Monday was a scheduled day off for the Pittsburgh Penguins who are getting multiple days off between games for only the second time since returning from the Olympic break at the end of February. Over the last week of play, the Penguins won four of their five games on the schedule, and are now just two points away from clinching a spot in the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since the 2021-22 season. If that work is not completed for them beforehand, the Penguins will have a chance to clinch on Thursday
night when they travel to New Jersey.
Pens Points…
After a stretch that saw the Penguins play 20 games in 36 days, the players get a well earned three days off before game action resumes on Thursday in New Jersey. Following that, the Penguins then have another weekend back-to-back set, this time against the Washington Capitals. [Pensburgh]
While the Penguins have done their part to cement a playoff spot over the past few weeks, their cross state rival the Philadelphia Flyers have pulled themselves back into the playoff conversation, currently sitting in third place in the Metro division, setting up a potential all Pennsylvania first round series. [Pensburgh]
Rickard Rakell has been on a tear for the Penguins over the last few weeks, but last week may have been his best work yet, posting seven goals and eight points over five games to earn NHL First Star of the Week honors, making him the first Penguin to win the award this season. [Penguins]
Not only are the Penguins nearing a playoff birth for the first time in four years, they are also closing in on locking down home-ice for the first round as the second seed in the Metro. While they may not be at the top of the list, it’s still difficult to now exactly where to place the Penguins among the favorites right now. [Sportsnet]
Like Egor Chinakhov before him, Elmer Solderblom is undergoing a renaissance since being acquired by the Penguins shortly before the trade deadline. Filling in for the ever important Blake Lizotte, Soderblom is hitting a new level and will be forcing hard decisions to be made when Lizotte is healthy. [PPG]
NHL News and Notes…
Remember the panic roughly a decade ago about scoring declining across the NHL to historically low levels? Well that trend has certainly reversed and now it’s the other end of the ice seeing cratering numbers as goaltender sve percentages have hit 30 year lows across the NHL. [TSN]
