PITTSBURGH — Friday, it was not a nervous newcomer or the sleep-deprived first-time dad making critical mistakes on the blue line. It was Pittsburgh’s top three defenders.
Brian Dumoulin was flubbing passes left and right all night and when defending this season, has not looked like his normal self. A rough sequence by Kris Letang led to another goal. And John Marino’s rough start to 2021 continued. Miscues by those three loomed large in three New York Rangers goals in the second period.
But for the second consecutive game, the Penguins rallied from two goals down to send the game into overtime. They would beat the Rangers, 4-3, in a shootout at PPG Paints Arena. Letang found redemption with his fancy shootout winner.
It was the Penguins' third win in the row, improving them to 3-2-0 on the season.
All eyes were on coach Mike Sullivan’s makeshift blue line entering Friday.
Pierre-Olivier Joseph, Pittsburgh’s top defensive prospect, played his first NHL game. The former first-round pick was acquired from Arizona in the Phil Kessel trade two summers ago. He spent 2019-20 in the American Hockey League.
A week ago, Joseph was the fifth lefty on the depth chart. But with Mike Matheson, Marcus Pettersson and Juuso Riikola now out a while with upper-body injuries, the Penguins had little choice but to find out if the 21-year-old was ready.
The kid did alright. Joseph’s powerful, long strides allowed him to outrace Chris Kreider on one dangerous play. His crossovers were smooth as he controlled the puck behind his net. And he kept it simple with breakout passes, an area where he had been erratic during practices with the Penguins over the past year.
Joseph played just over 13 minutes Friday. The 6-foot-2 defenseman finished with three hits, three shots and an assist. He had a plus-1 rating on the night.
His debut was one of the more anticipated ones for a Penguins prospect in the past few years, which probably says more about the state of their farm system than it does him. Last month, he didn’t make ESPN’s list of the top 100 prospects outside the NHL. The Penguins don’t care. They believe he’ll be a good one.
Joseph joining the mix was one of a few changes for a blue-line group that looks drastically different than it did in Philadelphia in their last Friday night tilt.
Cody Ceci, a free-agent addition who hadn’t suited up since the season opener, skated on the second pair. His partner and fellow righty, Marino, played on the left side to accommodate him. New dad Chad Ruhwedel was back on the third pair, the thought being he would be a steady sidekick for the rookie Joseph.
But it was Letang, Dumoulin and Marino whose struggles were most obvious.
In the second, Dumoulin had plenty of time coming out of the corner but waited too long and lost the puck. He then got bowled over by Ruhwedel, leaving Filip Chytil alone with his goalie. Chytil’s snazzy stickhandling almost had Tristan Jarry sliding across Fifth Avenue. The Rangers forward needed just one hand to tap it in.
Moments later, the Rangers scored on the power play to take the lead. Letang’s backhand clearing attempt was easily denied and then the All-Star drifted in front of Jarry, screening him while Adam Fox’s point blast whizzed into the net.
Kaapo Kakko buried a rebound just 24 seconds after that to make it 3-1. Kakko was Marino’s man but Marino, perhaps because he was a bit out of sorts playing on the left side of the ice, got caught puck-watching and didn’t tie up Kakko.
Dumoulin, Letang and Marino are a combined minus-10 on the season.
Bryan Rust got his first goal this season in the first period, redirecting Ceci’s shot past Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin to put the Penguins up, 1-0. But the Rangers roared back in the second period with those three goals in 3:01.
Pittsburgh rallied back, just like it did in its two wins over Washington.
Jared McCann was credited with his first goal since Jan. 14, 2020. But it was Rangers defenseman Ryan Lindgren, perhaps feeling bad that McCann’s slump had lasted so long, who swatted the puck with his glove past his own goalie.
That power-play goal late in the second pulled the Penguins within a goal. With 8:37 left in regulation, Teddy Blueger buried a rebound off the end boards to tie it up at 3-3. Joseph, who took the initial shot, got his first NHL point.
In the shootout, Letang smoked Shesterkin with his signature move, flipping a backhand under the crossbar. Jarry then stuffed Tony DeAngelo to seal the win.
Jarry had to wait a week to get back in goal after he got pulled early in the Jan. 15 loss in Philadelphia. Casey DeSmith started the previous two games, winning them both, while Sullivan gave his new No.1 goalie an opportunity to “reset.”
Early on, Jarry looked much more in control than he did in his first two starts when he allowed nine total goals on 33 shots. He steered rebounds out of harm’s way and was smooth moving side to side, which was a good thing because the Penguins asked him to do that fairly often, especially in the first 10 minutes.
He lapsed in the second period, giving up three goals in the span of four shots. But he was excellent after that. Jarry made 31 saves, 11 of them in the third.
The Penguins will host the Rangers at PPG Paints Arena again on Sunday.
