BOSTON – Amid Jim Rutherford’s unexpected resignation as general manager and all the questions that surrounded the front office, a lingering question on the ice went unanswered.
What ever happened to Brian Dumoulin?
The defenseman left Tuesday’s game with a lower-body injury and did not return. But when Mike Sullivan’s press availability was scrapped at the last minute on Wednesday, what would have been a major storyline got kicked down the road.
Before Thursday’s game, Sullivan said Dumoulin will be week-to-week with a lower body injury. During a 4-1 loss, that absence was immediately felt.
The left side of the Penguins blueline has been decimated by injury, with Marcus Petterson on injured reserve, Mike Matheson recovering from what Sullivan has termed a "longer-term" injury and Juuso Riikola on long-term injured reserve.
With all four of the lefties from the Game 1 roster out, the Penguins lineup on Thursday featured a rookie making his third NHL start (Pierre-Olivier Joseph), a 30-year-old career minor leaguer who hadn’t made an NHL start in seven years (Kevin Czuczman) and John Marino, a sophomore righty whom the Penguins are putting in the unenviable position of playing on his off side.
The Penguins (4-3-1) anticipated Joseph would be in the NHL at some point this year. Maybe just not on the top pairing next to Kris Letang eight games into the season.
Defensive depth took center stage early on both sides of the ice. Just over six minutes into the first period, Czuczman tried to break up Boston’s centering pass in front of the blue paint. Instead, he batted it directly to Chris Wagner in the high slot. Penguins goalie Tristan Jarry had no chance.
The Penguins defensive corps showed up again in the first period to tie the score at 1, but this time on the other end of the ice. Cody Ceci, a player whom Rutherford was highly criticized for signing this offseason due to his historically poor analytics, ripped a wrister from the high slot. Ceci was scratched for three-consecutive games earlier this year, but earned a more regular role in part due to the injuries on the opposite side.
The Bruins reclaimed the lead just with over a minute left in the first period thanks to some nifty stickhandling and about four fortunate bounces. Brandon Tanev broke his stick, so he tried to use his body to separate Anders Bjork from the puck. Instead, Bjork juked to create a lane and tossed a bouncing puck on net. The shot that pinballed off Teddy Blueger’s backside, changed direction again in front when Czuczman was shoved down and then finally banked off Sean Kuraly and past Jarry.
In the second period, the Penguins were building momentum and racking up offensive zone time in the second period. But in the defensive zone, they lost track of their assignment, leaving two Bruins alone in front and only Letang to defend. Boston captain Patrice Bergeron, who isn’t a good guy to forget about, buried his point-blank attempt.
The Penguins have found comfort in playing from behind this season. They rallied to earn points in each of their previous five games despite facing deficits in all of them in the second period or later.
The task was tougher in Boston, which boasts NHL’s stingiest defenses and one of the better statistical goaltenders. Netminder Jaroslav Halak, the second part of the tandem with Tuukka Rask, entered the night fourth in the league with a 1.44 goals-against average. The Bruins collectively had allowed just 2.0 goals per game prior to Thursday. Only the New York Islanders under noted defensive coach Barry Trotz (1.83 goals again) and the Dallas Stars who played just three games due to COVID-19 issues (1.0) have been better defensively.
Any comeback attempt quickly fizzled. Once again, the Penguins defensive corps, indirectly, had a hand in the Bruins extending their lead to 4-1 less than two minutes into the third period. Marino, who largely played a strong game on his off side, committed an interference penalty. The Bruins capitalized on the power play when Bergeron buried his second goal of the game.
The Penguins are now midway through a four-game road trip with one point in hand from Tuesday’s overtime loss. They begin a two-game series against the New York Rangers at 7 p.m. in Madison Square Garden.
