3 takeaways as Pittsburgh Penguins fall 3-2 to the Minnesota Wild on Marc-Andre Fleury's night

By Ryan Gagne

Modified Feb 10, 2024 21:33 GMT

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The Pittsburgh Penguins are chasing a playoff spot with a 23-18-7 record. They recently watched the Minnesota Wild honor former teammate and franchise win leader Marc-Andre Fleury for his career achievements. This was before he picked up win #553 in a 3-1 victory over his former team.

The see-saw battle saw the Penguins rallying from a goal down on two occasions. However, the Wild did everything to ensure their netminder celebrated at the final buzzer.

Despite the setback, the Penguins are back in action on Saturday against a superior opponent, the Winnipeg Jets. Meanwhile, the Wild are off until Monday, when they face the reigning Stanley Cup champion, the Vegas Golden Knights.

With each team battling for points to contend for a playoff spot, what were three takeaways from the Penguins' 3-2 defeat to the Wild?

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3 takeaways as Pittsburgh Penguins fall 3-2 to the Minnesota Wild

#1. Marc-Andre Fleury stands on his head in a possible last meeting with former team

Fleury is 39 years old and is 9-9-3 on the season, with a 2.91 goals-against average and a .900 save percentage. These are his worst numbers since joining the Wild at the deadline in 2022. The future Hall of Famer is struggling to keep the team afloat in contests he plays, posting an SV% of over .900 in 14 games.

Fleury faced off against his former team, including Stanley Cup-winning friends Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang. And he recorded his third-best statistical performance of the season, with 34 saves, including 14 in the third period, to secure a 3-2 win.

The emotions were high after an admirable pre-game ceremony honoring Fleury's achievements. But that didn't stop him from picking up a victory against the franchise that drafted him. If this were it for him, he would have skated away with a 5-4-0 record against Pittsburgh in nine starts.

#2. Wild's Kirill Kaprizov is hitting a hot streak at the right time

The Wild are trying to stay in the Western Conference wildcard race. They are sitting three points out of the final spot while earning a 6-4-0 record in their previous ten games. Thankfully, Kirill Kaprizov has found the next level to his game, tallying 23 points in the past 16 games dating back to Dec. 18.

On Friday night, the former 108-point player had a goal and an assist, with his lamplighter serving as the game-winner. It helped his team secure two more points in the standings. If the Wild want to secure a playoff spot and succeed in the postseason, they need the two-time 40-goal scorer to keep performing.

No other Wild player poses the offensive capabilities of Kaprizov, meaning once they shut him down, there's not much else to worry about. Against the Penguins, he needed to be good but was more than that in a must-win situation.

#3. The Penguins continue to watch their season slip away

The Penguins are 4-3-3 in their last ten games, sitting at 53 points and five out of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Although they are not stuck in a seven-team race for two spots (like the Wild), they're not doing themselves any favors by losing must-win games.

After acquiring Erik Karlsson in the offseason, the Penguins were supposed to give it one last shot with their aging core. Yet, the team is merely 23-18-7 for the 10th-best record in its conference. Thankfully, other contending teams have been busts, or Pittsburgh could be sitting even lower.

Mike Sullivan, Pittsburgh Penguins

But it's not all that bad since Crosby tallied his 28th goal on Friday, and Alex Nedeljkoiv made 27 saves in the loss. But, with this lineup of Hall of Famers and 100-point players, should they lose 3-2 hockey games to clubs below them in the overall standings?

Although this year's failures fall upon the coach and the players, only one can move. And many still wonder how Mike Sullivan has a job despite a continuous string of bad nights like Friday.