What should each of the Penguins - including the head coach Mike Sullivan and GM Kyle Dubas - resolve to strive for in 2025? The Pittsburgh Penguins [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/pittsburgh-penguins/] went into Detroit on New Year's Eve on Tuesday hoping to ride the momentum of a good win against the New York Islanders on Sunday [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/pittsburgh-penguins/latest-news/penguins-survive-late-surge-from-islanders-on-historic-night-from-crosby]. Unfortunately, they fell just a bit short. The Penguins fell to the Red Wings, 4-2, in a back-and-forth affair that, ultimately, did not swing their way. Both teams had 25 shots on goal, and it ended up being a special teams battle that Detroit won. They scored two power play goals against the Penguins' stingy penalty kill - which was ranked seventh in the league heading into the game - and the Penguins scored one in the third period. The biggest bright spot in this one? Forward Drew O'Connor snapped his goal-scoring drought with not one, but two goals. He scored the only two tallies for the Penguins. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Here are some thoughts and observations from tonight's loss: - Nobody on this team needed a goal more than O'Connor. This was his first goal in 33 games. The drought was approaching healthy scratch territory for O'Connor, and he had played a bit better against the Islanders on Sunday. The third line of O'Connor, Cody Glass, and Philip Tomasino had been generating chances in both games, and that continued into the Detroit game. Glass made a nice play around the offensive blue line to keep the play alive, and he set up O'Connor for a one-timer Dylan Lyons's left: - O'Connor still has a long way to go to earn elevated minutes and get back to where he was last season. But Tuesday night was a start. - The second line, as a whole, generated a good amount of chances. Anthony Beauvillier had a few prime scoring chances, Evgeni Malkin just missed on a few occasions, and Michael Bunting was helping to generate some chances as well. I like what I've seen from this trio the past two games, and I think they should stick together a bit longer. - What a frustrating night it was for Bryan Rust. He had two wide-open wraparound opportunities that he rarely misses, and he hit the post on both occasions. He had several good looks in the offensive zone that went unfinished. The first line didn't have its best night defensively, but Rust generated a good number of chances for them. But perhaps the most frustrating were two uncalled penalties that should've benefitted Rust and the Penguins. The first was during a Penguins' power play late in the second period. Rust was handling the puck near the corner, and Moritz Seider slashed Rust's stick, breaking his own. Initially, the officials called a penalty on Rust, but after some discussion, they negated the penalty on Rust. The issue is that it was still a slash. That slash happened at the beginning of the Penguins' power play, and they would have had a five-on-three for nearly two minutes, and they were down, 2-1, at the time. The second came in the third period after O'Connor's second goal had tied the game. The Penguins were on the penalty kill, and Rust beat Seider to a loose puck in Detroit's zone for what was shaping up to be a shorthanded breakaway opportunity. Seider took down Rust with no call, and Detroit scored on that same power play to go ahead for good. It felt like one of those games where Rust could've had a hat trick. He was very animated after those non-calls. - Speaking of non-calls, Tuesday was a horrid display of officiating. I can recall five different missed calls of consequence that didn't go the Penguins' way: - The slash by Seider on Rust - The cross-check by Ben Chiarot on Malkin near the end of the second when Malkin's neck was smashed into the goal post - The missed call on Seider on Rust's shorthanded breakaway - A missed trip on Malkin by Seider during a cycling play by the Penguins shortly after Detroit went ahead, 3-2 - A missed hook on Rakell in the slot during a prime scoring opportunity after Detroit's third goal. I don't gripe about officiating very often. It was definitely consequential on Tuesday. - Alex Nedeljkovic was very good in this game. He didn't let in a great goal in the second period, but he made several ten-bell saves to keep the Penguins in it, including this blocker save near the end of the second: That's three consecutive good starts for Ned. I wouldn't be surprised to see his name pop up in trade rumors relatively soon. - The first game back for Pettersson was a mixed bag. He got beat on Jonatan Berggren's breakaway goal in the first period. He made a few nice defensive plays later on in the game. And his reads were a little slow on the others. Not a terrible first game back, but not a great one, either. - Matt Nieto overcommitted on the PK during Detroit's second goal, giving Patrick Kane a wide-open look on Nedeljkovic, which he buried. It wasn't exactly the best goal for Nedeljkovic to let in, but Nieto shouldn't have abandoned the left side of the ice there. There has been a lot of discourse about Nieto and whether or not he should be in the lineup, and I do think he's, generally, been good on the penalty kill. But that's a read that can't happen. I don't think it would hurt to give Kevin Hayes a shot to reclaim a lineup spot next game. - The New Year is upon us, and the Penguins have had some mixed results in the calendar year of 2024. They had a horrid stretch to start the year, and then they went on a run at the end of the 2023-24 season to nearly squeak into the postseason. They had another horrid stretch to start the 2024-25 season, but they closed out the year strong. If 2024 is indicative of anything, it's that this Penguin team - in and of itself - is a wild card. Yes, they're fighting for a wild card berth, but perhaps that's fitting for a team that is so wildly inconsistent and all-over-the-place. For 2025? It'd be nice to see this team go more clearly in one direction or the other. We'll just have to see what GM and POHO Kyle Dubas has up his sleeve. Happy New Year, Pens fans. Enjoy your holiday safe and responsibly. Image [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjEwNjYwNDIwMDI3OTUwOTI5/thnpitbanner.png]
