The Pittsburgh Penguins have a tough task ahead of them as they try to snap a four-game losing streak, welcoming an Edmonton Oilers squad that enters Thursday’s contest winners of four straight.
Pittsburgh lost 4-3 in a shootout Tuesday against the Columbus Blue Jackets, the team’s third straight game to go past regulation. Besides losing again, the Penguins also played without Evgeni Malkin. The center, 38, was a late scratch with an apparent upper-body injury and had a streak of playing 209 straight games snapped.
Pens Inside Scoop, the team’s news site, reported on Wednesday afternoon that Malkin skated during the day’s practice but was not on any of the team’s lines.
A prolonged absence from Malkin, a veteran leader who ranks third on the team with 32 points, is less than ideal for a team fighting for a wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.
After a disastrous October in which they finished next to last in the Eastern Conference, the Penguins have climbed steadily in the standings. Even with the four straight losses, they are tied in points with the Blue Jackets for the final wild-card berth, although Columbus currently holds the tiebreaker.
A big contributor to the recent struggles has been the team’s penalty-killing unit. Through Tuesday’s games, the Penguins rank tied for 14th in the league in denying 80.3 percent of opponents’ power-play chances. However, Pittsburgh has allowed five goals in 11 chances over the last four games.
Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said he sees his team giving opponents too much room to maneuver on power plays, and he added his players are not clearing the zone as well as they had previously.
“I think at the end of the day, a lot of it boils down to details that we’ve let slip here on our kill,” he said.
Edmonton comes into Pittsburgh off a 4-0 win Tuesday in Boston against the Bruins. The Oilers’ only other shutout came at home against the Penguins on Oct. 25.
Adam Henrique had his first two-goal game with the Oilers, which marked his first two-goal game in nearly a year (Jan. 21, 2024, for the Anaheim Ducks against the New York Rangers), in Tuesday’s win.
While they have won four straight, the Oilers have not closed much of the gap between them and the Vegas Golden Knights, who lead the Pacific Division and have won three straight entering Wednesday. In addition, the third-place Los Angeles Kings have won four in a row.
Edmonton coach Kris Knoblauch said his team cannot afford to be complacent as the Oilers near the halfway mark of their season.
“There’s teams that we want to pass, there’s teams that are playing better than us, ahead of us in the standings,” he said. “And there’s teams that want to catch us, and if we’re not getting better every day, we’re going to get passed, and we’re not going to be able to catch those other teams that we feel that we can play better than.”
Thursday’s game will feature some of the league’s top offensive talent, even if Malkin is scratched again.
Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby, who had two assists in Tuesday’s loss, entered Wednesday tied for 11th in the league with 33 assists, and his teammate Rickard Rakell was tied for 11th in goals at 20.
Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl entered Wednesday leading the NHL with 29 goals, and his 59 points were second overall. Connor McDavid was tied for fourth with 39 assists, and his 55 points entering Wednesday ranked sixth among skaters.
–Field Level Media
