Of all the things that went wrong for the 2023-24 Pittsburgh Penguins, the constant failure of the power play was one of the most significant. Also the most maddening. Especially when you sit back from a distance and watch the teams still playing in the Stanley Cup Playoffs and how much of an impact their power plays have been able to make at times.
The Penguins roster seemed to be specifically constructed for the power play to be a significant part of the offense and carry a lot of the goal-scoring weight. When you look at the forward construction the Penguins had what looked to be — on paper — two strong scoring lines, two defense-first lines that were hopefully going to be able to lock things down and play to a 0-0 tie on most nights, and a power play unit littered with future Hall of Famers that should have been one of the league’s most imposing units.