The Pittsburgh Penguins have gotten some of the worst goaltending in the NHL early this season. Now, they’re taking aggressive measures to right the ship.
After giving up 12 goals in his first three starts, Tristan Jarry, the Penguins’ number-one netminder to start the year, is headed to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins for a conditioning stint in the AHL. From all accounts, he is not injured.
Jarry’s goals-against average is an alarming 5.47, and his save percentage is a woeful .836.
The Penguins have assigned goaltender Tristan Jarry to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL) on a conditioning loan. pic.twitter.com/tRCiuivpBz
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) October 26, 2024
The move comes days after the team sent Jarry back to Pittsburgh during a road trip to get one-on-one time with Jon Elkin, their director of goaltending.
Coach Sullivan on Jarry: "It’s our responsibility to help players through some of the struggles they inevitably go through in this league, and Tristan is no different."
More from today's practice: https://t.co/Vy8HomtNLR pic.twitter.com/hvz7bSbTFr
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) October 24, 2024
“It’s just part of the process that we put in place here over the next little while to try and get Tristan to his very best,” Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan explained on Thursday.
Sending Jarry to the AHL on a conditioning loan allows the Penguins to avoid putting the goaltender on NHL waivers where he’d be potentially claimed. The conditioning assignment can last a maximum of 14 days. Jarry will receive the same pay and the Penguins will not get any relief on the salary cap.
“We look at it as, it’s our responsibility,” Sullivan said. “He’s a high quality goaltender, he’s a high quality person. This guy has been an important part of our organization for a number of years now, and he’s played a lot of solid goaltending for us. The first couple of starts he’s had, haven’t been his best. I’m probably stating the obvious saying that.
“It’s our responsibility to help players through some of the struggles that players inevitably go through in this league, and Tristan is no different. Everybody goes through some challenges. It’s our job, as a coaching staff, a hockey operations group, to try and do everything we can to help our players be at their very best. And this is just a process that we’ve put in place. We spoke to Tristan about it. He’s bought into it, and we’ll go from there.”
The Penguins are 3-5-1 to start the year, sitting sixth in the Metropolitan Division. Their .389 points percentage is sixth worst in the NHL and only outdone by the San Jose Sharks (.125), Philadelphia Flyers (.214), Nashville Predators (.286), Chicago Blackhawks (.313), and Montreal Canadiens (.357).
The Penguins have surrendered the most goals in the NHL (39), two more than the New Jersey Devils, who have played two more games. Pittsburgh’s minus-12 goal differential is third-worst in the NHL. The Penguins are one of only 10 teams with a team save percentage under .900.
Goaltender Joel Blomqvist, a Penguins’ second-round pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, has emerged as the team’s most frequent option in net early, receiving four starts. He’s the only Pittsburgh goaltender with an overall save percentage over .900 with his .911 mark. But Blomqvist is 2-3-0 in his five appearances and has a goals-against average of 3.34.
Backup Alex Nedeljkovic is also struggling, posting a 0-1-1 record in his two starts, a 3.86 goals against average, and an .869 save percentage.
The only thing that’s looking up is the Penguins’ PDO. Their 0.973 mark suggests they’ve been unlucky starting the season, so some course corrections may be coming.
