Penguins’ Erik Karlsson faces both former teams in back-to-back games
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An interesting quirk in the Pittsburgh Penguins’ schedule has offered defenseman Erik Karlsson a walk down memory lane.
The Penguins played a road game at Ottawa on Tuesday night, falling in overtime, and Thursday night, they welcome the San Jose Sharks to PPG Paints Arena.
For Karlsson, that means he’s playing his two former clubs in back-to-back games.
Karlsson, drafted 15th overall by the Senators in 2008, played the first nine years of his NHL career there, winning the Norris Trophy twice (2012, 2015) before joining San Jose ahead of the 2018-19 campaign.
By the time he was dealt to Pittsburgh last summer in a blockbuster trade, Karlsson had added a third Norris Trophy to his mantle following his 101-point performance in 2022-23.
Karlsson has enjoyed the chance to reconnect with old acquaintances, but having made his first trip to San Jose as an opposing player Nov. 4, coupled with many games at Ottawa’s Canadian Tire Centre since leaving town six years ago, he blunts the emotions of facing off against former teams.
“I’ve been to San Jose once already this year, so that took a little bit of that pressure off,” he said. “I’ve been in Ottawa to play against Ottawa for quite a few years now. It’s obviously special because you have a lot of people around that you know and stuff like that. It’s just fun.”
Down but not out?
At a distance, the Penguins’ postseason hopes seem to have totally evaporated.
Internally, president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas opting to trade star winger Jake Guentzel ahead of the NHL trade deadline certainly appeared to suggest that belief.
And on top of that, the Penguins’ unappetizing play of late, with the club sporting a 1-5-1 record in March, provides little optimism that they are destined for playoff hockey.
That said, for all of the Penguins’ struggles this year and of late, several Eastern Conference foes also vying for the postseason have been largely unable to secure their own position.
Entering Thursday, Detroit has lost six straight games, while the Capitals and Devils have dropped a pair in a row. New Jersey is 3-7 over its last 10 games, compared to the Penguins’ mark of 3-6-1.
Inside PPG Paints Arena, “the runway is getting shorter” is a phrase uttered semi-frequently by coach Mike Sullivan, illustrating a heightened sense of urgency that his club needs to keep in mind as the regular season winds down.
The Penguins (28-27-9) entered Thursday’s game seven points out of wild-card position with 18 games left.
Despite poor results so far in March, that’s exactly the position they were in a month ago on Feb. 14.
On March 4, following a disastrous road trip to the Pacific Northwest and Alberta that was arguably the low ebb of the entire season, the Penguins were 10 points out of a wild-card spot.
“We’re in a tough spot right now, but it’s not insurmountable,” Sullivan said. “For me, that’s the most important thing — understanding that we’re not eliminated until we’re eliminated. We’ve got to control what we can and do everything within our power to stay competitive and win games.”
Notes:
• Tristan Jarry is scheduled to start in net vs. San Jose. Jarry is 18-21-5 with a 2.69 goals against average and .909 save percentage this year. He most recently made 37 saves on 39 shots during Tuesday’s 2-1 overtime loss to the Senators.
• The Penguins utilized the following lines and defensive pairings at Thursday’s morning skate:
8 Michael Bunting – 87 Sidney Crosby – 17 Bryan Rust
10 Drew O’Connor – 71 Evgeni Malkin – 67 Rickard Rakell
19 Reilly Smith – 20 Lars Eller – 48 Valtteri Puustinen
52 Emil Bemstrom – 55 Noel Acciari – 77 Jeff Carter
28 Marcus Pettersson – 58 – Kris Letang
27 Ryan Graves – 65 Erik Karlsson
7 John Ludvig – 73 P.O Joseph
5 Ryan Shea – 18 Jesse Puljujarvi
• Power-play groupings were as follows:
Crosby, Letang, Rust, Eller, Bunting; Karlsson, Malkin, Rakell, Smith, Carter.
• The Sharks are scheduled to start rookie goaltender Magnus Chrona. In six games this season, Chrona has a 1-3-1 record, a 4.30 goals against average and an .879 save percentage.
Chrona made his NHL debut this season during a 10-2 home loss to the Penguins on Nov. 4. Replacing starter Mackenzie Blackwood, Chrona made 13 saves on 17 shots during 30:30 of ice time.
• Former Penguins defenseman Jan Rutta, who went to the Sharks as part of the Karlsson trade, is expected to miss his third consecutive game due to an undisclosed injury. In 56 games this season, Rutta has 15 points (three goals, 12 assists) while averaging 19:32 of ice time per contest.