Avs' stars not the only factor in Penguins' loss to Colorado

Better editions of the Pittsburgh Penguins than this year’s model certainly would’ve had trouble with the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday night. That’s a team with recent Stanley Cup pedigree, and the Avs played like it at PPG Paints Arena en route to a 6-2 win.

Two-time All-Star Mikko Rantanen had a hat trick and two assists. Hart Trophy winner Nathan MacKinnon also had a five-point evening. Six-foot, 4-inch Valeri Nichushkin had a strong power move for a goal.

Valeri Nichushkin with the power move! ???? pic.twitter.com/FICMcsSFLd

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) December 11, 2024

With 34 points in 30 games, the Avs may be off to a marginal start to the 2024-25 season, placing them just seventh in the Western Conference. But that’s still good for a playoff spot thus far, and they’ve still got some of that Stanley Cup DNA from a few years ago.

Given the Penguins’ recent rebound since Thanksgiving, you could’ve just said, “Oh, well. Onto the next game,” after losing to a good team when some of their star players had a good night.

But, clearly, coach Mike Sullivan saw enough wrong with his own team’s performance that he wasn’t in a mood to simply pat the Avs on the back and forget that this game ever happened.

“I didn’t think we were stiff on the puck,” Sullivan said. “We could have hung on to the puck some more in the offensive zone. I thought we could have controlled territory a little bit more and forced them to have to defend us a little bit more. We tend to be one-and-done.

“I think it starts with getting your nose over the puck — staying close and being able to play out of a quadrant to spread the zone. I didn’t think we were as good in that area. We lost a fair amount of puck battles.”

Sullivan also thought the Penguins were lacking in terms of their play along the walls.

“Breaking out, coming out of our end zone. With the way teams forecheck in today’s game, with defensemen under a lot of pressure, there’s a lot of wall plays that have to be made when you can execute on the walls,” Sullivan continued. “It goes a long way to setting up which end of the rink you are playing in — whether it be on the breakouts or on the entries in the neutral zone. … I didn’t think we were as good in those areas tonight.”

Certainly not as good as they have been over the previous six games. During that stretch, the Penguins won five times, with each of those victories coming against teams either currently in, or right on the fringes of, the playoff chase.

More sports

• Pirates trade for 1B Spencer Horwitz, sending RHP Luis Ortiz, 2 lefties to Cleveland
• First Call: Who Big Ben likes more than Mike Tomlin for Coach of the Year; Eagles DB says he was almost a Steeler
• Big Ben: Calling out WR George Pickens 'a good step' for Steelers coach Mike Tomlin

And it wasn’t just Sullivan who noticed.

“They were able to cash in on their opportunities,” goalie Tristan Jarry said. “They had some good shots. They were well placed. That’s the hardest part about it. When they are getting behind us and behind me, it’s to see what’s behind me when I’m looking out front.”

For Jarry, Tuesday was a step back in his recent return to better form from a bad start to the season. He allowed five goals to the Avs in the loss after having won his previous four decisions, making 29.2 saves per game along the way.

“I didn’t think he was as good tonight,” Sullivan said of his goalie.

Down 3-2, defenseman Marcus Pettersson blamed himself for the Nichushkin goal that killed any momentum the Pens had tried to build after getting down 3-0. He said there were other issues present besides just the goaltending, and they were similar to Friday’s loss in New York against the Rangers.

That was the Penguins’ only other defeat since Nov. 23.

“We’ve done a good job staying above teams,” Pettersson said. “In New York, we didn’t do a good enough job of that. Maybe the same thing again today. They got a couple of good odd-man rushes and they capitalized.”

In theory, the road should get easier over the next two games as the team heads to Canada. The Pens visit Montreal on Thursday and Ottawa on Saturday. Both teams are behind the Penguins in the standings.

However, as the Penguins have illustrated this year against teams such as the struggling Columbus Blue Jackets and Detroit Red Wings, the strength of their opponent isn’t always a determining factor in their own quality of play or the result of the final score.

Although it certainly was Tuesday night against the Avalanche.

Listen: Brian Metzer joins Tim Benz for this week’s hockey podcast