Penguins Perspectives: The trouble with Tristan Pt. 2
Welcome to Penguins Perspectives, a weekly column by KDKA-TV Digital Producer Patrick Damp. Each Friday, Patrick will talk about the week that was, the week to come, what to watch for, and more.
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - I know that a lot of people have lamented ESPN's hockey coverage since they returned to the network two seasons ago as lackluster, and while I agree, there is something I noticed this week that they seem to have got right.
It wasn't the Frozen Frenzy, which was pretty fantastic by the way, it was their current marketing campaign for hockey.
"Hockey's new golden age."
They couldn't be more spot on if we're being honest. As Penguins fans, we've been in our golden age for the last 15 years. Three Stanley Cups, four trips to the final, missing the playoffs just one time, and so much more.
Now, the NHL finds itself in a moment when the game might be the best it's ever been. Look around the league, it seems like now more so than ever more teams have a bonafide superstar on their roster, or someone close.
It also means that scoring is up. You can see that simply by an increase in goals per game and a decline in save percentage.
Now, you've made this far into the column, and I'd bet you're asking "What's all this got to do with the aging Penguins?"
Well, it brings us to the man in the net - Tristan Jarry.
This offseason, newly-minted President of Hockey Operations (and later named General Manager) Kyle Dubas put his faith behind Jarry, giving him a 5-year, $5.3 million deal. At the time, it made some sense. Inconsistent as Jarry was, the inconsistency was borne of injury. As I've written in this space before, "injury-prone" while a designation that can be accurate, but injuries remain inherently random.
The trouble now is that Jarry has been emphatic that he is healthy this year. He was healthy this offseason. He says he's healthy now.
He is often described as a fierce competitor, and he very well may be, but so far this season, he's been an issue.
Yes, he's posted two shutouts so far this year, one against the rival Capitals and one against western conference Stanley Cup contenders Colorado.
That's nothing to sneeze at - the greatest goal scorer and maybe the next great American hockey dynasty.
It's what's happened around those two games. He's had a save percentage above .900 just once this season and that was the home opener against Chicago when he posted a .914 and that was about the only game he started when you could truly say the team around him failed him.
Since then, he's posted save percentages of .852, .810, .667, and .852. And his 2023-24 season average so far is .893.
The NHL league average save percentage this year sits at .906.
Remember - that's average. Middle-of-the-pack. Not bad but also not great.
Tristan Jarry finds himself below that.
I wrote last week that against that very same Avalanche, the Penguins began to find an identity they so sorely lacked early in the season. They committed to playing 200 feet, were disciplined in the defensive zone, and took advantage of the inevitable risky plays Colorado would make. It fit the makeup of their roster, it didn't force them to suddenly become a boring, defense-first team, but it took the skill they have and used it to its maximum potential.
I've also seen a lot of suggestions for this team to get back to glory they need a new voice in the room, specifically a new coach.
If the Penguins can't even get a league-average goalie to play between the pipes, it won't matter what system they're playing.
You are, in fact, allowed to ask your goalie to make a save.
And that, right now, is the trouble with Tristan.
