Penguins lose but may have helped NHL Draft pick slot: Yohe’s 10 observations

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PITTSBURGH — At least the Penguins may have helped their standing in the 2025 NHL Draft on Sunday.

Other than that, there wasn’t much to write home about.

The Penguins went through the motions for most of Sunday and fell at home to the Boston Bruins 4-1 with a lackluster performance in their penultimate game of the season.

Boston took a 3-0 lead in the second period and never looked back.

The loss means that, even if the Penguins win their final game of the regular season, the most points they can finish with is 80. So, at worst, they’ll have the ninth-best odds of winning the NHL Draft Lottery.

There is a chance the Penguins could have anywhere been the fifth- and ninth-best odds of landing the top spot in the draft. The lowest pick they can finish with is the ninth pick, though there is certainly a chance they could slide higher up the board. Which is to say, lower down the league standings.

Penguins fans are hoping Buffalo, Anaheim, Seattle and, yes, Philadelphia get hot this week, which could enhance the Penguins’ draft prospects.

From that standpoint, losing in the season finale against the Washington Capitals would certainly be helpful to the Penguins’ draft slot.

Ten postgame observations 

• Before Sunday’s game, the Penguins held a very nice tribute for Ray Shero, who died at 62 earlier this week.

Ray Shero’s legacy goes far beyond championships.

He will be remembered most for how he treated people – with respect, belief, and support.

Read more on Ray’s impact: https://t.co/bog3b6kcAH pic.twitter.com/yPJpNy5b6d

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) April 13, 2025

I certainly haven’t been able to properly put into words how terrible the story of Shero’s death has been.

Let me say this: Every single person I know in the Penguins organization — and there are many — loved Shero. I’ve also yet to encounter anyone in the media who had a bad word to say about him. Just a likable, funny, brilliant hockey guy. And one who is gone too soon.

The Penguins, New Jersey Devils and Minnesota Wild displayed nothing but class in their respective tributes to Shero.

My favorite thing about Shero was how utterly committed to winning he was. Whatever it took. One time, I was on the phone with him a couple of days before the 2011 free-agency period began. Something we liked to call #Jagrwatch was taking place then. Shero said to me, “You know, Josh, if he wants to sign for our price, that’s great. I get it. It’s Jaromir Jagr. But I’m trying to win a f—-ing Stanley Cup, not run a nostalgia show.”

That was Ray.

• As for the game, I feel sorry for those of you who purchased tickets — those Sunday afternoon games are never cheap, I know — because this was a pretty dreadful, inconsequential hockey game.

The Penguins just didn’t show any life at all. It’s understandable, but, given how they’ve played in recent weeks and that they were playing at home and on national television, it’s also a little surprising.

For the life of me, I don’t know what has compelled the Penguins to play as hard as they have in recent days. They’ve known for a while they weren’t making the playoffs. What we saw against Boston is what I’ve been expecting for a while. There just didn’t appear to be any gas in the tank, nor any will to compete.

All effort to close it out 🍇 pic.twitter.com/kAkgPiKSg3

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) April 13, 2025

• One of the mysteries of this season is why the Penguins coaching staff thought it better to play Kris Letang with Matt Grzelcyk for the final few weeks.

They’re absolutely awful together.

🤓🚨 pic.twitter.com/C7ErK4RaJL

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) April 13, 2025

I actually thought Erik Karlsson and Grzelcyk played reasonably well together for stretches this season and it’s strange to me that we haven’t seen more of that duo down the stretch.

For whatever reason, Letang and Grzelcyk don’t work. On the Morgan Geekie goal that made it 3-0 Boston, you’ll note Letang needlessly drifted toward the center of the ice for no reason, which made it possible for Geekie to unleash the shot. This is a bad habit of Letang’s, one he’s never completely corrected that has been a part of his game for his entire career. When the Penguins led the Capitals (in Game 5 and in the series) in 2018, 3-2, Letang drifted toward Brian Dumoulin for no apparent reason, allowing the Capitals to take control in the third period. He has enjoyed many brilliant moments as a player, but he doesn’t come without his quirks.

• Regarding Letang specifically, it’s been a disastrous second half of the season for him.

Just in time 🚨 pic.twitter.com/nAFF2eZjoS

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) April 13, 2025

Every facet of his game is currently in a funk. He turns 38 later this month and three years remain on that contract.

It’s a problem.

• Kudos to Tristan Jarry, who again played pretty well in what has become a pretty admirable response to two stints in the AHL this season.

Is Jarry all the way back? I’m not so sure about that.

Will the Penguins ever fully trust him? I’m not so sure about that, either.

But he’s displayed some pretty serious character in the past month.

• Rickard Rakell notched his 35th goal of the season, setting a career high.

It’s been quite a season for him and he hasn’t pouted once about being removed from Sidney Crosby’s line.

And a PPG for PGH 🙌 pic.twitter.com/9yYUTKtyfR

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) April 13, 2025

Good player. Good guy.

• Today was something of a surprise, simply because of what we’ve seen in recent weeks.

The Bruins have been one of the NHL’s worst teams since the trade deadline, with a 5-11-1 record (4-11-1 entering today). Mind you, they won their first two games following the March 7 deadline.

Then, they lost 10 straight games, nine of which came in regulation.

The Penguins have been difficult to figure out. Like the Bruins, they were sellers at the deadline and, for intents and purposes, out of the playoff race. Instead of folding, however, they have gone 9-6-2 since March 7.

Last season, after they sold Jake Guentzel at the deadline, the Penguins surprised just about everyone by going 10-7-4. Say what you will about the Penguins, but they certainly don’t fold when they’re out of the playoff race.

Of course, they didn’t look the least bit interested today. The Bruins, conversely, very much did. Funny game, hockey.

• It’s strange seeing the Bruins plummeting in the standings like they have in recent weeks. In fact, it’s the first time in NHL history that the Bruins, Penguins and New York Rangers have all missed the playoffs. These are strange times.

The Bruins, to their credit, had been outperforming the quality of their roster for many years. That’s a credit to their winning culture and how well-coached they’ve been over the years. But it finally caught up to them. It looks like they could have a rough couple of years ahead of them.

• Up next for the Penguins … well, they now have three days off before playing the final game of the regular season against the Capitals on Thursday at PPG Paints Arena. Talk about strange scheduling. There was a time when that game, which will be televised nationally by ESPN, looked like a real gem. But Alex Ovechkin has already broken Wayne Gretzky’s career goals record, the Capitals have absolutely nothing to play for and the Penguins are just playing out the season. Thus, it won’t be a real dramatic conclusion to the regular season. In fact, we don’t even know if Ovechkin will play in that game. Some of the other big-name Capitals could also potentially receive a night off. I can’t imagine any reason why they would play. But it’s still your last chance to see Crosby play for almost six months, so it figures to be worth your time.

• Speaking of which, what do the Penguins have to play for on Thursday? Crosby is one point from reaching the 90-point total for the ninth time in his career. Bryan Rust is one goal away from scoring 30 for the first time in his NHL career.

(Photo: Charles LeClaire / Imagn Images)

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