WINNIPEG, Manitoba — The Penguins picked up another two points on the road. Perhaps more important was the identity of the player who earned them.
Tristan Jarry made 32 saves Saturday in a 3-0 win against the Winnipeg Jets at Canada Life Centre and took a step in the right direction after a rough few weeks for the goaltender, who had been ceding starts to backup Casey DeSmith.
Jarry held scoreless a Jets team that had an 8-1-1 record in its previous 10 games until Jason Zucker could bomb a one-timer past star Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck in the first minute of the third period, which gave the Penguins a 1-0 lead.
Jarry was sharp down the stretch for the first time in a while and Bryan Rust and Jake Guentzel added an insurance goal to secure their second win in a row.
For Jarry, it was his first shutout of the season and the 12th of his career.
He was given his second straight start as the Penguins tried to get their All-Star goalie back into a groove. Jarry has been one of the league’s worst goalies over the last month. He recently suggested that he was dealing with an injury.
Entering Saturday, Jarry had allowed three goals or more in seven straight starts, losing five of them while posting a .871 save percentage over that span. He made just 19 saves in Thursday’s 6-4 win in Minnesota. His last quality start came back on Oct. 20, when the Penguins beat the Los Angeles Kings at home.
Jarry didn’t inspire much confidence on the first shot Saturday. Jets defenseman Brenden Dillon flung what should have been a harmless wrister from the point. But Jarry let the puck leak out of his equipment and into the blue paint behind him. It sat there for a few seconds before a teammate slapped it to safer ice.
He settled down and later in the opening period rocketed across his crease to stop Josh Morrissey’s one-time try. That was one of 11 saves he made in that period. Hellebuyck was equal to the task at the other end, making tough saves on Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin while the ice was tilted in Pittsburgh’s favor.
In the second, Jarry sealed his five hole to shut down Kyle Connor’s quick shot from the left circle. He absorbed Adam Lowry’s tip-in try on a Winnipeg power play, one of four Jets shots from the slot in the period, per Sportlogiq. He tracked the puck well as Connor and the Jets gained traction with their cycle game.
Jarry’s fine work kept the score at 0-0 heading into the third period. Perhaps most worrisome during his recent slump was his play in crunch-time. In his previous six starts, he had given up 15 total goals during the third period and overtime. But he got the job done this time, making nine saves during the final frame.
It certainly did not hurt that the Penguins played one of their better defensive games to date. Their puck management, which has been a point of frustration for coach Mike Sullivan, was much improved. They did well sorting out assignments on the few odd-man rushes they allowed. And they battled hard at the net front.
Sullivan a few days earlier said stingy defense was the best way for the Penguins to become more consistent after myriad breakdowns cost them during their poor stretch of play that resulted in nine losses in 12 games entering Saturday.
Of course, good goaltending helped, too. They haven’t been getting that very often of late. But maybe this win will get Jarry pointed back toward his top form.
ICE CHIPS
— For the first time this season, the Pittsburgh penalty kill has gone three games without giving up a power play goal. Winnipeg was 0 for 2 on Saturday.
— Crosby and Ryan Poehling hustled and displayed defensive awareness during the second period to thwart a couple of dangerous chances for Winnipeg. Poehling has stood out since moving from center to left wing earlier in the week.
— The Penguins iced the same lines and defensive pairs as in Thursday’s win.
— Kasperi Kapanen and Chad Ruhwedel were their healthy scratches on Saturday. Kapanen has been in the press box for the last three games and five of six.
— The Penguins entered Saturday’s game in a three-way tie for fifth place in the Metro Division but were 13 points behind the first-place New Jersey Devils.
COMING UP
The Penguins will visit the Blackhawks in Chicago on Sunday, the second half of their latest back-to-back. That is expected to be Malkin’s 1,000th NHL game.
