Penguins maintain faith they are still a playoff-caliber team

Even within the controlled context of practice, it looked spectacular.

A pass by Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Erik Karlsson.

During a five-on-five drill Monday in Cranberry, Karlsson recovered a loose puck in his own zone that was deflected by opposing forward Noel Acciari. Claiming the puck, Karlsson strode through the neutral zone and gained the offensive blue line. Upon entry, he flung the puck across the ice off the glass, banking it to attacking forward Reilly Smith who charged the net from the left wing and fired a shot that was denied by goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic.

It was a sequence of explosive offensive creativity born out of chaos. The type of thing these Penguins — as crafted by president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas — are supposed to do routinely in the pursuit of consistent success.

Yet, as they emerge from their break in the schedule for their bye week and the NHL’s All-Star event, they are fourth in the Eastern Conference’s wild-card standings with a 22-17-7 mark and 51 points. The Detroit Red Wings (26-18-6, 58 points) are entrenched in the final wild-card position.

As for the Metropolitan Division, the gulf is a little bit narrower as the rival Philadelphia Flyers (25-19-6, 56 points) inhabit third place.

Externally, and, more importantly, internally, the expectations of the Penguins are much higher. They are not supposed to be chasing a playoff spot, especially after they overhauled much of the organization this past summer after a postseason-free 2022-23 campaign.

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“We know the potential in here,” Karlsson said. “People around the league and people that watch us know the potential. That’s what we’re being judged on a little bit because if you look at our team, we probably should have accomplished a lot more by now and we haven’t. Even though I think that’s not necessarily a bad thing because I think we have a lot more in here that we can get out of this group.

“That’s what’s exciting about it, that it hasn’t fully worked out everywhere just yet. That is something that we’re still striving for and looking forward to. We know it’s still there. We’re still in a good position right now. Hopefully, we can turn things right here and get on the right side of things on the right time.”

In mid-September, right before training camp opened, Penguins forward Sidney Crosby said this team had plenty to prove after missing the playoffs in 2022-23.

Approximately four months later, the only postulate the Penguins have verified is that being a .500 team, let alone exceeding that level, is a challenge.

Regardless, Crosby and company remain resolute in their faith that this group, as assembled, is a playoff-caliber outfit.

“We’ve shown it throughout the season,” Crosby said. “Especially the last month, we’ve played better as a group. Those games where we’ve elevated our game and where we’ve shown it consistently give us that belief.”

The trade deadline looms March 8. So the potential for augmentations to the roster are very possible, if not probable, if the Penguins are to play meaningful games into the spring.

Regardless of who may be coming or going, a greater level of consistency appears to be the most important addition the current Penguins could use.

“That’s the mental challenge of setting yourself up for having your compete level at the highest,” forward Lars Eller said. “When you’re emotionally involved and your compete level is there, usually you have better execution and better luck because you’re winning races and winning more puck battles. All of those things lead to more chances.

“We know all the X’s and O’s and systems, there’s no question about that. So, it’s just everybody setting themselves up, looking themselves in the mirror and being ready, no matter who you’re playing. The division is pretty open. We have everything in our own hands.”

At the moment, a playoff spot appears to be, at worst, an arm’s length away.

“I don’t think we’ve reached up to the level of play that we want, which is an exciting thing,” Karlsson said. “We have a lot more in here. We know that. We’re striving towards that. If we do get there — which I think and hope we will — we’re going to come into the time of the season at the right time.

“We’re still going towards our final goal. It’s exciting times coming up.”

Note: Forward prospect Raivsis Ansons skated during practice on an auxiliary rink as part of his rehabilitation process from an undisclosed injury. Currently assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League, Ansons has not played since Dec. 27.

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