Penguins goalie Tristan Jarry shakes off rough start but can’t beat Buffalo
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As he took the ice Saturday evening against Buffalo, Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry doubtless was hoping to rebound from his last appearance, a shaky start Tuesday against Washington during which he allowed three first-period goals before coach Mike Sullivan pulled him.
That night, Jarry allowed the game’s first goal after only 55 seconds had elapsed.
The Capitals built a two-goal lead with a bit under nine minutes left in the first period, and from there, when Jarry allowed another goal about two minutes later, Sullivan made his move, ending Jarry’s evening after just 13 minutes, 2 seconds and going with Alex Nedeljkovic from there on out.
For Jarry, it was the second time in his past four starts and third time this season he was yanked.
His start Saturday against the Sabres got off on a similar rough note, as, less than three minutes into the first period, he allowed the game’s first goal, a snap shot off the stick of Alex Tuch.
Full credit is due to Buffalo’s Connor Clifton, who made a precision pass from deep in the defensive zone to Tuch, who received the puck near the Penguins’ blue line and enjoyed a brief breakaway before firing his shot from just outside the slot.
What a pass by Connor Clifton to Alex Tuch ???? pic.twitter.com/GkDqAH7LWW
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) January 7, 2024
But with zero traffic in front of the net, the shot from 38 feet was probably one Jarry should have saved.
“He just got a breakaway and was able to put it top corner,” Jarry said after the game. “We had a lot of pressure on him, so he shot it where I thought he would.”
Unlike Tuesday, Jarry played well after Tuch’s goal, holding the Sabres without another score until the 4:38 mark of the third period, when Zemgus Girgensons capitalized on a few wonky bounces to put away the winning wrister from the edge of the crease.
Zemgus Girgensons gives the Sabres a late 2-1 lead.
Great shift from the 4th line. pic.twitter.com/uHswtv4121
— The Charging Buffalo (@TheChargingBUF) January 7, 2024
All told, Jarry faced 32 shots Saturday, making 29 saves in the 3-1 loss.
The final goal allowed by Jarry, for all intents and purposes, was an empty-netter. With 1:36 remaining in the third period and the Penguins (19-15-4) trailing 2-1, he attempted to hustle to the bench to give his club an end-of-game 6-on-5 man-advantage.
But as he made his move, Rickard Rakell committed a turnover in the offensive zone, allowing Rasmus Dahlin to fire a long-range shot that Jarry, racing back to the net, was unable to stop despite a diving attempt.
Dahlin’s game-sealing goal thus counted against Jarry.
Rasmus Dahlin, 3-1 ENG. Jarry gave it his best. #LetsGoBuffalo #LetsGoPens pic.twitter.com/V8s3Mf9kHT
— Buffalo Hockey Moments (@SabresPlays) January 7, 2024
“We had our chances to get it done, and then they get a break there at the end there for the 2-1 lead,” Rakell said postgame. “Not a great turnover by me to make it 3-1 and close out the game. We for sure had our chances tonight. We’ve got to be better.”
Sullivan, declining to offer an overly thorough assessment of his goalie’s performance, summed up Jarry’s night:
“I thought he competed hard,” Sullivan said.
Jarry probably did not have the start that he was hoping for Saturday.
However, a pair of first-period goals being reversed after Sabres challenges — with official reviews finding Drew O’Connor’s tally to have been offside and Jake Guentzel’s score to be a result of goalie interference — loomed larger in the defeat than Jarry’s individual play.
As did three power-play tries that came up empty before Rakell tipped in a slap pass from Erik Karlsson with a few seconds remaining on a third-period five-on-three.
“I thought we did a good job staying in it,” Rakell said. “We had those two goals called off. We did a good job tying it up but just not good enough.”