Penguins Fall to Canadiens in Second Straight Shutout

Muse acknowledged that when a team goes through a prolonged scoring drought like this, players can start pressing instead of playing their game. "You go through a stretch like we've been going through, and sometimes you start to grip the stick too tight. It doesn't work that way," Muse explained.

Skinner Kept Them in It

Stuart Skinner made his second start for the Penguins after being acquired in a trade from the Edmonton Oilers, and he was strong early. Without Skinner's performance in the first period, the game could have gotten out of hand quickly. Instead, Pittsburgh was only down 2-0 after one.

"There were a couple of sequences in shifts that you really saw just the way he competes, and he battles," Muse said.

The problem was the quality of chances the Penguins were surrendering. Muse pointed to specific breakdowns that led to Montreal's goals.

"The first one there, I think we're trying to do the right thing. It's a loose puck battle on a penalty kill, and it ends up being a shot in the slot that's a high-quality shot," Muse said. "The second one, we got a little bit tied up there in the neutral zone with one of our D, and we let them get a shot from that area. We don't want to be giving those up."

No Time to Feel Bad

The Penguins outshot the Canadiens 17-6 in the third period before Montreal added an empty-net goal. Skinner liked what he saw from the group in that final frame.

"Really like how we responded, especially being down three going into the third. How the guys came out was impressive," Muse continued.

The Penguins get an immediate chance for redemption Sunday night when they host Montreal in the second half of the home-and-home. Muse made it clear there's no time to sulk about the current losing streak.

"If we start feeling bad for ourselves, we put our heads down; we've got another hockey game here tomorrow night," Muse told reporters.

The head coach understands that they still have games in hand, and with their next game against the Canadiens, they have no option but to win it. He made it clear that the Penguins have no time to feel bad for themselves.