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Matt Vensel's Penguins chat: 5.9.22
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Matt Vensel
10:57
Good morning, Penguins fans. Looking forward to talking hockey with you again this afternoon. I'll start answering questions around 1 p.m. But feel free to submit your questions at any time. Talk soon!
12:58
And the puck drops on this chat now. Fire away, everyone.
Pen fan
12:59
Why do you think that wingers have so much trouble fitting in with Malkin. His roaming style and lack of structure or lack of defense outside of stick checks making them more defensive minded?
Matt Vensel
1:02
I don't know that I totally agree with this premise. James Neal was a 40-goal scorer on his wing. Phil Kessel and Malkin were a nice tandem for a few years. Jake Guentzel and Bryan Rust didn't suffer much of a decline when playing with him. As for this year, sure, they've been cycling guys through. But how good at those options? Kapanen is who he is (and has looked much better in this playoff series, BTW). Zucker hasn't clicked with anyone. Heinen and Rodrigues are useful players but hardly true top-sixers. Rackell did some good things with him but they haven't really gotten a chance to settle in together.
Cautious optimism?
1:03
Why is the second PP so much more effective at scoring than the 1st? It seems to me that it is because the 2nd PP gets more shots on net.
Matt Vensel
1:06
I wouldn't overreact to one game and draw that conclusion, especially considering that the two goals they got in Game 3 were on the fluky side. The second unit doesn't get a ton of time, but it did next to nothing in the second half of the season. Anyway, to your point, the top unit definitely is struggling. And maybe it would benefit from taking more of a shoot-first mentality, with somebody crowding Igor Shesterkin in front.
Pensfan87
1:06
Hi Matt. Thanks for doing this. Do you have any idea what's going on with Dumo, besides a lower-body injury, and when he may return? Also, do you expect Rakell back for game 5? Thx and go Pens!
Matt Vensel
1:08
We don't know much about the nature of his injury, beyond it being lower-body. What we do know is that he got banged up in Game 1, and in the hours leading up to Game 2 it was truly a question about whether Dumoulin would play. Since then, that has been throttled down, obviously. He hasn't been on the ice at all, not even this morning. So it looks like he's out again tonight.
arnold slick
1:10
who do you think is the 5th best Penguin of all time?
Matt Vensel
1:12
Based on longevity and accomplishments in a Penguins uniform, it would have to be Kris Letang or Marc-Andre Fleury, correct? So many Hall-of-Famers have suited up for this team over the years but none have had that kind of staying power. What do you guys think?
Guest
1:12
Is it too late to convince Letang to play like he did the first half of the season?    His risk taking tolerance turns an awesome player into maybe a slightly above average player.  
And please beg him to stop won’t the no look backhand flip passes (nothing that he turns the puck over in many ways).
Matt Vensel
1:16
Letang had some ups and downs in Games 2 and 3 without Dumoulin in the lineup. I'm not going to argue there. But he is such a Rorschach test. Everyone made their mind up about him one way or another years ago and now looks for examples to confirm their existing opinion. I'm on the side that sees all the good he does, eating up tough minutes and erasing would-be chances with his effortless skating. Yeah, he can be a rollercoaster sometimes. But he's still a top-10 defenseman in the NHL if he keeps his emotions in check.
Kordell
1:17
Thanks for the chat MV!!!  The amount of uncovered players in prime scoring position has to be of great concern.  Do the Pens have a 5x5 defensive coach?  Bodying up players near the net  shouldn't be that complicated.
Matt Vensel
1:23
Kordell, the data backs up what you're seeing, that the Pens are allowing a good amount of looks from the slot. The numbers we get from Sportlogiq show that they have gone up from the regular season. It's simplistic to just point to putting a body on guys in front. That's part of it, sure, most notably in cycle situations. But preventing those good looks comes down to all the decisions and plays made from goal line to goal line. There were too many lapses in Games 2 and 3 in particular.
Guest
1:24
Rackell still on the shelf tonight? How do you see the 4 lines tonight?
