The Penguins finally broke through in a game that stayed stuck in neutral for nearly the entire night, then had to survive one more Dallas push before finishing the job in a shootout.
Connor Dewar delivered the only goal in regulation, and Pittsburgh outlasted the Stars 2-1 Saturday at PPG Paints Arena after the teams needed an extra round to settle it. The Penguins improved to 3-2-1, while Dallas fell to 2-2-1.
It was a game built on patience and clean structure rather than flash. Pittsburgh’s possession was steadier, its passes were far sharper, and the Penguins looked nothing like the disjointed group that had been grinding through a rough stretch. The shot count through two periods was only 15-13 in Pittsburgh’s favor, and there wasn’t much in the way of high-end danger, but the Penguins were at least connecting with their own teammates instead of handing the puck away.
The biggest swing came at 1:57 of the third period. Dewar’s backhand attempt initially looked harmless enough, the kind of play that should have ended in Jake Oettinger’s chest.
Instead, the puck kicked off Dallas defenseman Liam Bichsel’s stick, floated over the goalie and slipped under the crossbar for the first goal of the night. It also gave Pittsburgh its first lead in more than three full games.
The Penguins nearly rode that single goal all the way to the finish, but Dallas found a way to drag it to overtime. With 29 seconds left, Tyler Seguin got a deflection on Jason Robertson’s shot and beat Arturs Silovs to tie it at 1-1, forcing the second shootout in as many nights for Pittsburgh.
Silovs did his part to keep the game under control. He stopped 21 of 22 shots in regulation, including a sharp pad save on Seguin with 37 seconds left. Oettinger turned away 20 before the Stars pulled him for the extra attacker.
Pittsburgh’s defensive response was a major step up after Friday night’s 45-shot mess against the Columbus Blue Jackets, when rookie goalie Sergei Murashov was left to make stop after stop. This time, the Penguins held Dallas to just two high-danger scoring chances in the first 40 minutes, according to NaturalStatTrick.com.
There were lineup changes, too. Coach Dan Muse put Elmer Soderblom back in for Ville Koivunen, and Trevor van Riemsdyk’s lower-body injury opened the door for Spencer Stastney to make his Penguins debut. Pittsburgh acquired Stastney for Filip Hallander on Wednesday rather than place a forward on waivers.
The Penguins also had a chance to end it in overtime when Erik Karlsson found himself with a wide-open net, but his one-timer was blocked wide by a defender.
The night’s first apparent goal never counted. At 19:33 of the first, Kris Letang drove to the net and Oettinger made the initial stop, but in the scramble that followed, Dallas winger Justin Hryckowian knocked the puck into his own net. The Stars challenged for a high-stick by Hendrix Lapierre earlier in the sequence, and the goal was overturned.
Pittsburgh finished the job in the shootout. Ben Kindel scored first, Jason Robertson was stopped, Sidney Crosby scored, Tyler Seguin answered, Egor Chinakhov was denied, Wyatt Johnston scored, and Rickard Rakell buried the deciding goal in the fourth round.
In Other News...
Sabres Just Added A New Concern To Their Blue Line Depth
Buffalos blue line depth took another hit with a minor trade on Tuesday, as the Sabres and Penguins swapped organization-level defensemen in a move that could still ripple beyond the AHL roster. Pittsburgh picked up Ryan Johnson, while Buffalo brought in Caleb Jones and Daniel Laatsch, with all three players currently assigned to minor league teams. For the Penguins, it is a low-risk way to add another young defenseman to the system and see whether Johnson can carve out a path within a different organization.
For Buffalo, the deal closes the book on Johnsons time in the organization after a long run that began when he was drafted in 2019. Jones is the name most likely to matter in the short term, since he is expected to give the Sabres some defensive insurance while injuries continue to test the teams depth. The rest of the move is more about rearranging pieces than making an immediate NHL impact, but it is the kind of transaction that can quietly shape what a team has available when the season starts to wear on. [Read more 🡒]
Penguins Head Into Tough Trip With One Big Question Still Unsettled
After a rough start to the week against Winnipeg and Washington, the Penguins steadied themselves enough to pick up three of a possible four points in back-to-back games against Columbus and Dallas. The Dallas showing in particular offered a better snapshot of where the group can be when it is skating with purpose, and now the next test arrives quickly as Pittsburgh opens a difficult road trip in Chicago.
The trip brings the usual lineup and goalie questions into sharper focus, especially with the Penguins trying to keep momentum while making small adjustments around the edges. The Blackhawks have been struggling through a poor season and a low expected goal share, but there is still some uncertainty around whether Connor Bedard will be available Tuesday, leaving Pittsburgh to prepare for more than one version of the matchup. [Read more 🡒]
Penguins Just Added A Blue Line Piece Worth Watching
Pittsburgh continued its blue line shuffle by bringing in Ryan Johnson from Buffalo, a move that adds another young defenseman to the mix as the Penguins keep sorting out their depth on the back end. Johnson has spent parts of four professional seasons working between the NHL, the AHL and college hockey, and his background gives the Penguins a player with some mileage but still room to grow.
For a team that has been looking for useful pieces on defense, Johnson arrives with a manageable cap hit and some runway left on his contract. The question now is how quickly he can carve out a role in Pittsburgh after getting a longer look in Buffalo, where he logged 47 NHL games before this change of scenery. [Read more 🡒]