Penguins outscored 17-2 since last win
a chance to create off of that initial shot,” Sullivan said. “I just didn’t think we did a good enough job in that area tonight.”
It wasn’t the stiffest of competition for the Penguins. The Senators entered the night having lost seven in a row, just one of three Eastern Conference teams with fewer points than the Penguins this season. They looked the part until Jake Sanderson scored the game’s first goal 11 minutes into the third period, the Senators wasting all but one of the seven odd-man rushes they created.
The Penguins, meanwhile, wasted little time to put their scoring struggles on display; Bryan Rust wristed a point- blank chance over the crossbar 12 seconds in. Valtteri Puustinen failed to get his stick on an excellent centering pass at the crease from Drew O’Connor later in the period.
Instead, the Penguins waited until Sullivan pulled Tristan Jarry in the game’s waning moments to erase their donut on the scoreboard. Jarry was spectacular, making 37 saves, five of which came in the extra period. One came on a 3-on-1 for Ottawa, prompted by Letang taking a tumble.
“He made huge saves, especially when I fell,” Letang said. “That was a huge save and [he] actually gave us a chance at the other net. He was pretty quick at saving pucks and shooting it up north for us to get going.”
Try as Jarry might to spring the Penguins for scoring chances of their own in overtime, his efforts were all for naught. On the gamewinner, Jarry honed in on Tim Stutzle, the Senators’ points leader who dished off to Batherson just in front of the goal line extended.
Yet the Penguins did not fall to one of the Eastern Conference’s doormats because Jarry didn’t make a tough save off the rush. The Penguins’ collective failure to score was what did them in — a reality they’re all too well aware of.
“You feel it,” said Marcus Pettersson. “Got to get some more traffic, a little bit more desperation. When we get our chances, drop our shoulders a little bit.”
“I feel like we’re squeezing a little tight right now. So, just trust our instincts and go to the net and compete.”
With 18 contests remaining for the Penguins in the regular season, they now trail the New York Islanders by seven points. No longer do they have any games in hand, either. Despite these realities, Sullivan is steadfast in his belief that the Penguins can compete for the Stanley Cup.
“I believe we’re still in it,” Sullivan said. “I think until we’re not in it, we’re still in it.”
Should offensive performances like Tuesday’s and the ones that recently preceded it continue, the Penguins’ faint hopes of reaching the playoffs are sure to vanish in advance of the season’s conclusion.
Ice chips
• O’Connor returned from a three-game absence due to a concussion and skated on Evgeni Malkin’s line.
• With O’Connor back in the lineup, Puustinen dropped down to skating on Lars Eller’s line. Puustinen took the spot of Emil Bemstrom, who slotted at left wing on Noel Acciari’s line
• The Penguins recalled Ryan Shea prior to Tuesday’s game to fill Jonathan Gruden’s spot. Gruden successfully cleared waivers and was reassigned to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.
• Pierre-Olivier Joseph shared the ice with his older brother, Mathieu, a winger for the Senators. The former was scratched the last time
these two teams met while the latter was injured.
• Shea and Jesse Puljujarvi were the Penguins’ healthy scratches.
• Sidney Crosby is in his longest goalless stretch of the season, with none in his last nine games. He’s posted a minus-13 rating during that stretch, with the Penguins winning just twice.
Stat n’ at
2 – In the Penguins’ last 12 periods of regulation, they have scored two goals.
They said it
“It’s tight,” Letang said of
the Penguins’ playoff hopes. “I mean, the Islanders were out of it, and suddenly they’re in it. If you get streaky right now, you give yourself a chance to get there.”
Coming up
The Penguins return to the area to practice Wednesday in Cranberry. On Thursday, they’ll host the lowly San Jose Sharks, who are in last place in the Western Conference.