The Penguins entering 2021 believed they could coax at least another productive season out of Kris Letang. But a slow start for the 33-year-old blue-liner had some folks around Pittsburgh wondering if he was doing more harm than good.
Letang didn’t light the lamp in his first 14 games of the season. But now the goals are coming in bunches. He scored two, including the winner, in Saturday’s 4-3 overtime win over the Islanders. He had two more against them on Feb. 20.
Add it all up and Letang had four goals in 18 games entering Saturday’s rematch, which is probably about the pace you’d expect the perennial All-Star to be on.
“Sometimes, for defensemen, that’s the way it is,” he said. “You keep shooting and at some point you get rewarded. But I don’t think [anything] really changed either on the power play or 5-on-5. I just try to get open. I know we have tons of forwards that can create offensively and give us the puck in good situations.”
That’s what happened Saturday. As Kasperi Kapanen lugged the puck behind the net, Letang charged in from the right point and found a soft spot in the defensive coverage. Kapanen slid him a nice pass and Letang ripped a one-timer past Semyon Varlamov. The shot itself was similar to Letang’s Cup-clincher in 2016.
Then, late in overtime, Letang and the Penguins entered the Islanders zone with no numbers advantage. Instead of trying to force a pass to a teammate, Letang fired a shot through a screen that hit a stick and dropped in behind Varlamov. That won’t make it onto his highlight reel. But it got the Penguins two big points.
On Sunday, coach Mike Sullivan said that assistant Todd Reirden and he talked recently to Letang about making sure he just takes what opponents give him.
“Tanger’s obviously a real important player for us,” Sullivan said. “He has good offensive instincts and when he’s at his best, he’s doing exactly that. He’s taking what the game gives him. When he’s joining the rush, he’s active off the offensive blue line, those are ways that he can really help us generate offense.”
Sullivan added: “Having some calculation to his game is really important.”
Believe it or not, Letang’s giveaway rate is down significantly compared to last season and he’s still one of the NHL’s most productive blue-liners. Entering Sunday, he ranked 12th in points and only seven defensemen had more goals.
Lafferty moves to the middle
Mark Jankowski is out “day to day” with an upper-body injury presumably suffered when Washington Capitals winger Tom Wilson hit him illegally in Thursday’s loss. And Evan Rodrigues is still working his way back from a lower-body injury that has sidelined him since Jan. 24. So the Penguins were short a center this weekend.
In both games, they turned to Sam Lafferty. He played center in college and in the American Hockey League. Last season, his rookie year, Lafferty lined up at center at times, too. And there have been moments this season when the Penguins have called upon the righty to take important faceoffs in their defensive end.
Sullivan said that even though the team believes Lafferty is more effective on the wing, his ability to play both positions has helped him earn a spot here.
“We like the speed and the physicality that he brings when he plays on the wing,” he said, adding that “just the versatility and having the ability to play both, depending of what the needs of the team are at the time, I think is important aspect of Sam’s game, as well, because those types of players are valuable to teams.”
Angello makes an impact
Anthony Angello made his season debut Saturday and made his large presence immediately felt by leading the Penguins in hits and getting an opportunity on the second power-play unit, parking his 6-foot-5 frame near the blue paint.
His five hits were more than he had in any of his eight games in 2019-20. Despite being one of the team’s biggest players, he had just 13 hits his first season.
Heading into the offseason, Sullivan and the Penguins told Angello they believed he could make an impact if he played with physicality and responsibility.
“Anthony’s just got to continue to develop his game,” Sullivan said Sunday. “He’s a big, strong kid who skates well for his size. He brings an element of physicality to the game and he can be reliable defensively. That’s the role that he would play for our team. I think Anthony has a clear understanding of that.”
Speaking of big bodies
The Penguins got a pair of power plays in the first period of Saturday’s win over the Islanders but did nothing with them. Moments later, with Cody Ceci in the penalty box, Brock Nelson redirected a slap pass behind Tristan Jarry for a goal.
Seeing an opponent score another power-play goal with a big body parked in front of the net, one couldn’t help but think about Patric Hornqvist and how the Penguins have missed that element on their power play at times this season. The net-front presence now, often Jake Guentzel, is more about skill than screens.
“When Horny was here, he obviously loved to be in front of the net,” Bryan Rust said. “With the unit we have now, I think when guys find themselves there, they’re trying to take the goalie’s eyes away when it’s time and maybe pop off to the side of the net when there’s a play to be made, like a little [play down low].”
Hornqvist, in case you are wondering, produced five goals and eight points on the power play through his first 20 games with the Florida Panthers. Entering Sunday’s games, the Panthers had the league’s 10th-ranked power play at 26.3%.
Matt Vensel: mvensel@post-gazette.com and Twitter @mattvensel.
First Published: February 28, 2021, 6:12 p.m.
