Winning takes sting out of Crosby’s opening slump
Pairing with Kessel hasn’t exactly been the hoped- for magic matchup
It’s the opposite of the adage. In this case, the operation was a failure, but the patient lived.
Indeed, the Pittsburgh Penguins have done more than live, they’ve flourished, despite the unrealized hopes for a Sidney Crosby- Phil Kessel grafting that would produce such an explosion of goals, both their careers might well go to the next level — whatever level that might be, for Crosby.
After all, Sid would be getting a legitimate sniper as a wingman for the first time ( James Neal, in his Pittsburgh days, was mostly deployed with Evgeni Malkin) and Kessel would be getting that world- class centre he never had as a Toronto Maple Leaf. How could it go wrong? Instead, Crosby is sitting at one lonely goal and four helpers in 11 games, on pace for a 37- point season, if you really believe it’s not going to get better.
“I think I’d bet the over on that one,” said veteran winger Pascal Dupuis.
“Sid is absolutely the heartbeat of this team, and he’s playing great hockey,” said defenceman Ben Lovejoy who, like all of his teammates, sees only a gifted, diligent, intelligent, 28- year- old superstar trying every day to battle his way out of a seasonopening slump.
“He’s going to fill the net. He’s going to close in on 100 points. Guys have all the confidence in the world in him.”
The marriage with Kessel was dissolved — although it might be more of a trial separation — after seven games together yielded an 0- 3 start and just two goals by the team in each of its next two games, though they were both wins.
Since then, though, the team has won seven of eight, and though much of the thanks for that goes to an unexpectedly stingy defence and out-of- this-world play by goalie Marc- Andre Fleury, the Penguins are feeling pretty darned good about what could happen once the offence wakes up.
Plus, don’t think you’ve heard the last of Crosby and Kessel, who could reconcile at any moment.
“It’s probably wrong to say they didn’t mesh,” said Pens coach Mike Johnston. “We didn’t get off to a great start the first few games, so I decided to change some lines up. That’s natural. As a coach you’re looking for something different, a new look.
“Phil had some phenomenal chances in those games that they played together. Some Grade A chances that normally he wouldn’t miss. So now that we know how they play together, you’ve got that in the bank — let’s see how he does with Geno ( Malkin).”
Crosby, as you’d expect, takes the responsibility personally, says he needs to be more consistent, shoot more, work harder. His teammates aren’t buying it. “We ultimately do need him to score for us to be successful, but right now, it’s more of a case of ‘ When is it going to happen?’ Everyone expects it to be the next game, or the one after that,” said Lovejoy.
“But we’ve won seven of our last eight. If we were struggling it would be a bigger deal.”
“I think you guys are getting a bigger kick out of it than we do,” Dupuis said. “Obviously you’ve got to talk about it because he hasn’t gone through anything like that before, but within the team it’s not like we’re panicking.”
Kessel has been pretty good, albeit better with Malkin, who leads the team with 10 points.
But much like Edmonton’s Connor McDavid and Taylor Hall, who started the season together, then were separated and immediately won NHL rookie of the month and player of the week honours on different lines, it’s not guaranteed to last. Nothing is, in hockey. Says Johnston: “If you look around the league, it’s interesting, whether it’s a ( Philly’s Jakub) Voracek, or ( Corey) Perry or ( Marian) Hossa — every year, for those types of players there’s a lot of focus on whether they’re scoring, not necessarily on their overall game. And I think sometimes those guys feel it a little bit when they come out of the gate ( slowly.) “It’ll eventually happen. ( Crosby) is getting his shots, getting his chances.”
Team Canada fans will remember he was much the same in Sochi: a fabulous 200- foot player with a stunningly complete game who just didn’t score much. He didn’t need to.
But if there’s any rink in the world that’s apt to bring back great memories, it’s Rogers Arena — or Canada Hockey Place, as it was known in 2010, when Crosby scored the golden goal against Team USA’s Ryan Miller, the fellow guarding the Vancouver Canucks’ net Wednesday.
“Oh, man, I hadn’t even thought of that,” Lovejoy said. “But I’m sure Sid is dying to score on anybody. He’s ultracompetitive.”
“I think it brings back memories, regardless who’s in the net,” Crosby said. “But that moment, and coming back here is always a great memory, so hopefully it can bring some good thoughts, and maybe some goals.”