Penguins Grades: Murashov Brilliant; Team Struggling for Answers

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Penguins Grades: Murashov Brilliant; Team Struggling for Answers

Penguins Grades: Murashov Brilliant; Team Struggling for Answers — IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Dan Kingerski · Pittsburgh Hockey Now

Sat, Oct 10, 2026 ·

7 min read

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COLUMBUS, Ohio —Nothing was working for the Pittsburgh Penguins , and even after they found a spark, sloppy mistakes plagued their game against the Columbus Blue Jackets.

The Penguins had far fewer turnovers Friday than they did in the Wednesday faceplant against the Washington Capitals, but that's akin to placing the bar on the ground, tripping over it and calling it an improvement. The Penguins' best players are not playing like it. Their depth players are out of sync. And the defense is both playing soft in their own zone and reacting to plays instead of making them, whilst gifting the puck to opponents far too often.

Yet somehow, in large part by a brilliant performance by rookie goalie Sergei Murashov , they avoided a blowout and salvaged a point in a 3-2 shootout loss to Columbus at Nationwide Arena.

Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?

Turnovers weren't the biggest problem Friday. No, not getting the puck or winning loose pucks trumped giving it away. The shot attempts were astoundingly lopsided through the first 40 minutes, with Columbus maintaining greater than a 4x multiple deep into the second period.

Indeed, the shot attempt share was 44-11 and soon after, 54-14. That's not bad, that's brutal, and the Penguins trailed 2-0.

Coach Dan Muse not only ripped his team's hustle, but again lamented the chaotic schematic play.

"There were too many loose pucks we weren't getting to. I thought the races [head shake]. And then, I thought when we were getting the puck, we just weren't … we were almost too spread out at times. Like we weren't in spots," said Muse. "We'd be able to work the puck up the ice together, and (Columbus) pressured hard. You know that coming in. You're not going to have a lot of time. But if you get isolated on an island by yourself, then it becomes difficult. And so, when we were getting pucks out of the zone, it's just (Columbus was) getting it a lot of times and coming right back at us."

Not even the reunification of the Penguins top line with Sidney Crosby , Bryan Rust and Rickard Rakell was able to spark the team. That line was Ohio pizza flat.

"They controlled the puck in the offensive zone. We weren't able to get it out quickly, and they extended shifts," said Crosby. "You're not going to be able to play offense if you're spending half the shift in your own end. So yeah, I just felt like we didn't actually come out of our zone. They got a good forecheck, and they hemmed us in."

However, the game changed on Rust's goal at 14:30 of the second period. For the second time in two games, Rust executed "The Rusty," coming off the wall along the goal line and around the goalie.

The goal gave the Penguins a spark, though their sloppiness didn't abate. Their mistakes remained loud. And ultimately, they should have been blown out.

Thank Murashov for this point. Columbus would rightfully call him a thief.

Penguins Report Card

Team: D

They got a point, and Murashov counts as part of the team. The number of good performances was few. The number of mistakes was extraordinarily big. The number of terrible performances was far too many.

"No (the point doesn't make us feel better). I mean, the guys battled back to get that point, but at the same time, I feel like we just left too much of that game on the table," said coach Dan Muse. "I didn't like just the number of things in terms of our connection, our races, for a majority of the first two periods. So, you can walk away, get the point, but you're disappointed in the overall game and what I know we're capable of."

Power Play: F-

The Penguins had two opportunities in the first period, which means two chances to scrub the sour taste from their last two games, two chances to find some momentum or get into the game. Like most things in the first 40 minutes, they punted it away with malice. The second of the two chances could generously be called a debacle. The power play did little with their zone time, bricked passes off shin pads, lived dangerously by giving up a couple of odd-man rushes, and totaled zero shots. The splat was not on any one person, but a collection of bewilderingly bad performances.

Sergei Murashov : Wow.

Exactly how many pluses after his A+ grade should we add? Murashov was mostly spectacular Friday, yet he was unwilling to accept praise. The shootout loss (1-0), burdened him, as did allowing a couple of goals.

His postgame scrum was a doozy, as always.

"These questions. To understand what happened, what was good for us, what I can do better. I mean, well, okay, I will take you on this journey real quickly. First of all, did I enjoy the game? Yes, I did. Did I compete and put 100% effort? Yes, I did. Did I fight for my teammates? Yes, I did. So, like these three questions already," Murashov said. "Yes, so you think, 'What can I do better?' I think just keep building, keep staying focused, just more consistency."

You can watch the media scrum below:

Van Riemsdyk-Letang: F

The pairing looks like a problem, and it's getting worse, not better. Soft defending. Turnovers. Penalties. Disorganized breakouts that too often don't get out of the zone. And otherwise behind the play instead of ahead of it. Letang's shot share was 28.5%, second worst on the team, but there weren't any good moments to offset the bad penalty and the turnovers (Columbus scorers were entirely generous for both teams, scoring the turnovers 17-13 in the Penguins' dubious favor).

Egor Chinakhov & Evgeni Malkin: B

In a brutal game, Malkin was one of the few players driving play for the Penguins. He was largely responsible for a greater scoring chance ratio (8-7) and an even number of high-danger chances (4-4). Malkin and Chinakhov are finding each other and creating zone entries.

Erik Karlsson: F

That's a few rough ones in a row for the Penguins' top defenseman. Friday, it seemed he was trying too hard at times. He was trying to use his individual talent to get himself and his team going, but the results worked against him. There were some nice moments, but more not-so-nice moments. Make no mistake, he knows it, and his play has been emblematic of the team at large.

Sidney Crosby: Struggle Bus

Crosby is in the midst of a slump. He's pressing, which is not a common sight. The Penguins top line has not done its usual job of tilting the ice, which lifts the rest of the team. It's not permanent, but it is a bit jarring.

Ville Koivunen: B-

Perhaps we're grading on the curve, but he was good enough. Koivunen was feisty in the first period, which caught the attention of some of the Penguins watching from above. However, he was also tabbed with a pair of dubious penalties, likely because of his agitating game. The refs sent the kid a message, as both of his tripping minors were questionable calls that involved tight defense without stick involvement.

He had a couple of good scoring chances. He's got to be a little quicker on the trigger, but in a sea of struggles, he held his ground. We call that a positive.

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