As the season winds down, the Pittsburgh Penguins are in unfamiliar territory. They are on the verge of not making the 2023 NHL playoffs, and missing the playoffs is not something they have done since 2005-06, which was Sidney Crosby‘s rookie year.
The Pittsburgh Penguins are currently second in the Eastern Conference wild card race as the top two in the wild card make it. The Penguins have a record of 35-26-10 for 80 points, which is two points out of the top wild card and one point over the Florida Panthers in third.
They are still much in the race for either wild card, but they have some work to do as they are just 4-5-1 in their last 10 games and had lost their last four games before Wednesday’s win. Against the Metropolitan Division, the Penguins are an average 8-9-5.
Could the Pittsburgh Penguins miss the playoffs?
The team as a whole is struggling right now. Crosby, who led the NHL in scoring during the 2006-07 and 2013-14 seasons, does have five assists in his last five games but only one goal. Goaltender Tristan Jarry has 21 wins this season but has one win in his last five starts.
With just 11 games left for the Pittsburgh Penguins on the 2022-23 NHL schedule, the Penguins need to figure out their struggles, and quickly.
They are running out of time to continue their playoff streak and also time to win a Stanley Cup for this core of Crosby, defenseman Kris Letang, and future Hall of Famer Evgeni Malkin. The race for the wild card spots is extremely tight, making every game essentially a playoff game for the Penguins.
Those 11 remaining games include four against the Metropolitan Division, to which the Penguins have two home games and two away games left.
The Eastern Conference as a whole is extremely tight in the way of a playoff race, even if the wild card positioning is not settled. The Penguins have been in this position before and found a way to grab a playoff spot.
However, this team cannot continue to pull their way out of every troubling situation come playoff time because it will not always work. The Pittsburgh Penguins need to find consistency, not only this late in the season but during the season as well.
They are essentially a .500 team right now, and this is not like the Penguins to be in this crucial situation.
On the other hand, if the Penguins do make the playoffs they would be the underdog. Many teams in the Eastern Conference are stacked with talent, depth, and goaltending. In the playoffs, it is a different deal.
The Penguins are clawing and scratching their way to wins this season, and that’s what the playoffs are. No highlight-reel goals, just playing nasty hockey and scoring the goals one would not normally see.
The Penguins have to find a way for these last 11 games to count, or they will be playing golf sooner than expected.