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Penguins Grades: Scrappers & Mistakes, How the Rookies & Depth Looked
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- Penguins Grades: Scrappers & Mistakes, How the Rookies & Depth Looked
Pittsburgh Penguins Game Loss 7-5 St. Louis Blues
After a few minutes of settling into a game with a lineup that would aspire to be makeshift, the Pittsburgh Penguins (41-24-16) built momentum then snapped three quick first-period goals for a 3-0 lead in their game of the 2025-26 regular season.
Penguins goalie Stuart Skinner made a couple of early saves, but the St. Louis Blues ’ (36-33-12) full lineup took advantage of the Penguins’ depleted lineup with most of their regulars who weren’t even in St. Louis. A 4-1 Penguins lead became a 4-4 tied game after 40 minutes. And then St. Louis put away the Penguins in the third period with a pair of goals 43 seconds apart early in the third period.
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St. Louis pulled away from the Penguins, who rested 10 regulars, 7-5 at the Enterprise Center.
Of course, Tuesday is not the end of the Penguins’ season. They will begin Round One of the Stanley Cup Playoffs this weekend against the Philadelphia Flyers . The Penguins have home ice advantage in the series.
Perhaps playing in his last Penguins game, 33-year-old center Kevin Hayes had a pair of primary assists in the first period. Midway through the first period, Hayes won an offensive zone faceoff, and before the puck settled, winger Rutger McGroarty pounced. McGroarty (3) whipped a shot past St. Louis goalie Jordan Binnington on the short side at 10:14.
Later in the first period, the Penguins had to kill Elmer Soderblom ’s interference minor, but they did more than kill two minutes. Winger Avery Hayes (4) attacked the point on St. Louis’s power play, stole the puck, and scored a shorthanded breakaway goal at 16:40 of the first period.
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Then, K. Hayes set up Anthony Mantha near the net 43 seconds later. Mantha (33) upped his career high with a quick snipe past Binnginton.
The Penguins gave one back late in the first period. Jimmy Snuggerud beat Penguins goalie Stuart Skinner from near the crease at 18:44 to cut the Penguins’ lead to 3-1.
Despite the Penguins scoring early in the second period to extend their lead to 4-1, the lead quickly evaporated in the second.
Penguins rookie Ben Kindel set up the fourth tally with a little chip across the blue line to Elmer Soderblom, who was at full speed. Soderblom created a breakaway by using his size to shield himself and the puck from defensemen and cut around Binnington to a nifty goal at 2:58 of the second.
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Then St. Louis scored a few times in the second period. Oskar Sundqvist , who was long ago a Penguins prospect, continued the St. Louis rush toward a bouncing puck in the slot. Good fortune gifted Sundqvist (5) an empty net when the Penguins, including Skinner, couldn’t find the loose puck at 4:51.
Loose Penguins defensive zone coverage by Joona Koppanen and Ryan Graves allowed St. Louis forward Dalibor Dvorsky to screen Skinner while defenseman Logan Mailoux (4) slipped a wrister through traffic at 10:37 to pull St. Louis to within 4-3.
And St. Louis tied the game later in the period with a power play goal when Skinner quickly moved laterally to make a save, but Jake Neighbors tapped the rebound across the crease for Snuggerud’s (21) second goal of the game. Penguins defensemen Ryan Shea and Connor Clifton could have stopped either pass or goal, but the Penguins had some lax moments, including that one, but St. Louis tied the game 4-4.
Penguins coach Dan Muse swapped goalies for the third period, putting Arturs Silovs into the game. After a sterling glove save, Silovs was then on the wrong end of a couple of Penguins breakdowns.
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Another Penguins defensive breakdown cost the Penguins dearly in the third. Forward Justin Brazeau double covered the puck in the corner. Rookie defenseman Jake Livanavage, who was making his NHL debut after signing as a free agent from North Dakota University last week, went in the wrong direction. He went toward the back wall for a puck that never came, which left St. Louis forward Dylan Holloway alone in the low slot.
Holloway easily beat Silovs at 4:11. The 43 seconds later, Penguins defensemen Ilya Solovyov and Ryan Graves lit the runway between them for Pavel Buchnevich to streak past them and beat Silovs at 4:55.
Muse immediately used his timeout and less than calmly explained that the Penguins’ play wasn’t good enough. To Muse’s and the team’s credit, the team responded immediately.
A. Hayes (5) scored his second goal of the game by following his own rebound and chipping it past Binnington 12:20, but Holloway (22) scored an empty netter at 18:17.
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And that was the end of the Penguins’ regular season. Skinner stopped 17 of 21 shots. Silovs got a piece of seven of nine. Binnington stopped 18 of 23.
Penguins Report Card
Team: B
Tuesday is the definition of grading on the curve. The team was scrappy and energetic in the first period, but sagged in the second. Perhaps the St. Louis roster–their full lineup–turned up the heat, and the Penguins were too unfamiliar with each other and too reliant on borderline NHL players.
The Penguins were silent for long stretches. They had too many passengers. But the Penguins also had some payers who gave a spirited effort.
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Stuart Skinner: B-
Skinner was not happy with the situations surrounding the third and fourth goals, but he could have done just a little better seeing through traffic on No. 3, and he needed to absorb or direct the rebound on No. 4. In fairness, the rebound on the fourth goal resulted from a spiffy save.
Arturs Silovs played the third period.
Dan Muse: A
He put together a pretty good lineup for a team that allowed more than half of its roster to nurse injuries. He also lit a fire beneath some seats in the third period.
It was an extraordinary first season for Muse. He pushed the right buttons. He got more out of players than anyone thought possible, and he deserves any accolades that come his way and a healthy dose of praise for the Penguins’ success.
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Jake Livanavage: Fast
It would be downright cruel to grade a defenseman playing his first NHL game when just last week he was playing for UND. Without NHL practices or much integration, Livanavage made his debut Tuesday. He’s fast. He went the wrong way a few times, got burned for a couple of goals, but he showed the physical tools, notably skating, that might make him an NHL defenseman at some point next season.
Justin Brazeau: B+
Through two periods, the Penguins line with Ville Koivunen , Tommy Novak , and Brazeau had the best shot and scoring chance ratios on the team (5-0 scoring chances). Brazeau was the big winger making things happen.
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Ilya Solovyov-Ryan Graves: D
It was a predictably rough night for them. Their gaps were far too big and the chances they gave up were loud.
Avery Hayes : A
Two goals and lots of hustle for the scrappy prospect. The disparity between his good games and the rest is too big–if he wants to be an NHL’er, he needs to play with that level of scrappiness more often. The goals are nice, but he is the definition of a player who needs to contribute when they’re not scoring.
NHL Scheduling: F
An 8:30 p.m. game in St. Louis, so it’s 9:30 back East? Why, just why? Yet another irritating and inconvenient game for media and fans.
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Ben Kindel: B
Kindel was sketchy in the first period but rallied for a good game, which means a lot heading into the playoffs. Kindel was in a slump in terms of production and the quality of his play, leading to being a scratch over the weekend. He found traction Tuesday, playing with the puck, distributing in the offensive zone, and not allowing big chances against.
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