Mike Sullivan was frustrated again by his team’s inability to hold a lead as the Penguins suffered another third period letdown and lost to Seattle last night. Here’s Paul Steigerwald.
Sullivan says the Penguins won’t start winning again until they start playing defense in their own zone.
The coach was particularly angry that the Kraken goals didn’t come on spectacular effort, but on seemingly routine plays.
Sullivan says the Penguins aren’t committed to playing defense, and that makes it hard to win when the offense isn’t scoring goals.
Evgeni Malkin had a day yesterday. He was activated from injured reserve and played 17 minutes, 37 seconds, taking 22 shifts. He finished the night with an assist and a minus-1 plus/minus ranking. Jesse Puljujarvi was assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton to make room for Malkin on the roster. In 25 games, Puljularvi has three goals and six assists and is a minus-2.
The Penguins also reported that Malkin is the latest in a long list of celebrity athletes across the nation whose home has been targeted by burglars. Various media reports indicate that his three Stanley Cup rings were stolen Saturday while the team was playing against Ottawa. Malkin’s wife and young son were not at the Sewickley Heights home when the door was kicked in to gain entry, and the burglar alarm and cameras were not working.
While there’s been no confirmation that the break-in was part of an organized crime network, the FBI reports that organized gangs of South American thieves are using publicly available information to track when pro athletes will not be home, then using electronic devices to bypass and disable alarm system, block wireless signals, and cover camera lenses.
The Penguins open a seven-game road trip on Friday at Buffalo, following up with a game Saturday at Washington before jetting off for five games on the West Coast.
