It was a goal well earned
OK, so it was nothing like Sidney Crosby’s magnificent goal earlier in the game, the one where Crosby went forehand to backhand quicker than you can say “Grubauer” and slid the puck just inside the post.
It wasn’t anything like Jake Guentzel’s brilliant goal, either, the one where Guentzel went backhand to forehand quicker than you can say “Philipp” and roofed a shot that had coach Mike Sullivan gushing after his team’s 3-2 victory.
But in some ways, Brandon
Tanev’s shorthanded, overtime winner against the nolonger undefeated Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday was every bit as beautiful as those two, even if Colorado captain Gabriel Landeskog delivered a major assist.
OK, Landeskog actually scored the goal.
That didn’t make it any less thrilling for the crowd of 18,458 as Tanev went to his knees for a fist pump, then jumped into the glass before teammates mobbed him.
“I kind of saw it take a favorable bounce when [Landeskog] tried to pick it out of the net,” Tanev said of his first goal in a Penguins sweater. “After that, I kind of didn’t know what I was doing.”
Tanev made a little history, too. According to unofficial Penguins historian Bob Grove, the only other player in franchise history to win a game on a shorthanded goal in overtime was Mario Lemieux against the Boston Bruins on Jan. 22, 1996. Which made it fitting that Lemieux stopped by Tanev’s locker stall after the game and offered a hearty, “Great goal.”
Tanev’s smile could have lit the building for a month. Say this, too, about his goal: It was well-earned.
Tanev has been whirling dervish since his first shift of the season. He has drawn an unbelievable nine penalties, including two on Wednesday. He hits everything that moves. He blocks shots. He infuriates opponents. He creates chances. He was part of an outstanding checking line, with Teddy Blueger and Zach AstonReese, that put in some quality time against Nathan MacKinnon & Co..
But he couldn’t find the net through six games, going 0 for 12 from the field. Then he saw Grubauer rob him with a point-blank glove save early in the second period.
In short, the man deserved a break.
Right, Sid?
“Yeah, the way he works every night, how hard he plays, all those little plays he makes,” Crosby said. “It’s great to see one go in the back of the net. He’s had a ton of chances. He doesn’t get deterred. It didn’t change the way he played. He’s been a great guy to add, and that’s a huge goal for us tonight.”
Indeed, this was the most unlikely of four consecutive wins for the Improbable Penguins, who were so ravaged that defenseman Juuso Riikola (one of 34 defensemen on the roster) was pressed into duty as a fourth-line winger.
Sullivan is thrilled with how his team has hunkered down without Evgeni Malkin and an army of others. He spoke of his guys playing smart, tough hockey, replete with “good decisions” like changing quickly and having “numbers back all the time” (or at least most of the time against an explosive Avalanche attack).
“When we play the game the way we were playing it tonight,” Sullivan said, “I believe we have what it takes to beat anybody.”
It hardly matters that Tanev got lucky on his winning goal. Nobody will care that Landeskog looked like he was trying to pitchfork a grasshopper as the puck bounced off his stick and skipped across the line. It goes down as two more points in the bank for a team that could have easily found itself in a big ol’ ditch to start the season.
The stars have led the way. The youngsters have pitched in big-time. Rookies Sam Lafferty and John Marino combined with Tanev to do some outstanding penalty killing work in overtime — and they hustled to create what was an excellent chance no matter how it turned out.
Great for Tanev that it went in.
“He’s a heart and soul kind of player,” goalie Matt Murray said. “We all love him in here.”