Penguins Must Move On from Tristan Jarry
Tristan Jarry has received plenty of chances and has shown he simply is not the goaltender of the future for the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Pittsburgh Penguins dropped a pivotal game against one of the worst teams in the league, the Chicago Blackhawks, and are all but eliminated from playoff contention. The Penguins have been a mediocre team all season, and have done very little to convince the anyone that they should be in the postseason.
There was hope over the last few games however, as they desperately tried to scrape into a playoff position. That hope was squandered with the loss to Chicago, and while they're is still a slight chance this team can squeak into the postseason, something else has been cemented shut: the hope that Tristan Jarry is the Penguins' top goalie.
Jarry is a competent goaltender, and at times he flashes brilliance in net. He deserves all the credit in the world for the determination and passion he displayed coming back for Game 7 of the Penguins' first round series against the New York Rangers last year. Playing through a serious foot injury, he kept the Penguins in the game and gave them a chance to win.
The 27-year-old already has amassed 117 wins since emerging in the NHL in 2017-18. There's no doubting the skill he possesses. What is increasingly apparent, despite his skill, is that Jarry doesn't have the "it" factor the Penguins required. When the chips are down, does anyone fully believe that Jarry can bail them out? Marc-Andre Fleury had it. Matt Murray, even with all of his failures, had it for a time. Jarry unfortunately, does not.
The Penguins needed their number one goaltender against the Blackhawks. They needed a guy who has the poise, confidence, and trust from his teammates to make the big saves when they needed it. The opportunity to step up came just five minutes after Evgeni Malkin tied the score at one apiece.
After the Blackhawks maintained possession after a dump-in, Hawks' forward Buddy Robinson found himself open in between the face-off dots and the puck bouncing to his stick. Robinson let a very savable shot go and it beat Jarry's low-hanging glove hand. The Penguins needed a save in that moment, and Jarry didn't deliver.
"It's disappointing," Jarry said. "We had a chance to control our own fate and now it's kind of up to other teams playing."
It is extremely disappointing. The Penguins are staring at the end of the longest postseason streak in North American sports. The team has no depth behind their aging core, and their goaltenders are both 1B type goalies at best. Jarry had a chance to propel this team to a 17th straight playoff appearance, earn himself a contract extension, and prove he is the guy in Pittsburgh. He failed against the Blackhawks, and proved the guy the Penguins need in net, is not on the NHL roster.
Make sure you bookmark Inside the Penguins for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns and so much more!
- Subscribe to Inside the Penguins on YouTube
- Follow Inside the Penguins on Twitter: @InsidePenguins