Forming the oldest team in the National Hockey League (NHL), the Pittsburgh Penguins have adopted a new approach in recent games in order to reduce the chances of scoring against them, even if it means sacrificing a little offense.
If the strategy was not followed to the letter against the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday, with the two teams exchanging opportunities to score, they still blanked their opponents twice in their last three outings.
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“We are no longer 25 years old,” said Quebecer Kristopher Letang to the Pittsburgh Hockey Now site. Sometimes you realize that when a team wants to score against you and they’re moving forward a lot, playing well defensively can actually create more quality chances for you offensively.”
In addition to missing the playoffs last season, a very poor start to the season made the club and the 36-year-old guard realize the importance of adopting a less risky style of play. With an average age of 30, the highest in the NHL according to the site eliteprospects.com, this is another reason to be cautious.
“Even though we have a ton of skill and can create a lot of offense without anything happening on the ice, forcing the other team to make mistakes will give us a better chance,” Letang added.
The one who grew up in Sainte-Julie has collected one goal and seven points in 13 games since the start of the campaign.
The Penguins are riding a four-game winning streak in which they have found the back of the net 20 times and surrendered only five times.
Not just defensive
Better defensive play, however, does not mean the team will wait for the opponent in its zone, which would be a bad sign, according to star forward Sidney Crosby.
The captain speaks instead of greater responsibility in the game of the “Pens”.
“We don’t want to sacrifice defense to try a play that isn’t there,” said the center player. Our ability to put pressure on the puck allows us to create offense. So we will continue to do that, without trying to force the game unnecessarily.”
Pittsburgh will visit Nationwide Arena to face the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday evening.