Empty Thoughts: Penguins 6, Devils 4

Observations from the Penguins’ 6-4 win against the Devils:

Jared McCann getting a power-play goal is almost becoming as routine as the Penguins wearing an alternate jersey.

That’s to say it happens almost every other game.

Inserted into the top power-play unit March 25 in the absence of forwards Evgeni Malkin and Kasperi Kapanen, McCann has five power-play goals in eight games since.

For the season, McCann leads the team in power-play goals with six in 28 games.

The notion of McCann being a strong entity on the power play isn’t that outlandish. He was a first-round pick (No. 24 overall) of the Vancouver Canucks in 2014, so he clearly has pedigree. And just from a visual standpoint, his shot looks different than most NHL players. That’s to say he has heavy release that can be trouble for goaltenders.

Yet, the numbers have never really fleshed out for McCann over his career. Take a look at these figures from Penguins historian Bob Grove:

McCann on the power play:

First 314 NHL GP, 5 goals
Last 24 GP, 6 goals

— Bob Grove (@bobgrove91) April 10, 2021

It doesn’t make sense, but the results have been there for McCann the past two-plus weeks.

“He’s got a great shot,” Penguins forward Sidney Crosby said. “He uses it. As far as being predictable and simplifying things, he helps to do that. He’s been shooting the puck really well. Today, he’s in and around the net, collapsing to get a rebound. He can score goals and he’s shown that.”

What happened

A score off a goal-mouth scramble gave the Devils a 1-0 lead 3:01 into regulation. After Devils forward Pavel Zacha beat Penguins forward Evan Rodrigues on a faceoff in the Penguins’ left circle, Devils forward Jesper Bratt lifted a wrister off the left wall that goaltender Casey DeSmith stopped. On the ensuing rebound, Devils forward Miles Wood won a fierce positional battle with Penguins defenseman Kris Letang and shoveled the puck past DeSmith’s left skate for his 12th goal of the season. Assists went to Bratt and Zacha.

The Penguins tied the game with a power-play goal at 10:00 of the first period. After a pass attempt from the right circle of the offensive zone by Penguins forward Bryan Rust struck the right skate of Devils defenseman Sami Vatanen, the puck slid to the high slot where Crosby uncorked a one-timer. Goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood knocked the shot down with his glove but allowed a rebound to trickle to the right of the crease. McCann was able to corral the puck and lifted a wrister over Blackwood’s blocker on the near side for his 11th goal of the season and his team-leading sixth power-play score. Crosby and Rust collected assists.

Late in the period, at the 19:13 mark, the Penguins claimed a 2-1 lead. From the left point of the offensive zone, Penguins defenseman Cody Ceci distributed a pass to the right point for defenseman Brian Dumoulin. Surveying for a moment, Dumoulin lobbed a wrister that glanced off of Devils forward Janne Kuokkanen’s right arm. The puck took a detour, bouncing off the ice and past Blackwood’s glove on the far side. It was Dumoulin’s second goal of the season as well as his second in three games. Ceci and forward Sam Lafferty netted assists.

The Devils tied the game again, 2-2, 5:39 into the second period. Claiming a loose puck in the Penguins’ slot, Devils forward Yegor Sharangovich lifted a wrister on net that DeSmith denied. On the ensuing rebound to the left of the cage, Kuokkanen whacked a forehand shot but was rejected by DeSmith. The rebound off that shot bounced to the right of the cage. Devils forward Jack Hughes settled the puck and from a bad angle, he lifted a wrister past DeSmith’s glove for his ninth goal. Kuokkanen and Sharangovich were credited with assists.

A goal from an unlikely source put the Penguins up, 3-2, at 17:36 of the second period. After Penguins forward Mark Jankowski beat Devils forward Mikhail Maltsev on a faceoff in New Jersey’s left circle, Letang settled the puck at the left point and chucked a wrister on net. Blackwood made the initial save but allowed a rebound to flutter in midair above the crease. Penguins forward Colton Sceviour was able to concentrate enough to gently backhand the puck over Blackwood’s glove for his third goal of the season and his first since Jan. 19. Assists were tallied by Letang and Jankowski.

Another power-play goal by Rust 4:06 into the third period put the Penguins up by two. From the left half wall of the offensive zone, Penguins forward Sidney Crosby zipped a cross-ice pass that glanced off the stick of McCann in the slot and slid above the right circle for Rust who teed up a slapper. With Penguins forward Jake Guentzel providing a solid screen, the puck clinked off the far post and hit twine for Rust’s 15th goal of the season off assists from McCann and Crosby.

The Penguins poured it on at 10:02 of the third. Off a dump-in on the Devils’ end boards, Guentzel one-touched a pass to the right circle for Crosby who ripped a wrister past Blackwood’s blocker on the far side for his 16th goal. Guentzel and defenseman John Marino registered assists.

Things got interesting late down the stretch thanks to some bad luck on the Penguins’ behalf.

At 11:34 of the third, Devils forward Jesper Boqvist made an entry into the offensive zone then chased down a puck in the Penguins’ right corner, whipping it towards the crease. The puck hit off of Letang’s right skate and deflected into the net. Boqvist was credited with his second goal of the season. There were no assists.

It became a one-goal game at the 18:24 mark. After a wrister by Devils defenseman Ty Smith from the left point of the Penguins’ zone was redirected on net by Wood and denied by DeSmith, the rebound slid to the end boards. Dumoulin claimed the puck and, thanks in part to pressure by Wood, he played it into the crease where it clunked off DeSmith’s right leg and deflected into the cage. Wood was credited with the goal. There were no assists.

An empty net goal by Rust at the 19:35 mark snuffed out any hopes of a comeback. Assists were tallied by Guentzel and Letang.

Statistically speaking

• The Devils led in shots, 30-27.

