There are no guarantees at playoff time. We all know that. Think back to 1993. The Penguins went into the postseason with five Hall of Fame players — six, if you want to count Jaromir Jagr — and a Hall of Fame general manager and coach. They were a 119-point team and finished the regular season on a 17-0-1 roll. They took out the New Jersey Devils in the first round but were stunned by the New York Islanders in seven games in the second round. It was the most hurtful series loss in franchise history. It denied an amazing team a shot at a third consecutive Stanley Cup.
Of course, there are no guarantees.
But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t feel pretty good about the Penguins’ chances this spring of making a long playoff run. They won the brutally tough East Division and are going into the postseason on a 13-3-1 roll. They are 22-4-2 at PPG Paints Arena and will have home-ice advantage for at least the first two rounds. They have everything they need to compete for the Cup. Four lines that can play. Three strong defensive pairs. Good, if playoff unproven, goaltending. Depth galore. Good health, at least for the moment, knock on wood. A collective will to overcome adversity. Wonderful chemistry. A terrific captain. A terrific coach.
“This is when the fun starts,” Mike Sullivan said Saturday night after the Penguins finished the regular season with a 1-0 win against the Buffalo Sabres. “That’s what I said to the team. We’ve done the heavy lifting to this point to earn the privilege to compete for the Stanley Cup. Now, the fun starts.”
It could be a fascinating ride.
Start with the four lines. The arrival of Jeff Carter in an April trade has assured the Penguins of having three capable scoring lines. He has nine goals and 11 points and is a plus-9 in 14 games. He and linemates Jared McCann and Freddy Gaudreau are doing nice things together.
Move on to the defensive pairs. The consistency of the group after a run of injuries early in the season is a big reason the team has gone 25-7-2 since March 6. It’s nice to think Mike Matheson will be ready for the first playoff game. Again, knock on wood.
Goaltenders Tristan Jarry and Casey DeSmith are wild cards because of their lack of postseason experience. Jarry has played in one playoff game, DeSmith none. But if the two play like they did in the regular season, it should be good enough.
And the depth? The Penguins are so talented that Evan Rodrigues and Colton Sceviour probably won’t be in the lineup for the first game. They almost certainly will be needed at some point because injuries always happen during the playoffs. Two or three of reserve defensemen Mark Friedman, Chad Ruhwedel, Pierre-Olivier Joseph and Juuso Riikola also figure to be called on if the team makes a long run.
At least the Penguins figure to be at or close to full strength when the playoffs start, probably this weekend. In addition to Matheson, Brandon Tanev looks as if he will be ready after missing the past 17 games. He’ll jump right back on a line with Teddy Blueger and Zach Aston-Reese. That is a difficult line for opponents to play against.
Lump that will to overcome and team chemistry together. Nothing deterred the Penguins during this regular season. Not the run of injuries early to the defensemen or late to the forwards, including Evgeni Malkin. Not the surprising resignation of Jim Rutherford in January. Not the bothersome COVID-19 protocols. Certainly not their division opponents.
One moment showed the strength of the chemistry. We saw it after equipment man Jon Taglianetti reached over the boards to hand Sidney Crosby a stick seconds before Crosby scored a goal against the Philadelphia Flyers. Crosby’s first reaction was to point to Taglianetti on the bench. The other players jumped all over Taglianetti with unbridled joy. It was one of those moments that team sports are all about.
“We really like the group that is assembled here,” Sullivan said. “I think they're a tight group. They’re a great group to coach. I think we have high-character people and we have some real good hockey players.”
Give a lot of the credit to Sullivan and Crosby. There is not a better coach or captain in the NHL. I know, the Penguins don’t always win in the postseason. They’ve lost their past three playoff series and nine of their past 10 playoff games. No guarantees, remember? But you still should be glad the team has Sullivan and Crosby. Take your chances with them.
“When you look at Stanley Cup championship teams, they are teams in the true sense of the word,” Sullivan said. “We preach that a lot with our group. We think we have become a team. But, by no means, is anyone in our dressing room satisfied. We know that the expectations are high here. It’s high inside our dressing room. We all have high expectations of ourselves. … We’re excited about the opportunity that’s in front of us. We know how difficult it is to win. We’re going to have to go out and earn it in each and every game.
“We look forward to what’s next.”
Sullivan and the Penguins aren’t the only ones looking ahead to what could be a great spring for the team.
A lot of us are.
