Why Do the Penguins Struggle to Play with a Lead?
In my quest to pinpoint why our Penguins are so bad when it comes to playing with and protecting leads, I suggested in a recent post that the collective age of the players we rely on at crunch time may be a significant factor.
I may have been closer to the mark than I know.
According to the web site, HockeyStats.com, a number of our big guns (not to mention golden oldies) are among the worst players in the league when it comes to even strength defensive WAR, or EVD.
Before I go any further, I confess I haven’t a clue in terms of the methodology used to develop the ratings and rankings. However, the results, based on a two-season sample (’24-25 & ’25-26) sure do match the eye test. They go a long way to explain why we struggle to protect leads.
For example, Bryan Rust, who I personally regard as a poor defensive player, is ranked 912th out of 914 skaters with an EVD of -2.0. Erik Karlsson, whose defensive shortcomings are well-documented, checks in at 907th with an EVD of -1.7.