Pittsburgh defeated Buffalo for the second time this pre-season to close out their schedule prior to the regular season
Well, if the pre-season is any indication, the Pittsburgh Penguins would finish the regular season 84-0 if they played the Buffalo Sabres in every game.
On Saturday, the Penguins concluded their four-game pre-season with a 3-1 win over the Sabres, giving them an even 2-2 split ahead of the regular season. Both wins came against Buffalo, and both wins came in pretty resounding fashion, too.
Arturs Silovs was spectacular in this one - a nice comeback performance after a rough go in a 7-4 loss to the Detroit Red Wings Tuesday - with a 23-for-24 effort, and Sidney Crosby, Ville Koivunen and Nick Robertson potted goals for the Penguins.
The score in this one actually could have swung more in Pittsburgh's favor, too, if not for two lost challenges.
Crosby opened the scoring in this one nine minutes into the first period when Tommy Novak fed him the puck in the neutral zone. Crosby broke down the left side, winded up for a slap shot and rocketed it top-shelf past Sabres' goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen to give the Penguins the 1-0 lead.
Just two minutes later, Ville Koivunen finished a nice behind-the-net play from Bryan Rust, working hard at the net-front to poke it past Luukkonen on the backhand to make it 2-0. The Penguins had chances to add on early in the second period, but things didn't go their way.
First, Evgeni Malkin put a rebound in at the net-front, but minimal contact with Luukkonen - outside the blue paint - resulted in an overturn for goaltender interference after a challenge by Buffalo. A few minutes later, Rickard Rakell put home a rebound after a hard shot by Robertson, but it was called back after an offside challenge.
Still, that did not deter the Penguins, or Silovs, from coming away victorious. They combined to play a nice shutdown brand of hockey for the remainder of the game, even with a power play goal by Ryan McLeod cutting the advantage to 2-1 during the third period.
To seal the deal, Trevor van Riemsdyk disrupted a pass and stole the puck down low in the defensive zone during the five-on-six situation near the end of regulation, and he flipped it up ice for an isolated Rakell to retrieve below the goal line at the other end. He put one on a platter for Robertson at the net-front, and he redirected it in the net for the empty-net goal.
Here are some observations from the Penguins' final dress rehearsal:
- I said it on socials at least five times, and I'll say it here: Koivunen was great in this game.
He was making quick decisions. Driving the net. Effective on the forecheck. Showing 200-foot awareness. Good in transition. Winning puck battles. You name it, he was doing it.
This is the version of Koivunen that the Penguins got at the end of the 2024-25 season, when he registered seven points in his first eight NHL games. He looked like a natural on the third line with Bryan Rust and Hendrix Lapierre for a while until Rust went down, and then Filip Hallander fit right in, too.
If they can keep getting this version of Koivunen - and he can build on this performance - that eight-year contract will quickly look like a bargain.
- Speaking of Rust, he left during the second period and did not return. I'm not really sure what happened, to be honest. The Penguins did not offer an update on his status after the game, as he is still being evaluated.
If Rust is out for any period of time, he joins Ben Kindel - who is now week-to-week - Blake Lizotte, Justin Brazeau, Oliver Okuliar, and Andrei Kuzmenko, who is with family in Russia after the tragic death of his father.
That's not great news for a Penguins' team that is trying to win hockey games. However, it could open up opportunity for some others.
- And those others? Filip Hallander, Rutger McGroarty and Tristan Broz.
All of them were noticeable in this one. Before Rust went down, this trio made up the fourth line, and they were generating a fair amount of chances. McGroarty was a puck magnet all night long, and he had several chances and was consistently creating offense. Hallander showcased his hockey sense in all three zones, while Broz, as usual, played a cerebral, responsible game on both sides of the puck.
Roster decisions will need to be made in the coming days, and a lot of those decisions will hinge on whoever ends up on injured reserve to start the season. Hallander is probably a lock at this point, and it looks like Koivunen might earn a spot, but there's a chance both McGroarty and Broz could make the cut if the roster space is available.
- This was a strong performance from Silovs, who really needed a bounce-back after allowing seven goals against Detroit. He was all out of sorts in that game, and in this one, he was locked in for the full 60. He made several nice stops on high-danger chances, including a breakaway and a few two-on-ones.
Silovs can be hot and cold, but hopefully this outing can get him going to start the season on a high note.
- The first line was dominant in this game, and I really like what I'm seeing from Robertson with Rakell and Crosby. The sequence that led to the Rakell non-goal was a beauty from all three, as Robertson beat a Sabre to the puck and got it down low, Crosby did his usual outstanding work down low to get the puck back to Robertson in the left circle, Robertson slammed a shot to force a rebound, and Rakell - as he often is - was in the right spot at the right time.
That goal wasn't the only example of the trio working harmoniously, as the same was the case on Robertson's empty-net goal mentioned earlier. It happened at varying times throughout the game, too.
When (or if) this lineup is ever healthy, man, is it deep. If the first line can pick up even more momentum heading into the season, they're going to be a handful for opposing teams. Robertson's speed and forechecking bring a lot to the line, Crosby is Crosby, and Rakell's instincts and raw puck skills make for a dangerous combo.
- After the first period of play, the blue line was pretty solid. These are likely the three pairings we will see to begin the season, and each pairing had its small moments.
But, by and large, they did a nice job limiting Buffalo's high-danger opportunities and did their part in not really allowing them to sustain possession in the offensive zone. van Riemsdyk and Letang - on the third pairing together - were especially better as the game went on, and Letang made a few nice stick plays to thwart opportunities.
It will be interesting to see how the defensive minutes are distributed and how the rotation will work, especially if they opt to keep eight defensemen.
- One of the most impressive things about last year's Penguins was how aggressive they came out of the gate to get ahead and how hard they were to play against in third periods when holding a lead.
It's amazing what Dan Muse and the rest of the coaching staff has done to make this team buy into shutdown-style play late in games when they're leading. Buffalo had some chances throughout the game, but Pittsburgh limited them to four shots on goal in the final frame.
If they play this way with leads the entire season - and, especially if their offense can repeat what it did in 2025-26 - this team should have no problem making the playoffs unless their goaltending really, really falters.
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