck on net. Nedeljkovic made the initial save, but O’Connor lost his man in front of the net, and Lucas Raymond collected the change.
PIT 2-1: You know how I said that for the most part, Letang wasn’t his at best for the first two periods? Well, this play was the exception. After a chip pass from Evgeni Malkin that sprung Rickard Rakell and Michael Bunting, Letang jumped into the rush. Rakell spun and passed to Bunting, who bumped it up for Letang. Letang collected the pass and fired it in to beat Alex Lyon five-hole.
PIT 2-2: I truly wish I had the time and energy to go through all 79 games and count how many late-period goals the Penguins have allowed. To Letang’s credit, this one wasn’t entirely on him. He passed to O’Connor alone at center ice, but it was in his skates and O’Connor couldn’t handle it. Look out, here come the opportunistic Detroit Red Wings. Lucas Raymond took the puck from O’Connor and knocked it forward to Dylan Larkin. Larkin entered the zone and passed back to Raymond, who bumped it left to Alex DeBrincat. Letang committed to DeBrincat, which, unfortunately, left Raymond alone behind the defense. Nedeljkovic bit on Raymond’s fake, and Raymond backhanded the puck into the empty cage.
PIT 3-2: Erik Karlsson flipped the puck out to center. It hit Reilly Smith— now playing on the top line alongside Crosby and Rust— and Rust collected it. He entered the zone with speed, but slowed, stick-handling and drifting towards the right half boards, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. That moment presented itself in the form of a streaking Sidney Crosby, who Rust threaded a perfect pass to. Crosby tapped it in for his 41st goal of the season… and the 1,590th point of his career, which tied him with Phil Esposito for 10th all time in scoring.
PIT 4-2: Karlsson collected the puck at center ice and bumped it forward for Crosby. Crosby sent it to Marcus Petersson, who was stood up by Moritz Seider at the blue line. Pettersson tripped up Lucas Raymond as he fell, which allowed Reilly Smith to steal the puck. Smith found a wide open Bryan Rust, who made no mistake as he walked right down 5th Ave and rifled one bar down to beat Lyon glove side.
PIT 4-3: Take a drink if you’ve heard this one before: the Pittsburgh Penguins allow a late period goal. This time, an old friend comes to visit. Two of them, in fact. Jeff Petry chipped it forward to Robby Fabbri. Fabbri bumped it to Daniel Sprong who entered the zone and slid the puck over to Moritz Seider. Seider circled back and passed cross-ice back to Petry. Petry stepped up and fired a clapper that beat Nedeljkovic far side.
PIT 5-3: This was only the fourth shorthanded goal scored by the Pittsburgh Penguins this season, and it could not have come at a better time. Jeff Carter was flying all game, and was exceptional on the penalty kill. All of those little things manifested perfectly on this sequence. At the end boards, J.T. Compher sent the puck around for Sprong. Sprong tried to one touch it to Seider, but Carter lunged to intercept and knock it to center. Carter rumbled forward, collected the puck, and sniped one past Lyon far side under the blocker. Watch the video. Look at the emotion on Carter’s face after he scores. Do you think he’s content to miss the playoffs? I don’t.
PIT 5-4: Everyone and their mother could feel this one coming. One thing about these Penguins is that they’re painfully consistent— painful in the sense that they consistently blow leads in the third period. Simon Edvinsson, Detroit’s 6th overall pick in 2021, flipped the puck to J.T. Compher at center, who chipped it deep. Lucas Raymond— man that kid can fly!— collected it and swung it to Dylan Larkin, who is not the guy the Penguins want to leave all alone in front of the net. But he is— Karlsson had abandoned his post in front of the net to chase Raymond— and Detroit’s Captain doesn’t miss as he chipped it off the post and in.
PIT 5-5: I walked into Peoples Gate today, tried to shake myself dry to no avail, and thought about how I’ve been to 17 hockey games, but have never seen a hat trick live. I didn’t know it then, but the monkey’s paw curled. After an unsuccessful pinch by Karlsson, Larkin and Raymond were off to the races in a two-on-one against Marcus Pettersson. Pettersson pressured Larkin, but he wasn’t not quick enough. Larkin slid the puck to Lucas Raymond, streaking all alone down the center of the ice, and Raymond beat Nedeljkovic five-hole. Yippee-kiy-yay. Throw the hats.
PIT 6-5: Erik Karlsson giveth, and Erik Karlsson taketh away; not necessarily in that order. Tonight he givethed, then takethed away, and then givethed once again. With 3:31 left in OT, Karlsson backhanded the puck to Rickard Rakell, who drove the net. Lyon made the save— or maybe Rakell hit the outside of the net?— but Crosby wins a battle against J.T. Compher to retrieve it. Crosby cycled up and passed a knuckle puck to Karlsson. Karlsson stepped into it, and uncorked one that beat Lyon blocker side from the slot. It was Sidney Crosby’s 1,000th assist, which moved him past Phil Esposito and into sole possession of 10th all time in scoring. And it happened exactly 100 seconds into overtime.
Here are some takeaways:
I got to my seat at exactly 6:13 today. I like to get to games early. One, because the earlier I arrive, the less time I spend in Liberty Tunnel traffic. And two, because I’m an anxious hockey fan, and I like to sit and think for a while before the game. I was certain that, in the game that would make or break their season, the Penguins would show who they truly were. And they did. They’re the team that blows leads in the third. They’re the team that is prone to consequential defensive lapses. But they’re also the team that, over the past ten games, has played fierce, desperate hockey. They’re a team with character. And tonight, that character shone.
The statistics say that Alex Nedeljkovic had a bad game. I don’t necessarily think that’s the case. He didn’t have a good game. But he made important saves— none bigger than this one in overtime, when he stared down a two-on-one against Dylan Larkin and Moritz Seider. He was solid. But Mike Sullivan may have a big decision to make on Saturday regarding who gets the nod to start against the Boston Bruins.
Only 25 players in NHL history have recorded double-digit goals for 19 seasons. Jeff Carter is now one of them. I think that’s pretty neat. I have a lot of respect for Carter. He turned 39 in January. Even if his speed and his strength aren’t what they once were, you can never accuse him of taking a shift off. The effort is always there. He was also the first Pittsburgh Penguin to wear a neck guard in game, and has been wearing one since November 10th.
I really, really like Reilly Smith with Crosby and Rust. He’s not as smart as Crosby, or as hardworking as Rust, but he does possess both of those qualities, and thus slots in quite well on the top line. I’d keep them together against Boston.
What more can be said for Big Game Bryan Rust? He had a three point outing tonight with a goal and two primary assists. The Penguins are on a 10-game point streak dating back to March 24th against the Avalanche. In that time frame, Rust has six goals and seven assists. He’s up to 54 points in 59 games. I’d say he’s worth every penny of that 5,125,000 contract right now.
Sidney Crosby is worth the price of admission every time. Over Pittsburgh’s 10-game point streak, he has eight goals and twelve assists. That’s a 2.0 point per game pace. He’s 36. He’s 36.
The Penguins are back in the 2nd wildcard spot, for now. Here are how the standings look:
The race for WC2, as of 4/11/2024
It’s close. It’s going to be a photo finish. The Penguins have the tiebreaker advantage over the Capitals, Flyers, and Red Wings. They once again control their fate.
Last April 11th, the Penguins fell to the Chicago Blackhawks 5-2 at home. From his first shift, it was very apparent to me that Sidney Crosby remembered that all too well. His team missed the playoffs by one measly point last year. Tonight, he played like a man determined to not let that happen again.
