Sidney Crosby has dragged the pitiful Penguins into the fight. His frustration led to a bout with Kyle Connor during 4-1 home-ice loss to the Jets on Friday.
Vancouver Canucks vs. Pittsburgh Penguins
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When/where: Wednesday, 4:30 p.m., PPG Paints Arena
TV: SN Pacific. Radio: Sportsnet 650
The buzz: Beware the wounded beast.
The Canucks are on the second half of back-to-back games on their defining and demanding six-game, 11-day road adventure and face the aging, struggling and once-mighty Penguins.
Pittsburgh is dead last in the Metropolitan Division with just seven wins and 18 points, are coughing up a league-worst 3.96 goals per game, and are a minus-34 goal differential.
Which, of course, has “danger game” written all over it.
Let’s put it this way: Captain Sidney Crosby has done more than drag his Penguins into the fight. His frustration level peaked Friday when he fought Kyle Connor in third period of a 4-1 home-ice loss to the Winnipeg Jets. Crosby finished with no shots.
The next night, the Penguins were throttled 6-1 by visiting Utah. The only solace was Crosby reaching the 600 plateau in career goals. He became the 21st player in NHL history to hit that mark. Sid is no longer “The Kid”, but he still plays like one.
“It’s a nice number,” Crosby said of his 600 goals. “I think that’s something you probably think about more after the fact, when you’re done playing.”
Right now, his attention is on the obvious.
The Penguins iced the third-oldest roster to start this season at an average age of 30. The Edmonton Oilers were the oldest (30.6 years) followed by the Nashville Predators (30.2). However, it’s Crosby, 37, and Evgeni Malkin , 38, who have remained relevant by leading the Penguins in scoring.
Crosby has 21 points (8-13) in 23 games and Malkin is next at 20 points (5-15) in the same amount of games, but then there’s a big drop off.
Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet has a long-standing admiration for Crosby. It dates to coaching him for three seasons as an assistant in Pittsburgh. It included Crosby’s 44 goals and 89 points in 2016-17 to cap off back-to-back Stanley Cup titles.
His unwavering drive, dedication and desire to be among the NHL elite is a coach’s treat.
“How many more years is he going to play? He could play into his 40s,” Tocchet told Postmedia. “He takes care of himself, and his hockey I.Q. is outstanding.
“The one thing people don’t understand is that Sid doesn’t cheat. He plays a 200-foot game. If he really wanted to — and I keep telling people this — Sid could play another five years.”
The history: First meeting of the season. The Canucks split the series in 2023-24 by winning 4-3 in overtime at Pittsburgh on Jan. 11 and losing 4-3 in overtime at home on Feb. 27. In the win, Elias Pettersson’s second goal and his fourth point settled the issue. In the setback, Erik Karlsson completed a Penguins rally as the teams combined for 75 shots.
The hope: Forward Max Sasson isn’t “one and done” this trip after sitting out Tuesday in Boston with the return of Brock Boeser from a concussion. Sasson made his NHL debut Saturday in Ottawa, in which he had an assist. Tocchet usually tinkers after a loss.
The fear: Leaving their legs in Boston. The Canucks need a fast start to set the tone, but their giddy-up may not be there until the second period after facing the Bruins on Tuesday. Short shifts are going to be the key. And so is defending well early.
The top guns: The Canucks are getting better mileage from a resurgent Pettersson. He took 10 points (4-6) in his last seven games into the Tuesday test. Feisty winger Kiefer Sherwood had five points (3-2) in his previous five outings and had scored in three-straight games.
The wounded: Canucks: Thatcher Demko (knee, day-to-day, IR), Derek Forbort (knee, week-to-week, IR), J.T. Miller (indefinite leave of absence, IR). Penguins: Cody Glass (concussion, IR), Blake Lizotte (concussion, IR).
The quote: “It’s talking to Jake every day, but you don’t want to overload guys. You hear inconsistent a lot, and it’s my job to make him consistent.” — Rick Tocchet on Jake DeBrusk.
The projected lineup:
DeBrusk-Pettersson-Sherwood
Joshua-Suter-Garland
Heinen-Blueger-Boeser
Hoglander-Raty-Bains
Hughes-Hronek
Soucy-Myers
Brannstrom-Juulsen
Silovs
The prediction: The Canucks find a way while running on fumes to grind one out with a 3-2 triumph.