Pittsburgh Penguins' Gameday Preview: Pens Look To Continue Momentum Against Ottawa Senators In Hall Of Fame Game

The Pittsburgh Penguins (7-10-2, 16 points) will look to build on their winning 2-1 California road trip Saturday when they take on the Ottawa Senators (12-6-2, 26 points) at home. 

On Wednesday, the Penguins capped off the three-game swing with a 3-2 shootout win over the San Jose Sharks. A 34-save effort by rookie goaltender Sergei Murashov led the way, and it was his second win of the road trip as well as the second-most saves he made in a game this season, the most being when he stole the Penguins a point against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Oct. 9 with 45 saves on 47 attempts.

Even though a lot of the on-ice play was still a mixed bag for Pittsburgh - and their goaltender was outstanding enough to steal them a game yet again on Wednesday - they are some things to build off of. Their lineup seems to be gaining momentum, they are now near the top of the league in defensive zone giveaways with the third-fewest at 107, and they are actually beginning to see some synergy in their lineup. 

The advanced stats back up the Penguins playing better five-on-five hockey as of late, too. They are fourth in the league in expected goals for per 60 with 2.88, their PDO is seventh-lowest in the league this season at 97.79 to indicate some poor luck, and their Corsi (shot attempts share) is eighth in the league at 52.67 percent amongst a bunch of playoff-positioned teams. 

It remains to be seen if head coach Dan Muse keeps the same lineups together, but they did swap a few things around at Friday's team practice. After one game in the top-six, Nick Robertson was slid back down to the third line in place of Ville Koivunen in the lineup, while Hendrix Lapierre slotted back in at third-line center and youngster Rutger McGroarty remained in, taking line rushes on the fourth line with Blake Lizotte and Connor Dewar.

Muse did not commit to a goaltender for Saturday's game in Friday's media availability, but he did like what he saw from Murashov on the road trip. And injured defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk did skate with the team Friday, but he was on the fourth pairing with Ilya Solovyov, perhaps an indication that he will not be in the lineup Saturday.

The team's first game back home will also be its 'Hall of Fame Game', when they will welcome back Marc-Andre Fleury, Larry Murphy, Jim Rutherford, and Jack McGregor and elect them to the Penguins' Hall of Fame in a pregame ceremony. The first two will be inducted as players, while Rutherford will be inducted in the Builder category and McGregor in the Contributor category.  

As for the Ottawa Senators, they are 5-3-2 in their last 10 games and 5-4-1 on the road this season. They have fallen a bit in the standings to the first wild card position, but they are still a younger team with some weapons. 

The Penguins have struggled against the Senators in recent years, going 2-5-3 with a minus-16 goal differential in their last 10 games head-to-head. 

Egor Chinakhov

Chinakhov's stat line might not look like much, as he has just three goals and five points in 15 games played for the Penguins. But the stat line is no indication of the way he's played. He's struck iron on several occasions, and his 4.9 shot attempts per game is the third-highest mark on the team behind only Erik Karlsson and Rickard Rakell. He has developed some chemistry on the second line with Ben Kindel, and both have been playing better. It feels like when one goes in for Chinakhov, a bunch will follow. 

Rutger McGroarty

McGroarty, 22, looks to be earning his second consecutive game after being called up during the Western trip and putting forth a nice effort in the 3-2 win over the Sharks. He may not be lighting up the scoresheet, as he has no points in three NHL games this season, but he is contributing on the defensive side of the puck and creating enough havoc in chance creation that he's still doing things to help the team win. The Penguins want to get younger, and McGroarty figures to be part of that mix — but he needs to keep forcing the Penguins' hand as far as keeping him in the lineup over others. 

Pittsburgh Penguins (7-10-2, 16 points): 

Points: 

Erik Karlsson: 3-16-19 in 19 GP
Evgeni Malkin: 6-11-17 in 17 GP
Tommy Novak: 7-7-14 in 19 GP
Sidney Crosby: 6-7-13 in 19 GP
Rickard Rakell: 6-5-11 in 19 GP

Goaltenders: 

Arturs Silovs: 5-6-1, .873 save percentage
Sergei Murashov: 2-4-1, .891 save percentage

Ottawa Senators (12-6-2, 26 points): 

Points: 

Tim Stutzle: 10-14-24 in 20 GP
Drake Batherson: 10-9-19 in 20 GP
Shane Pinto: 9-8-17 in 20 GP
Michael Amadio: 6-5-11 in 20 GP
Dylan Cozens: 4-7-11 in 20 GP

Goaltenders: 

Samuel Ersson: 3-3-2, .885 save percentage
Linus Ullmark: 8-1-0, .938 save percentage

Game Information: 

Start time: 7:00 p.m. ET 
Venue: PPG Paints Arena 
Television: Sportsnet Pittsburgh
Radio: 105.9 The X

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