Rodrigues' 'sneaky hard shot' paying off for Penguins

Evan Rodrigues' game is on a new level this season.

His goal in the Penguins' 5-2 win over the Canadiens on Tuesday was his ninth of the season through 28 games, matching his career-high set in 2018-19 in 74 games. Coupled with his two assists in the win, he's now at 22 points on the season, surpassing the 20-point plateau for the third time in his career. 

The Penguins have utilized Rodrigues in a first line, first power play role at different points over the course of the season

"No matter what position we put him in, he has thrived," Mike Sullivan said on Tuesday.

Rodrigues attributed his elevated game to "opportunity and confidence."

"I'm just trusting my ability," he said.

One ability in particular has stood out as of late that has led to some of this success Rodrigues has been having.

His rocket of a shot.

Rodrigues' goal was the Penguins' lone power play goal in Tuesday's game, and it was this one-time blast from the left circle:

I mean, that was Alex Ovechkin-like.

"It was a bomb," Sullivan said of that goal. "It was a bomb. It was well-placed. It was a goal-scorer's goal."

I asked Rodrigues if he feels as if his shot on one-timers like that has reached a new level this season, and what he may have done to make that happen this season.

Again, it just comes back to confidence.

"Yeah," he said. "I think after practice, just taking a lot of them, you start to feel comfortable and feel confident in it. You just got to continue to shoot. You know, some will go in, some won't. And I'm just trying to continue to let them rip, and they're finding their way in the back of the net."

Sullivan said that he thinks Rodrigues has a "sneaky hard shot."

"He's been good on that flank on the power play," he said. "When the shots there he takes it. But he also recognizes when there's another play there to be made, and he's making good decision there and he's executing on those decisions."

Sullivan didn't have an answer as to whether Rodrigues' shot itself has actually taken a step forward this season, but said that he thinks it's an indication of Rodrigues' confidence that he's looking to shoot the puck as often as he is.

The numbers back that up, too. Rodrigues is shooting at a higher rate than he ever has before. He's making 16.12 shot attempts per 60 minutes of five-on-five ice time, the highest rate of any of his full NHL seasons. He's recording 10.12 shots on goal per 60 minutes of five-on-five, again the highest rate of his career. 

That shot is what Sidney Crosby pointed to when asked about the area of Rodrigues' game that has shown growth this season.

"He's got a lot of confidence when he shoots it," Crosby said. "You know, I think that's one thing that's stood out, that he's got a great shot.  I think he's shooting a little bit more, and obviously seeing it go in for him, I'm sure that that helps. But you saw tonight on his on his goal there, he's got a great shot. He's using it."

Rodrigues' increased offensive success isn't just a product of the minutes he's getting this season. He's elevating his game to fit that first-line role he's earned.

"E-Rod deserves so much credit for his effort, his execution and the fact that he's taken advantage of the opportunity that he's been presented with," Sullivan said. "For me, that just speaks volumes for him as an individual."

MORE FROM THE GAME

• Kasperi Kapanen bunted a bouncing puck out of the air for the game's first goal, the only goal of the first period:

• After Rodrigues' power play goal made it 2-0, Jonathan Drouin responded 24 seconds later after Mike Matheson turned the puck over.

• Matheson made up for the flub with a goal of his own, aided by a screen from Danton Heinen:

• Jesse Ylonen made it a one-goal game again for the Canadiens with just three seconds remaining in the second period. It was his first NHL goal.

• Brian Dumoulin's goal in the third period was his first of the season:

• Brian Boyle scored the Penguins' fifth goal:

• Crosby had primary assists on the goals by Matheson and Dumoulin, his 400th multi-point game of his career. He's the 14th player in NHL history to accomplish the feat. Of the 13 players to do it before him, all are in the Hockey Hall of Fame with the exception of Jaromir Jagr, who is not yet eligible because he's still actively playing in the Czech Republic.

• Kris Letang's primary assist on Rodrigues' goal was his 600th NHL point.

• The game was the 300th of Heinen's career.

• The Penguins' five-game winning streak matches their longest of the season so far, and ties the Predators for the longest active winning streak in the NHL.

• The Penguins are 14-1 when scoring first, a .933 winning percentage. The only team with a better win percentage when scoring first is the Oilers (9-0).

• It was Star Wars night at the arena. I've never seen anything from the Star Wars franchise, but I'll say that Dan Potash's Mandalorian costume might have been his best one yet. I'm just impressed by Sullivan's ability to get through the pregame show with a straight face:

THE ESSENTIALS

• Boxscore
• Live file
• Scoreboard
• Standings
• Statistics

THE THREE STARS

As selected at PPG Paints Arena:

1. Evan Rodrigues, Penguins
2. Sidney Crosby, Penguins
3. Brian Dumoulin, Penguins

THE HIGHLIGHTS

THE INJURIES

• Forward Evgeni Malkin is still recovering from his offseason knee surgery. He has resumed skating with the team in a non-contact jersey.

• Forward Bryan Rust left the Nov. 26 game in Long Island with an undisclosed lower-body injury and is currently week-to-week. He has resumed skating on his own.

• Forward Jake Guentzel suffered a upper-body injury on Dec. 6 and is currently week-to-week. He has resumed skating on his own.

THE LINEUPS

Sullivan’s lines and pairings:

Evan Rodrigues – Sidney Crosby – Kasperi Kapanen
Jason Zucker – Jeff Carter – Danton Heinen
Zach Aston-Reese – Teddy Blueger – Brock McGinn
Drew O'Connor – Brian Boyle – Sam Lafferty

Brian Dumoulin - Kris Letang
Marcus Pettersson - John Marino
Mike Matheson - Chad Ruhwedel

And for Dominique Ducharme's Canadiens:

Mike Hoffman - Nick Suzuki - Mathieu Perreault
Artturi Lehkonen - Ryan Poehling - Cole Caufield
Jonathan Drouin - Laurent Dauphin - Jesse Ylonen
Michael Pezzetta - Cedric Paquette - Joel Armia

Ben Chiarot - David Savard
Alexander Romanov - Jeff Petry
Brett Kulak - Kale Clague

THE SCHEDULE

The Penguins have a scheduled day off on Wednesday. They'll practice in Cranberry at 11 a.m. on Thursday then host the Sabres on Friday at 7 p.m.

THE CONTENT

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