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Dan Muse quietly fixed a problem that haunted the Penguins last year
Photo credit: James Carey Lauder-Imagn Images
Dan Muse has the Pittsburgh Penguins scoring first again, and it’s turning tight nights into points.
Scoring first isn’t a cute stat, it’s a gameplan flex that changes matchups, bench energy, and how risky your blue line has to be.
According to King Jemison’s tracking, the Penguins have scored first in 32 of 53 games this season, a 60.4% clip tied for second in the NHL.
Last season they scored first just 33 times total, sitting near the bottom of the league, and you felt that uphill grind every night.
This year, the Penguins are playing from ahead more often, and that’s where veteran brains and clean structure still win hockey games.
When you score first, you control the change at home and you can hard-match lines instead of chasing.
Muse has them hunting early layers, not floating through the opening ten minutes hoping a power play bails them out.
It’s also helping the goalies, because the first save of the night actually matters when you’re not down 1-0 on the first breakdown.
Dan Muse has the Pittsburgh Penguins believing again
Honestly, the fanbase has been waiting for this kind of simple, ruthless identity since the last few "almost" seasons.
The Penguins aren’t just winning, they’re stacking process wins, with balanced play and special teams that have been living in the top tier.
You can see it in the way they protect the middle once they’re up a goal, forcing low-danger shots instead of trading chances.
As of Monday, Pittsburgh sits at 28-14-11, and that record screams "hard to play against," not "lucky heater."
Keep scoring first, and the Metro race stays very real, because this team looks built to close.
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| POLL | ||
FEVRIER 2|111 ANSWERS Dan Muse quietly fixed a problem that haunted the Penguins last year Should Dan Muse keep prioritizing a fast-start, score-first identity for the Pittsburgh Penguins? | ||
| Yes | 105 | 94.6 % |
| No | 6 | 5.4 % |
| List of polls | ||