Penguins Finally Return to Earth in Loss to Flyers

The Pittsburgh Penguins were perturbed following their 3-1 defeat to the cross-state Philadelphia Flyers Sunday afternoon, and they had legitimate reasons for refusing to take the loss in stride.

First, the regulation setback was the Penguins' first in exactly a month. Their previous 60-minute disappointment was February 22, 5-2 in Washington.

Second, the Pens and Flyers were tied for fourth in the Eastern Conference standings with 86 points apiece entering Sunday's action. Since Philadelphia had played three fewer games than Pittsburgh, if the Pens entertained serious thoughts of overcoming their fellow Keystoners for home ice in the first round of the playoffs, they had to grab at least a point and probably two.

Third, they just lost to Philly. The rivalry between two of the NHL's six original expansion teams is as vibrant as ever in its 41st season.

Heck, maybe even the fact that it was the team's third consecutive lackluster result on the Peacock Network was enough to boil their blood a little more than usual. The aforementioned matinee loss to the Capitals was preceded by a 3-0 home blanking at the hands of the Detroit Red Wings.

But despite the possible multitude of reasons for the players' disgust, the end of a 10-0-2 streak that was as improbable as it was impressive is surely no reason for Penguins supporters to line up on the nearest bridge.

From the macro perspective, it's useful to remember that gaining 27 points in Dan Bylsma's first 17 games behind the bench has perched the Penguins on firm playoff footing.

Now that the Buffalo Sabres have faded to five points behind eighth-place Montreal, only the Florida Panthers and their 80 points pose a threat to unseat one of the East's top eight.

If the Cats are able to end their lengthy postseason drought, it will likely be at the expense of Montreal, a team in a panic-worthy downward vortex, instead of the seventh-place New York Rangers (84 points), the No. 6 Carolina Hurricanes (85) or the Penguins.

Zeroing in on Sunday's game, the Penguins certainly didn't do anything to indicate they are due for a swoon. Along with outshooting the Flyers 28-20 and getting their fair share of even-strength scoring chances, the Pens won an even 50 percent of faceoffs, and delivered exactly half the hits in the contest, according to the Mellon Arena off-ice officials.

Those are numbers that suggest the Pens deserved better, but the Flyers dictated terms during special teams play, which turned out to be the deciding factor in a game featuring 11 power plays, seven of which favored Philadelphia.

That the Flyers emerged on top in a game laden with minor penalties should not be surprising. They rank sixth in both power play and penalty kill efficiency. In Sunday's game, Philly won the special teams battle 2-1 as they scored twice in seven chances with the extra man while limiting Pittsburgh to one PP goal midway through the third period.

Perhaps the Penguins should be relieved the special teams game wasn't even more lopsided, considering the Flyers lead the NHL with 16 shorthanded tallies. It's an intimidating total for opposing power plays, for sure, but arguably not as impressive as their zero (that's not a typo) shorthanded goals allowed on the season. A clean sheet that, if maintained, would be only the second of its kind in the history of the league.

(To satisfy your curiosity, the 1975-76 Canadiens are the only team to finish a season without surrendering a single shorty.)

For likely playoff teams at this stage of the year, though, a loss isn't a total loss if a team can ingrain a key lesson to be applied in the "second season." With the Pens and Flyers aligned for another postseason collision if they continue to play winning hockey, a matchup like Sunday's can serve as a exploratory mission instead of the usual impassioned tussle.

Providing there is another Battle of Pennsylvania this spring, it's certain the Penguins will do their best to stay out of the penalty box, thus making a potential playoff series a predominantly even-strength affair.

As for the business at hand, the Pens' schedule slows down over the next two weeks, featuring only four games following an extended stretch of 18 in 36 days. The sudden abundance of downtime and practice could serve to rejuvenate the club, provided the coaches and players don't get too antsy watching their conference brethren catch up to them, both in terms of points and games played.

Upon further review, maybe the disgust roused by falling to a division rival will fill some of the Penguins' upcoming free time quite nicely.

Whether it idly festers or actively inspires is up to them.