Penguins Head West for Pivotal Road Trip

If there ever was a time for the Pittsburgh Penguins to turn it around, it's now.

The Pittsburgh Penguins begin their first true road trip of the 2023-24 season this weekend. They spent most of the first month this season on home ice, playing six of their first nine games at PPG Paints Arena.

The timing may prove to be important for this Penguins team, who is in desperate need of a shift in momentum. Pittsburgh currently sits in last place in the Eastern Conference with a 3-6-0 record.

Fortunately for them, they kick things off with a trip to San Jose to face the 0-8-1 Sharks. Erik Karlsson returns after spending his previous five seasons with the Sharks organization and is sure to have a little extra energy against his former team.

Under Mike Sullivan the Penguins have seen mixed results on their yearly trip to California with an overall record of 8-9-1. However, their trips to The Golden State have been more fruitful over the past two seasons, winning four of their six games.

The one team that continues to give them trouble is the Los Angeles Kings, whom they haven't beaten on the road since January of 2018. That's how they'll conclude their trip after a rematch with the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday.

It's still early, but the Penguins need to shift the momentum of their season and this road trip provides the perfect opportunity. Success will bring them back towards even ground, but even a 1-2 road trip would leave them at 4-8 with tough stretch of matchups awaiting them on the East coast.

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