Evgeni Malkin is confident that the Pittsburgh Penguins will pick up steam as the season rolls on. The NHL has reached the quarter mark of the 2023-24 season and the Pittsburgh Penguins find themselves as a truthfully neutral team. With 10 wins and 10 losses, the Penguins enter the second quarter of the season with a .500 winning percentage and are still a few places back of a playoff spot. The common consensus around the room is that there have been some good things, but still plenty of room to grow as the season treks forward. Entering the year, the Penguins had numerous new faces in the lineup forcing a substantial learning curve and acclimation period for a few certain players is still lingering around. Ryan Graves is one of the new faces with the Penguins who is certainly still finding his footing with the team, especially as a first line defender. “Obviously, we didn’t want to have a period of adjustment, but I think there has been,” Graves said. “There’s a lot of different pieces in this lineup. When you put new guys in, it takes guys time to adjust.” That learning curve from the new faces lasted a bit longer than some would have hoped, but it’s clear that the key newbies are fully engrained. Erik Karlsson has fully stepped in as a force of offense on the Penguins blue line, putthing that early adjustment firmly in the rearview. In 20 games, Karlsson leads defensive scoring with six goals and 12 assists for 18 total points. Even fourth line center Noel Acciari has found a good groove in his role as a defensive forward who isn’t afraid to utilize his physicality. Through 20 games, Acciari leads the Penguins in hits and has scored a couple of times in the last three games in huge moments. “We’ve had really good games, we’ve had games that we’ve let slip away,” Acciari said. “The team’s all bought in. With a 10-10 record… we know what makes us win.” Acciari says he feels fully acclimated at this point and everyone should know the system and what’s expected, it’s up to the players to put it all together. The power play has been the biggest low point for the Penguins, so far, and everyone realizes that. “We need better power play for sure, we know that,” Evgeni Malkin said. “I hope next 62 games we play more luck, more better.” Malkin is confident in this group from the players to the coaches, he firmly believes the Penguins can get back to where they want to be. Head coach Mike Sullivan [https://www.nhl.com/penguins/video/off-day-sullivan-11-27-23-6341853548112] is among those that sees the great things the Penguins have done so far in putting together consistently strong efforts every game. “When you look at some of the underlying numbers on our team, compared to the actuals, I think our offense has done a lot of good things,” Sullivan said. “I’d like to believe moving forward we can get more results.” As for a struggling power play Sullivan is hopeful things can rebound quite quickly. “The special teams on both sides, there’s opportunity to grow,” Sullivan said. “Obviously, our power play is something we hope we can get going in the right direction. The power play is going to win some games for us.” The Penguins have had the true definition of a middling start to the year, a clean 10-10-0 through 20 games. It’s not anywhere near where fans, players, or coaches would like to see the team, but the Metropolitan Division is tight that they could hit second place in just a few days if things go right. The time for early-season excuses and growing pains is well in the past, but there is still plenty of hockey left for the Penguins to play. Make sure you bookmark Inside the Penguins [http://insidethepenguins.com/]for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns and so much more. Penguins Place New Defenseman on Waivers [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/pittsburgh-penguins/latest-news/pittsburgh-penguins-place-will-butcher-waivers] Penguins Focus On Themselves in Tight Metro Race [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/pittsburgh-penguins/latest-news/pittsburgh-penguins-focused-tight-metropolitan-race] Bryan Rust Available for Return to Penguins Lineup [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/pittsburgh-penguins/latest-news/bryan-rust-available-return-pittsburgh-penguins-lineup] Young Winger Deserves Extended Look on Penguins Top Line [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/pittsburgh-penguins/podcasts/young-winger-deserves-look-pittsburgh-penguins-top-line] Penguins Release Defenseman From AHL PTO [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/pittsburgh-penguins/latest-news/pittsburgh-penguins-release-mark-pysyk-ahl-pto] * undefined * undefined
