The Pittsburgh Penguins are officially in trouble. What started as a hopeful playoff run has now spiraled into a two-game deficit heading to Philadelphia. They aren’t making life easy for themselves. Nobody saw this coming. Now, the Penguins have to go on the road and steal some games to keep their season alive. If things don’t change, it will be curtains for their 2026 season. This is how they can turn things around.
The Penguins’ offense has been slowed down by the Flyers in this series. Pittsburgh is generating shots, but they aren’t landing on net. Through two games, the Flyers have blocked 37 shots. Dan Muse has to find a way for his team to beat the trap that Philadelphia is putting on them. The Penguins need to get back to the high-octane offense that they were during the regular season. They could also use some puck luck.
Stuart Skinner gets a bad reputation as a playoff choker, but that hasn’t been the case this season. He hasn’t been perfect, but he has been the Penguins’ best player through the first two games. They aren’t giving him any support. Skinner has faced 43 shots, and he has stopped 38 of them, including multiple breakaways and odd-man rushes. The defensive effort in front of him could be better. Philadelphia isn’t generating good offense; they are just capitalizing on Pittsburgh’s mistakes, and Skinner has been paying for it. Help him out.
Despite having the seventh-best power play in the NHL in the regular season, the Penguins have grown stale with a man advantage. Through two games, they are 0/7 on the power play. That’s unacceptable. Philadelphia is giving them the chances, but Pittsburgh has failed to capitalize. If they can register a few goals on the power play, this is an entirely different series. Special teams matter in the playoffs. Wasting opportunities will send a team to the golf course.
To put it lightly, the defensive pairing of Kris Letang and Sam Girard has been abysmal to watch. Letang is -4, and Girard is -2 to start the series. Trading Brett Kulak for Girard looks like it was a huge mistake. Unfortunately, it’s time for Letang to hang up his skates. The game has passed him by. Until then, the Penguins have to go away from that pairing. Pair Letang with Ryan Shea, or anybody else. It’s been hard to watch through two games.
Dan Muse is likely kicking himself for the line combinations in the first two games. If Pittsburgh wants to get back in this series, they must make changes. Put Egor Chinakhov back on Evgeni Malkin’s line. Bump Rickard Rakell back up to Sidney Crosby’s line. Insert Justin Brazeau into the lineup, preferably with Ben Kindel and Anthony Mantha. Someone will have to be scratched, but it has to be done. The Penguins have to mix things up heading into game three.
Pittsburgh’s superstars have to show up in this series if they want to get back in it. Malkin scored a goal in game one, but has been quiet since. Crosby has been invisible, but it’s safe to assume that his knee is still in shambles from Radko Gudas at the Olympics. Erik Karlsson needs to channel the player that he was in March. If the Penguins don’t show up, there won’t be a game five to come home to.
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