PITTSBURGH – With the 2023-24 season seeming like a lost cause for the Pittsburgh Penguins, the final 17 games will be uncharted waters for their veteran core. For almost every year they’ve been in the league, Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang have battled with their Penguins’ teammates in the postseason.
This time around, and for the second season in a row, the Penguins are on a road to miss the playoffs. A particular group is still holding onto hope, but the odds continue to slip with each passing game.
For the Penguins’ core specifically, it appears as if they are phoning in the rest of the year. Adding Erik Karlsson to the list, all four of the Penguins' biggest names have failed to contribute anything on the score sheet in recent weeks.
Crosby saw his MVP talk diminish with a recent stretch of just two assists in his last eight games. He’s a minus-12 rating in that time and if he can’t find a rhythm, there’s a real chance he finishes below a point-per-game for the first time in his career.
It’s believable that the Penguins’ core has given up on the season, but Crosby at least showed signs of life in their overtime loss to the Ottawa Senators.
The Penguins are 1-6-1 in their last eight, and that one win can be credited, thanks to Malkin. In a 5-3 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets, Malkin picked up a goals and an assist. Outside of that one game, Malkin only has a goal and an assist in the Penguins’ recent skid.
Malkin’s struggles go far beyond this stretch, however, as he has only three goals and 13 assists in his last 24 games.
Defensemen are tougher to track when it comes to scoring, but both Letang and Karlsson are known for their scoring ability. That skill has seemingly faded for both of them as they combine for a goal and assist in the last eight games.
Letang’s efforts have been noticeably hideous, with multiple turnovers in recent games leading directly to game-winning goals against.
The Penguins don’t have the depth to carry the team on their backs with the core playing like this. Without these specific names doing most of the heavy lifting, the Penguins are sinking quickly.
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