• Zacha led the game with eight shots.

• Crosby led the Penguins with five shots.

• Letang led the game with 24:02 of ice time on 24 shifts.

• Smith led the Devils with 23:45 of ice time on 24 shifts.

• The Devils had a 30-29 edge in faceoffs (51%).

• Zacha was 13 for 21 (62%).

• Crosby was 13 for 25 (52%).

• Dumoulin led the game with four blocked shots.

• Defensemen Dmitry Kulikov, Sami Vatanen and Bratt each led the Devils with two blocked shots.

• DeSmith made 26 saves on 30 shots.

• Blackwood made 21 saves on 26 shots.

Randomly speaking

• A win is a win but this was a kind of ugly win. The Penguins were mostly outplayed during the second period. And when their superior skill finally gave them a substantial lead, a few hiccups led to some lucky bounces and a dicey ending in the third period.

Each team was playing their second game in as many nights so it wasn’t exactly a crisp game from a tactical standpoint on either side of the puck. But the Penguins should have secured this victory with much more ease.

• Given the Penguins’ regular struggles in New Jersey, the above point is nitpicking. Any win against the Devils on their ice is a considerable triumph for the Penguins.

• The officials did no favors to the Devils as the Penguins had four power-play chances while the Devils had one.

• DeSmith made a pretty dazzling, desperate save at 9:00 of the second period that kept the score tied, 2-2. And considering any deficit against the Devils can lead to death, it was the proverbial timely save.

Devils forward Nicholas Merkley gained the offensive zone on the left wing, pulled up at the point and fed a pass to onrushing defenseman Damon Severson, who lifted a wrister that was blocked by a backchecking Rust.

The rebound bounced low on the right wing, where it was claimed by Boqvist. From a bad angle, Boqvist fired a wrister that was denied by DeSmith, who sprawled to his left and punched the puck away with his blocker for the stop.

• It ultimately didn’t mean that much, but Blackwood made a more impressive save at 8:27 of the first period. After Penguins forward Jason Zucker made a resourceful play to bank a puck off the boards around Vatanen, that created a three-on-one rush with McCann and Rodrigues against Smith. From the left circle, Zucker slipped a pass underneath a block attempt by Smith to the right of the crease where McCann’s wrister was robbed on a stunning glove save by MacKenzie.

• It was a pretty eventful game for Letang. He had a hand in two of the Devils’ goals, first in losing a position battle then with a rotten bounce off his skate. But then he fired a shot that led to a goal for Sceviour. It was a classic game in some fashion for Letang.

• Crosby had his first three-point game against the Devils in over four years. Don’t dismiss the departure of long-time Devils center Travis Zajac earlier this week via trade to the New York Islanders. Zajac typically drew Crosby for most defensive assignments. On Friday, Hughes had the task of shadowing Crosby.

• Rust now leads the NHL with four empty-net goals. (Crosby and Guentzel are among five players tied for second with three such goals). The Penguins increased their league-best empty-net goal total to 13.

• Rust thew a pretty nasty hit on Merkley late in the second period at the 19:53 mark.

The hit seemed to be within the boundaries of being “on time.” But there appeared to be some contact with Merkley’s head. Given how inconsistent the NHL’s Department of Player Safety is, it’s difficult to say if this hit will get a hard look. But given Merkley seemed to escape injury, it’s probably a safe bet that Rust won’t face supplemental discipline.

Historically speaking

• Jankowski extended his career-best scoring streak to four games. He has two goals and four assists during that span.

• Dumoulin tied a career-best as he extended a scoring streak to four games. He has two goals and two assists during that span.

• Rust recorded his 200th career point.

Publicly speaking

• Sullivan was happy with the win but acknowledged it was not perfect:

“We could have been better in those circumstances (in the third period) so you don’t fall victim to those types of (bad bounces). We could have been better positionally, we could have been better with the decisions that we made with the puck, things of that nature. Just details. I don’t think we were at our best tonight. I give our guys credit because I think they had opportunities and we finished. Our power play was really good. So we found a way to win but I don’t think we were at our best.”

• Rust lauded both goaltenders:

“The score is not very indicative of the goaltending. Both guys made some really nice saves. You’ve got to give credit to both of them. Both goalies played really well. That was the difference. Casey made one or two extra saves for us.”

• Even with success, Rust doesn’t take any relatively mundane milestone such as his 200th career point for granted:

“It’s a pretty cool milestone. When I first got in the league, I was just trying to make a name for myself. Every time you reach a milestone like that, you kind of just look back on your career a little bit and see how far you’ve come and developed as a player.”

• Sullivan spoke about McCann’s place on the top power-play unit and how he affects the movement on it:

“Regardless of who’s been on it, regardless if (Malkin) is on it or Jared is on it, when it’s clicking, there’s movement. That’s the common theme or denominator. It’s just a matter of executing and being on the same page and, once again, just the details with our power play. Jared brings a certain dimension I think that helps. He can score goals, he can shoot. He’s really good, I think, in particular coming off that strong-side flank, just getting off the wall inside the dots. He’s got a great shot, he’s got a deceptive release and I think he just has a knack to score goals. Tonight, it was a different way. It was a rebound from the pocket area. And that’s just an indication of the movement … where he’s not always on the flank, that we’re not stuck in positions, per se, that we’re trying to get some motion. The puck has to move but people have to move also. That, I think, is a big aspect of the deception associated with the power play and Jared happens to score from the pocket. “

• Wood lauded the Penguins as an organization:

“They know how to win. You can’t play each game with your A game. But they know how to win with their B game. … They’re a great team, they’re a Stanley Cup team, they’re a veteran team. They just know how to win.”

Visually speaking

• Game summary.

• Event summary.

• Highlights:

Follow the Penguins all season long.