Hometown Sports: A Historic Yet Incredibly Average Season From the Pittsburgh Penguins

I grew up in what might be considered the golden age of Pittsburgh hockey. During the iconic run of trio Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang, now in their 19th season together — the most of any trio in the history of North American sports. 

In the same two-decade time frame, the Pittsburgh Penguins won Stanley Cup titles in 2009, 2016 and 2017. 

Despite said success, I hadn’t cared to attend a single hockey game until last December, when the Penguins played the Minnesota Wild. I was in the upper bowl of PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh and could barely follow the game below me, but it was the game where I learned to like hockey.

In the 2023-2024 NHL season, the Penguins recorded 38 wins, 32 losses and 12 overtime losses. This season, the Penguins went 4-1 in the preseason and are currently 3-4-1 after their game against the Calgary Flames Oct. 22. The preseason play was strong, the team looked solid and fans were hopeful.

The Penguins opened their season at home against the New York Rangers Oct. 9. They lost 6-0, and went 0-3 on power plays. Alex Nedeljkovic, the Penguins’ starting goalie, was out with a lower body injury. 

When my mom called me the same night, I could hear my dad complaining about the game in the background. 

“They keep skating into each other,” he said. “It’s like they’ve never played hockey before.”

To say the least, it was a disappointing opening. 

A day later in Detroit, the Penguins beat the Red Wings by three goals. Malkin got his 800th assist, making him the 34th NHL player to hit the milestone, and the only Russian. Joel Blomqvist, a 22-year-old rookie goalkeeper, made his NHL debut with 29 saves in the net.

After the defeat of the Red Wings, Penguins fans were hoping for a better season than the last,  until they faced the Toronto Maple Leafs Oct. 12, where the Penguins lost 4-2.

Blomqvist was back in the net, following his fantastic debut with another impressive night.  It was a very competitive game, but when it came down to puck luck, the Penguins had none.

The Penguins beat the Montreal Canadiens 6-3 Oct. 14 with Jarry back in the net and Lars Eller’s first goal of the season. They lost to the Carolina Hurricanes 4-1 Oct. 18 and the Winnipeg Jets 6-3 Oct. 20.

At their home game against the Buffalo Sabres Oct. 16, the Penguins won 6-5 in overtime, with the winning goal shot by Crosby. Malkin made his 500th goal off an assist from Crosby, making him the 48th player in NHL history to do so.

Crosby hit the 1,600 point mark in 1,277 games, which makes him the fifth fastest player to reach this achievement. Poor play from Jarry kept the game tight, until he was replaced by Blomqvist.

Blomqvist is new blood — and new hope — for the Penguins. While the defense plays the same in front of both goalies, Blomqvist shows more consistency than Jarry. Pittsburgh’s defense lets up too many odd-man rushes, and while Jarry can barely save a single shot, Blomqvist stops almost all of them. 

His save percentage is .913, and his goals-against average is 2.86. He’s ranked 13th out of 37 eligible NHL goalies. With such a young rockstar goalie between the posts, the Penguins have a chance this season, and hopefully for many seasons to come. 

Talented young faces also wait in the wings for their chance at the league, as the Penguins’ minor league team, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, has several talented players. 

Young centers Vasily Ponomarev and Vaille Koivunen were both acquired during a trade deal with the Carolina Hurricanes for Jake Gentzel last season. Despite Ponomarev currently out with an injury, the two have shown significant progress with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and show great promise for the Penguins’ future.

Could this be another one of the most historic seasons for Pittsburgh? Defenseman Erik Karlsson is 10 goals away from 200 career total, which is feasible, considering his 11-goal season last year. Malkin is fourth in the league this season in points — 11 in seven games whileCrosby has the most overall points for any active player in the league.

I just hope the Penguins can follow through with the new era they clearly hope to usher in.