Pittsburgh Penguins Need "Energy" Through Next Thirty Games

It was a spirited and competitive practice session at the Pittsburgh Penguins’ training facility today.

The team showed energy in the first half-hour, with coach Michel Therrien putting his players through various odd-man rush, 2-on-2, and shooting drills.

Perhaps the team is still stinging from the 6-3 loss to the hated Flyers on Saturday. Even if that sting has subsided, then they are definitely feeling the burn of multiple sprint drills with sticks and pucks in-hand to wrap up the session.

It has been an intense 11 days, with seven games in the stretch and four of those contests in fewer than six days. A 9-2 blasting of the hapless Islanders infused some energy, especially when veteran Petr Sykora and forward Pascal Dupuis each notched career-first hat tricks. 

However, the final month of the year has not been kind to the defending conference champs; just two wins in seven games in December, with only five points gained in the standings.

Just yesterday, the organization’s executive management announced that coal energy company Consol secured naming rights for the new arena. The Consol Energy Center will carry that banner for the next 21 years at an estimated $5 million annually. Penguins captain Sidney Crosby said the building name “has a nice ring to it”.

Why so many mentions of energy? Crosby finally made mention of a word closely associated with energy in the game of hockey—intensity. 

After the loss to cross-state rival Philadelphia, he said, “We didn’t match their intensity. You have to have that willingness to go out there and compete on every shift.  If you don’t match that, especially on the road, you’re going to be in trouble”.

Granted, Sid the Kid is definitely holding up his end of the offensive output, combining with fellow Penguin Evgeni Malkin for 93 points so far; good enough for first and second in the NHL and on-pace for a possible 300. There are definite shades of Lemieux and Jagr in the 1995-96 season tallying 310 points. 

But, as a second-year team captain with Stanley Cup Finals experience and an Art Ross Trophy, it may be time to do more than just lead by example.  

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