{"id":445595,"date":"2025-12-14T02:50:13","date_gmt":"2025-12-14T02:50:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/445595\/"},"modified":"2025-12-14T02:50:13","modified_gmt":"2025-12-14T02:50:13","slug":"penguins-sharks-recap-pens-prove-a-four-goal-lead-is-the-worst-in-hockey-for-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/445595\/","title":{"rendered":"Penguins\/Sharks Recap: Pens prove a four-goal lead is the worst in hockey (for them)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Rickard Rakell is back, which provides a big boost to the forward lines. The Pens shake Tommy Novak, Anthony and Kevin Hayes all down a little bit, give Ben Kindel, Rutger McGroarty and the returning Rakell bigger roles than the past. Pretty good there. The newly acquired players from Edmonton are hung up with immigration, so Sergei Murashov returns to the NHL, but Arturs Silovs gets the net in the first game of the post-Tristan Jarry era.<\/p>\n

The visiting San Jose Sharks have this lineup for the day. Alex Nedeljkovic watching from the bench in his return to Pittsburgh.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a fairly non-descript start for both teams. Connor Clifton is off to the penalty box early to offer San Jose with a power play, they get some zone time but can\u2019t score. That power play seems to throw the Penguins off and keep them from getting into the flow of the game, Tyler Toffoli goes onto score from distance on a shot that Silovs doesn\u2019t pick up in time with the traffic buzzing around. 1-0 Sharks.<\/p>\n

Sidney Crosby holds the puck while his team changes behind him, eventually sending a pass for Ville Koivunen. Sam Dickinson has to trip Koivunen, giving Pittsburgh their first power play of the game. Crosby wins the faceoff and soon after Anthony Mantha bounces a shot off the pads of Yaroslav Askarov. The rebound goes right to Crosby and he makes no mistake throwing it back into the net. 1-1 game courtesy of a quick strike from the power play.<\/p>\n

SJ takes another penalty and the Pens\u2019 power play is really feeling it. They\u2019re snapping the puck around like crazy, Bryan Rust hits the cross-bar flush in a near miss. Silovs doesn\u2019t really bang his stick as the power play is expiring and wouldn\u2019t you know Will Smith gets out of the penalty box and an instant breakaway. Silovs makes the save to bail himself and everyone out.<\/p>\n

In the dying seconds of the period Crosby and Noel Acciari are in on one of the most mis-matched personnel to ever get a 2-on-1. Wisely, Crosby calls his own number and takes the shot, Askarov\u2019s turn to stay up and make the save.<\/p>\n

Shots are 13-6 in favor of the Penguins through 20 minutes. Score is tied, which is a shame, Pittsburgh has been the better of the teams so far.<\/p>\n

The Sharks started their second line featuring Alex Wennberg, so the Pens opted to match that with their own second line to keep Crosby matched up against the Macklin Celebrini line. Worked out well, Rutger McGroarty fires in his first goal of the season 18 seconds into the second period after dancing Nick Leddy and gaining enough room to release a shot. Pittsburgh takes their first lead of the game, 2-1.<\/p>\n

Game continues to go crazy with teams trading chances at either end of the ice, Pittsburgh is OK with playing wide open with the fast and young Sharks. Connor Dewar slips behind the defense, they have hook him and it\u2019s another Penguin power play. No luck.<\/p>\n

Pittsburgh survives a sequence where Ryan Graves lets a Shark clear around him and then breaks his stick leading to some rare extended zone time for SJ. The Pens get back to work and find a New England-styled goal with Noel Acciari setting up a wide open Kevin Hayes at the back door. Good awareness for Hayes to open up in the right spot and a nice pass from Acciari. 3-1 game.<\/p>\n

Crosby takes a punch to the face from Dmitry Orlov, the refs call it a high-stick but it\u2019s the thought that counts. The Pens go to work on the power play, a SJ player breaks their stick, Crosby isolates on where he\u2019s at and passes over to Bryan Rust. That makes it easy but Rust still puts a perfect top shelf shot in. 4-1 game a just before intermission.<\/p>\n

Big time job by the Pens to get another one late and give it a three-goal cushion, despite their sketchy relationship with holding big leads.<\/p>\n

Graves again gets blown by, this time by Skinner. Graves grabs a handful of jersey and then gets his stick in for a hook too for a penalty that could have been a goal if not for a big save by Silovs.<\/p>\n

Parker Wotherspoon bodies off Smith along the wall, Smith gets hurt on the play and a couple of Sharks jump Wotherspoon for hurting one of their top players, including Celebrini defending his good friend. San Jose takes an extra penalty as a result and the play cycles back to 4v4. When it cycles through to the power play, Anthony Mantha pounds it in for a 5-1 lead.<\/p>\n

Dewar is sent to the penalty box and Erik Karlsson is sent off for the rare delay of game for playing the puck with a broken stick to grant the Sharks some 5v3 time. They make it count, John Klingberg walks in a little and fires a wrister from the top of the circles. 5-2 game with 12:27 to play, and the Sharks still have 1:21 of a 5v4 power play to work with.<\/p>\n

The Pens survive that but the Sharks aren\u2019t going away. Silovs makes about 3 or 4 great saves while sprawled out but Crosby and Letang can\u2019t provide any puck support. William Eklund gets on the scene and chips the loose puck over Silovs and into the net. 5-3 game, 5:41 to go.<\/p>\n

SJ pulls Askarov with over three minutes left in the push for more offense. The Sharks get zone time but eventually Crosby sets Rust up for an open net chance – hits the post. That comes back to haunt the Pens, Celebrini makes his first really big moment of the night by bombing away and scoring. The lead has shrank away to 5-4.<\/p>\n

Pittsburgh uses their timeout to regroup and break the momentum as try to stop yet another lead from slipping away. Good idea but it does pay off. The Sharks pull Askarov again, and they score again. Celebrini with the big shot. Ryan Shea swings around aimlessly. Toffoli finds the loose puck and chops it in. 5-5 game with 1:34 to go.<\/p>\n

The Penguins already seemed pre-stunned this game has even made it to overtime. It\u2019s not hard to guess what happens next. Celebrini and Klingberg work a great give-and-go past Letang after Klingberg easily avoided Crosby. San Jose completes their comeback, the Pens are left, again, to wonder what the hell happened to their big lead.<\/p>\n