"Feels like same crap all over again": $20,125,875 Pittsburgh Penguins D-man makes his feelings known about Pens blowing 2-0 lead in OT loss to Bolts

By ARJUN B

Modified Nov 20, 2024 05:55 GMT

The Pittsburgh Penguins blew a 2-0 lead to the Tampa Bay Lightning to fall 3-2 in overtime on Tuesday. The loss drops the struggling Penguins to 7-10-4 for the season.

After the game, Penguins defenseman Marcus Pettersson, who is on a $20.125 million contract, expressed his frustration with the team's inability to protect leads this season.

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“It just feels like the same crap all over again, you know?It’s frustrating,” Marcus Pettersson said.“We got to be a little bit more confident when we have the lead, we need to defend hard.”

The Penguins had a 2-0 lead going into the third period after Jesse Puljujarvi and Rickard Rakells' goals. However, the Lightning scored two goals from Brayden Point and Anthony Cirelli to level the score. Point scored another for the overtime win.

"We know we're better than this,"added Pettersson."Our play has been better lately, so we can take some positives from that.But yeah, it’s frustrating, I don’t know what to say, really.I don’t have a good answer for the blown leads. It’s frustrating, for sure.”

Pittsburgh also blew a 3-0 lead on Saturday against the San Jose Sharks.

Pettersson pointed out that they need to find solutions to what’s happening on the ice and noted two-goal leads aren’t easy and they need to be on the winning side more often than.

Pittsburgh Penguins' Sidney Crosby comments on 3-2 OT loss to Lightning

Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby was disappointed after his team's 3-2 overtime loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

"I think a good example is tonight. Teams are going to push," Crosby said after the game."We've got to find a way to elevate. I don't think we're trying to sit back. We’ve got to realize that and find ways to get momentum shifts back."

Head coach Mike Sullivan was pointed in his criticism, calling for increased defensive commitment from his roster.

"Because we have to compete harder,we need more guys to compete harder and pay more attention to detail,and we need to take more pride in playing defense." Sullivan said as per NHL.com.

The Pittsburgh Penguins rank second last in the Metropolitan Division with 18 points. Next, the Penguins will look to bounce back from the loss when they host the Winnipeg Jets on Friday.