The Pittsburgh Penguins are a lot of things.
In denial is not one of them.
They are all too aware of where they sit in the Eastern Conference and Metropolitan Division standings. Of how remote their chances of getting into the Stanley Cup playoffs are. Of how very different their roster might look after the NHL trade deadline passes at 3 p.m. Friday.
But recognizing those realities does not mean they are ready to give in to them.
At least, that’s what Marcus Pettersson insisted after the Penguins’ 5-3 victory against Columbus Tuesday night at PPG Paints Arena.
“We can’t be focused on anything other than the next effort, the next shift and the next game,” he said. “We’re not going to give up until we’re very, very mathematically out of it.”
That doesn’t mean he was particularly impressed by anything he saw from either team.
“It was a sloppy game, overall,” Pettersson said.
Coach Mike Sullivan gave a rather lukewarm endorsement of his team’s performance — “For the most part, I thought we played OK,” he said — and acknowledged that the Penguins being sellers as the deadline approaches seems to be affecting his personnel.
“Obviously, there’s a lot of noise around the team right now,” Sullivan said. “Probably more so than there’s been in a lot of years.”
1. Graves making strides
Defenseman Ryan Graves, who has had a disappointing first season with the Penguins, assisted on first-period goals by Jesse Puljujarvi and Evgeni Malkin, his first multiple-point game since Nov. 11.
Graves was signed as a free agent to provide a defense-oriented presence alongside Kris Letang or Erik Karlsson, but underachieved his way from that top-four role down to the third pairing.
His play has improved of late, however, and Graves contributed four blocked shots to go with his pair of assists against Columbus.
“I think he’s played a lot better over the last few weeks,” Sullivan said. “I think (Graves) has done a much better job here over the last three-plus weeks, and I think his confidence has grown because of it.”
2. Bizarre bounces
Neither Pittsburgh Penguins goalie Tristan Jarry nor his Columbus counterpart, Jet Greaves, figures to look back fondly on this game, in part because both were victimized by tough-luck goals.
Malkin inadvertently deflected a shot by Columbus defenseman Andrew Peeke past Jarry for the second Blue Jackets goal, and Greaves twice was burned by unfortunate caroms during Penguins power plays.
The first came when a clearing attempt from behind the goal line by Blue Jackets defenseman Erik Gudbranson hit Rickard Rakell, who was standing near the right post, and went into the net. On the second, which proved to be the game-winner, Jeff Carter’s centering pass caromed off Peeke, who was hunkered down in the crease, and got by Greaves.
“It’s just one of those nights where you need to keep battling,” said Jarry, who stopped 34 of 37 shots. “I don’t think both of us, both goalies, expect those kind of bounces to happen, but you have to be prepared and sometime they go in. You just have to move by it.”
3. Not how they Drew it up
There has not been much for the Pittsburgh Penguins to enjoy this season.
Now when they entered it intent on challenging for a championship, but seem doomed to sit out the playoffs.
One bright spot, though, has been the work of forward Drew O’Connor, who has flashed top-six potential while playing a solid two-way game.
Which is why it was almost inevitable that some misfortune would befall him, as it did Tuesday, when he sat out the third period because of a concussion.
Sullivan announced the injury, but gave no indication of its severity or how long O’Connor is expected to be out.
The Columbus game was a demonstration of O’Connor’s versatility, as he shifted from top-six winger to third-line center.
He logged nine minutes, seven seconds of ice time (all at even-strength) and won three of five…
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