Overtime Struggles Nothing New for Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins have struggled with decision-making and deployment in overtime all season long.
PITTSBURGH – The Pittsburgh Penguins saw their winning streak end at four games against the Toronto Maple Leafs, but they still made positive progress. Their loss came in overtime, securing a standings point to stay right in the thick of the playoff race.
While the Penguins extended their point streak to nine games, many questioned the lineup decisions in the bonus frame. To kick off the overtime period, Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan threw Lars Eller over the boards.
Eller had a great chance in the opening seconds of overtime, but he never left the ice, and the Maple Leafs eventually won easily.
Not a knock against Eller, but why wasn’t an elite talent like Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin on the ice to start the overtime period? According to Sullivan after the game, Crosby was dealing with a skate issue.
While a skate issue is likely since Crosby had to make a change mid-second period, it’s also possible it was a strategy for Sullivan. Crosby’s numbers have been plain awful in overtime this year.
Crosby has been on the ice for five game-winning overtime goals against while scoring none this season. A minus-five in the OT frame is tied for worst in the NHL. With a stat that bad, it’s not surprising to see Sullivan go with a different option.
Eller isn’t new to this job, either. Sullivan has been deploying Eller to start overtimes for a good chunk of the year. When asked about deploying Eller over Crosby in February, Sullivan gave some insight into his thought process.
“If Sid’s line was on the ice for a significant period of time, and needed more recovery time,” Sullivan said. “Sometimes that weighs into it.”
Resting your star players is fair, but every point is crucial this late into the season, and Crosby has been a different beast over the last few weeks.
Sullivan also noted that sometimes his deployment will depend on who the opponent is tossing out to start the extra period.
“Sometimes our opponent,” Sullivan said. “Who they put on the ice weighs into it.”
Sullivan didn’t go any deeper into the decision-making process when asked about a month and a half ago.
It’s also important to note that the Penguins rarely, if ever, work on 3-on-3 during practices. Considering they’re 3-9 in overtime periods (not including shootouts), it shows every time they are forced into one of the most exciting parts of the modern NHL.
It's a little late to start practicing 3-on-3, but their lack of preparation can be seen in their record. The Penguins have lost 12 games in overtime or a shootout. Flipping even just one of those losses into a win would have them in a playoff spot right now.
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