So much for that three-peat, right?
Lots of puck is left to be played, but after the Antti Niemi band-aid solution was a disaster, and without a capable backup netminder in Pittsburgh to support No. 1 stud Matt Murray, the Penguins are in serious trouble, putting a third Stanley Cup in three years in doubt.
And that's especially true when you consider the following factors:
Tough schedule ahead
The Penguins have shown over the first month of the season that they don't play well on the second night of back-to-backs, losing all four games in that scenario by a combined score of 29-7.
Making matters worse, Pittsburgh plays on back-to-back nights a total of 19 times this campaign - tied for the most of any team - so the schedule isn't doing it any favors. And with another 15 still left to go, the need for a quality backup will become that much more crucial, as most clubs use their No. 2 netminder when they play on consecutive nights.
If the Pens want to start winning some of these second legs, they'd better start looking for an answer in the crease to support Murray before the rest of the East passes them by.
Murray needs his rest
In addition to cementing himself as a bona fide starter over the past two seasons, Murray has demonstrated that he gets injured a lot. Broken bones, pulled hamstrings, concussions - you name it - he's already dealt with plenty of ailments across just 73 career regular-season games.
That's not to say Murray can't be a stellar No. 1 guy, because he obviously can, but he'll need a goalie behind him who's able to play at least 10-to-15 games and allow him time to lick his wounds.
Sunday's lopsided loss to the Winnipeg Jets was a perfect example. Murray looked gassed after the first period, allowing four goals on nine shots after playing the previous night against Minnesota.
There's still plenty of games to go, so the remaining workload will need to be split between two capable 'tenders. But right now, Pittsburgh only employs one.
Patchwork blue line can't be relied on
With all due respect to the Penguins' D-men, this group just doesn't look ready to propel the team to a third Cup in three years.
| Left Defenseman | Right Defenseman |
|---|---|
| Brian Dumoulin | Kris Letang |
| Olli Maatta | Chad Ruhwedel |
| Ian Cole | Zach Trotman |
Sure, lots of these guys got the job done last season, but that was in front of a well-rested Murray and with an ace in the hole on the bench in Marc-Andre Fleury; they currently have neither of those luxuries.
Factor in that Kris Letang is off to one of the worst starts of his career defensively - registering a league-worst minus-14 rating and a crooked amount of giveaways - and the need for an answer behind Murray grows exponentially.
With no solid options currently at his disposal, general manager Jim Rutherford better start working the phones looking for a quality No. 2, or else the Penguins are in for one scary-looking season.
(Photos courtesy: Action Images)
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