The Pittsburgh Penguins are currently on a 9-3-1 run over their last 13 games, and there are many reasons for their recent success.
But there is no reason bigger than the three guys at the very top of their lineup card.
The top-line trio of Sidney Crosby, Rickard Rakell, and Bryan Rust has been scorching hot, as they have combined for 21 goals and 53 points. They are clicking on all cylinders no matter the opponent, and they have been the NHL’s most productive line since their Nov. 27 win against the Vancouver Canucks.
“We’re just burying our chances,” Crosby said following Monday’s 7-3 win against the Philadelphia Flyers, which featured three goals and eight points from the top line. “Obviously, in the first, we had a lot of momentum. I felt like we built off of that. Big goal from Rusty to get us going. And I think we’ve just been working hard and working off each other well. And the puck’s going in.”
Of those 21 goals, 10 of them are from Rust alone. In fact, no player in the NHL has more goals in that span that Rust does.
“I mean, you can definitely see that he’s very confident with the puck,” Rakell said of Rust. “It’s kind of the same as me – we score on rebounds, and they’re not all pretty goals. There are a lot of second chances and second efforts, and we’re just taking turns being in front of the net.”
They’re also taking turns owning the team lead in goals, as every time Rust catches Rakell, Rakell seems to put one in the net as well.
“That doesn’t really matter at all,” Rakell said. “As long we’re fighting every shift to score and play good hockey, it doesn’t matter who scores. For some reason, we both seem to be scoring.”
But even though Rust and Rakell are doing the majority of the goal-scoring, the work Crosby has been doing can’t be overlooked. On Crosby’s third assist of the game on Philip Tomasino’s power play goal against the Flyers, he tied Mario Lemieux for the most assists in Penguins franchise history.
“It’s extremely impressive, but I’m not overly surprised,” Rust said. “Sid, I think, is kind of right there with him in terms of importance to this franchise, and you can see how good he’s been over his entire career. And he just keeps on doing it.”
Crosby also has two four-point efforts in his last three games, and he leads all NHL players this season with four games of three or more assists.
“It feels like he’s behind every goal we score,” Rakell said. “That’s definitely the case with him and Rusty. He’s doing it all. He’s so good with the final touch or last pass to create a dangerous scoring chance. As much as he can have the puck on his stick in their zone, I think it’s going to work to our benefit.”
The Penguins have just begun their holiday break, which will end when they play the New York Islanders in the first of a home-and-home back-to-back in Long Island on Saturday. They have definitely earned the few days off, but it’s important for them to pick right back up where they left off prior to the break.
And that starts with this trio maintaining the chemistry and momenturm they’ve found during this winning stretch for the Penguins, as they have been the team’s engine.
“We’re definitely excited about the break, but I think we’re all encouraged by the way we’re playing and want to keep going,” Crosby said. “So it’s good to get some momentum before the break and just continue to build off of that when we come back.”
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