Matt Vensel
1:25
Rakell is officially out. And it looks like the Pens will roll out the same forward lines as Game 3. I do wonder if we see Nathan Beaulieu get in on the third pair tonight. He was rotating in there during the morning skate.
Kordell
1:26
Top 5 Pens with the caveat that they played most of their career with the Pens (leaving out Trottier, Francis, etc..):    Mario, Sid, Jagr, Jean Pronvost, Letang
Matt Vensel
1:26
Here is one man's list. Showing my age by not considering Pronovost. I was 9 when they won their first Cup.
Sam
1:27
I don't think it's insulting to Domingue to say the Pens are going to need to continue to score a minimum for 4 goals to win any given game.  To do that, they're going to need Malkin to play better and the secondary scoring they got on Saturday to continue.  What do you think the odds are that they get it?
Matt Vensel
1:29
Sam, Louis is a great story. Love his attitude and perspective on being thrust into the spotlight. And he cracks us up at least twice a press conference. That said, he very much has looked like a fringe NHLer the last two games. The Penguins were fortunate that Shesterkin was so shaky in Game 3. But I will give Domingue credit for getting it done in the third period of that game. His big save on Artemi Panarin happened right before Heinen scored the winner. Sharp on those PPs, too.
Guest
1:29
I think the weakness is Domingue’s glove hand as the Rangers are peppering that side with high shots. Can the Pens win the series without Jarry making an appearance?
Matt Vensel
1:33
This is a good observation. To add to it, he has been off his angle on a few goals. And for a guy who is so big at 6-foot-3 and 200-plus pounds, he doesn't always play that way. He should be filling more of the net on goals like the one that Panarin got in Game 3. That said, he has the Pens in position to take a 3-1 lead tonight. So, sure, they can win the series without Jarry, who faced his first shots today. It might not be easy but definitely can be done.
GPT
1:37
Mario, Jagr, Sid, Geno, Letang (though it's tough to leave off the likes of Francis and Coffey, even if they were short stints.

If WBS gets eliminated, would they bring up Napier or prefer D'Orio since he's been around the team and practiced with them for a bit?
Matt Vensel
1:40
They would need to get Tommy Nappier, who has been a nice surprise for WBS, on an NHL contract. That factored into D'Orio getting the nod. With Wilkes-Barre not far from NYC or Pittsburgh, they might hold off on doing that unless he is absolutely needed. We'll see. WBS has a winner-take-all game with Hershey tonight.
Guest
1:41
I thought Zucker was one of their best players in game 3, even if it didn't translate to the score sheet.  Any chance he starts getting PP 1 ice time?  If nothing else, to shake it up a bit given the recent struggles.
Matt Vensel
1:42
I don't see that happening. The two people on the second unit who would make the most sense are Evan Rodrigues or Jeff Carter, the latter of whom could sit in Shesterkin's lap some more. But based on the morning skate, the top power play will remain intact to start tonight's game.
LN
1:42
58/5 not the optimal pair with Dumo out, but what other option do they have to put with Letang ?
Matt Vensel
1:43
I wrote about this topic yesterday. But no one else really makes sense. So Matheson it is. I got into my rationale in that piece. Give it a read: https://www.post-gazette.com/sports/penguins/2022/05/08/pittsburgh-pen...
Guest
1:44
are we gonna win this thing or what????
Matt Vensel
1:46
If I was good at making predictions, I would be a sports bettor, not a sports writer. But I expect a bounce-back from the Rangers, specifically Shesterkin. He looked very relaxed at the morning skate. We'll see where his nerves are at tonight at 7. If he holds the Penguins to three goals or fewer, the Rangers will likely win Game 4.
Matt Vensel
1:48
Sorry, folks, I've got to bring out the virtual Zamboni and bring this chat to an end. Apologies if I didn't get to you. I'll be chatting again Wednesday at 1 p.m. Talk to you then and enjoy Game 4.
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