The Pittsburgh Penguins' 5-4 overtime loss to the St. Louis Blues on Thursday - which gave the Blues their whopping 11th straight win - obviously wasn't the desired result.
But there were a lot of good things happening in this effort - particularly from the two youngest players on the team.
Penguins top prospect Rutger McGroarty scored his first NHL goal with 23.8 seconds remaining in regulation to force overtime and earn Pittsburgh a point. Fellow rookie Ville Koivunen earned the primary assist on the play, which was his first point in the NHL.
“It was pretty cool, especially at that point in the game versus a team like that and how hot they are,” McGroarty said. “It was pretty cool for Ville and I to do that on the same goal. We might have to split the puck in half, I'm not sure.”
Koivunen saw the opportunity there for McGroarty, and he wasted no time distributing the puck to him.
"I just saw Rutger open, and Rutger was doing his magic there," Koivunen said. "So, just give him the puck."
FIRST NHL GOAL FOR RUTGER 🙌
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) April 4, 2025
FIRST NHL POINT FOR VILLE 🙌 pic.twitter.com/q02wOvXjjD
Both rookies have clearly earned the trust of the coaching staff, as head coach Mike Sullivan decided to deploy both of them in the six-on-five situation at the end of the game. They shared the ice with Rust, Sidney Crosby, Rickard Rakell, and Erik Karlsson - and they did not disappoint.
Sullivan said they were "terrific," and he made a point to shout out a play that McGroarty made prior to the goal that helped prevent a Blues empty-net goal.
“Rutger chased the puck down prior to that, where, if we gave them the separation, they might have hit an empty net," Sullivan said. "They don't, because he puts pressure on it. I thought they were terrific in that circumstance."
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He also added that the two young forwards earned the opportunity through performance to get those critical minutes.
"If we didn't think they were deserving, we wouldn't put them out there," Sullivan said. "We think they're making a difference. They're earning their opportunities."
Early in the game, McGroarty also earned his first NHL point, setting up linemate Bryan Rust for one of his signature power-move goals. The Penguins took the 1-0 lead into the second period, which was a bit of a back-and-forth affair that saw Pittsburgh unravel a bit defensively.
Jake Neighbours scored just 39 seconds into the middle frame for St. Louis, but Penguins forward Connor Dewar - who has scored all four of his goals this season with the Penguins since being traded from the Toronto Maple Leafs on deadline day - gave the Penguins back the lead a few minutes later.
However, Pittsburgh gave up several odd-man rushes before the midway point of the period, and Pavel Buchnevich and Jordan Kyrou - on a breakaway - scored a minute and 17 seconds apart to give the Blues a 3-2 lead. Neighbours added his second of the game a little less than six minutes into the third period to put St. Louis up, 4-2, but the Penguins responded for the remainder of regulation.
Blues defenseman Justin Faulk went to the box for holding midway through the period, and Rickard Rakell - positioned in the slot - finished a feed from Sidney Crosby for his 33rd goal of the season, putting him just one goal shy of his career-high set in 2017-18. The assist also extended Crosby's point streak to 11 games, which is the longest active streak in the NHL and the longest by a player age 37 or older since Nikolas Lidstrom's with the Detroit Red Wings in 2010-11 (11 games).
Penguins Crosby Has Shot At Unofficial Gretzky RecordDuring Sunday's TSN broadcast between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Ottawa Senators, announcer Gord Miller pointed out that Sidney Crosby, who ranks 10th all-time in assists, has set up a player's first NHL goal on 14 occasions.
Then, the kids were given the opportunity to make something happen in the waning seconds of regulation, and they didn't waste it. Suffice to say, it was quite the night for two of the best prospects in the Penguins' system, and particularly for McGroarty.
And he appreciates the coaching staff's trust in him and Koivunen to put them out on the ice in the game's most critical moment.
"It means a lot," McGroarty said. "I feel like that's something... a minute and a half left, six-on-five, a pulled goalie, down by one... it means a lot. It's pretty cool."
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