Tristan Jarry gets 2nd consecutive shutout as Penguins beat Maple Leafs

The Penguins never specifically admitted they considered bringing in a new starting goaltender this past summer.

And they never specifically denied it either.

“Anywhere we think we that can upgrade and we make it work (salary) cap-wise, we’ll certainly look at,” general manager Ron Hextall said on July 28, the first day of the NHL’s free agent signing period. “Whatever position it might be.”

Ultimately, after finding few, if any, appetizing or practical options on the market, the Penguins opted to stick with incumbent starter Tristan Jarry despite his squalid performance during the 2021 playoffs.

Jarry has done quite a bit to validate management’s faith in him this season. The latest evidence he provided came in the form of a 26-save performance during a 2-0 road shutout of the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday at Scotiabank place.

“(Hextall) and I had a lot of conversations over the summer,” Jarry told media in Toronto on Saturday. “That was something that motivated me. It motivated me to be better. It motivated me to work harder every day. That was something I thought was a sign of relief, just that I knew that I’d be coming back. It was something that I wanted to prove to them that they weren’t making a mistake.”

It was Jarry’s second consecutive shutout following a 6-0 road win against the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday. Saturday’s success extended a personal shutout sequence of 149:47 over the past three games. The franchise record of 177:15 was established by Jarry over four games throughout November and December of the 2019-20 campaign.

“He’s just steady,” said Penguins forward Sidney Crosby. “That’s the biggest thing. Some of those saves, especially with some of the guys they have out there five-on-three, he’s calm. He looks real calm in there. Not only is that great when you’re making the saves, but the way it looks too. He looks pretty calm in there. So that’s huge.”

Penguins forward Jake Guentzel has been sizeable for the Penguins as of late too. He opened the scoring 5:46 into regulation by scoring a goal for the fourth consecutive game.

Penguins forward Bryan Rust shoveled a backhand pass from the center red line up the left wing to the offensive blue line. Guentzel claimed the puck, gained the zone, moved into the left circle then cut inside Maple Leafs defenseman Rasmus Sandin. From the slot, Guentzel lifted backhander past goaltender Jack Campbell’s right skate for his team-leading seventh goal of the season.

“The puck just goes in sometimes like that,” Guentzel said. “It finds it way in sometimes like that. Just trying to throw pucks on the net and get it into the net. It’s just going in right now. That’s the game of hockey sometimes. You just kind of feed off of it when they’re going in.”

The Penguins made it a 2-0 score at 17:15 of the first period through something of a happy accident.

Controlling the puck above his own right circle, Penguins defenseman Mike Matheson whipped a hard forehand pass to the opposite wall in the neutral zone for former Maple Leafs forward Kasperi Kapanen. Unable to truly accept the pass, Kapanen re-directed it to the offensive zone and it bounced across the ice to the left circle.

Penguins forward Jason Zucker outraced Maple Leafs defenseman Justin Holl for the errant puck and slipped a pass to the slot for linemate Jeff Carter. Gaining position on ex-Penguins defensive prospect Jake Muzzin, Carter plunked in an easy forehand shot behind an out-of-position Campbell for his fourth goal.

The Penguins faced a daunting task late in regulation, beginning at 14:58 of the third period, when the Maple Leafs operated with an extended five-on-three power-play opportunity that lasted a robust 1:49. The Penguins actually recorded two shots on net during that sequence, whereas the Maple Leafs were limited to one.

Penguins forward Brock McGinn had two considerable blocks during that penalty kill situation, each on Maple Leafs forward William Nylander. His efforts were supplemented by Carter, Rust, Dumoulin, forward Teddy Blueger and defenseman John Marino, who all took shifts during that tense penalty kill sequence.

“They were awesome,” Jarry said. “They were blocking shots. They were getting clears. They were doing everything that they needed. That’s part of the job description.”

Jarry, who played for the ninth time in the team’s past 10 games, has been living up to the requirements of his vocation as of late and improved his record to 7-4-3.

“Just a high-end goaltender,” Guentzel said. “He’s playing with confidence and we have all the confidence in the world in him. We’re happy for him. Just to see the way he’s playing, it’s pretty special.”