3 things the Pittsburgh Penguins need to do to get back into the playoff race

When I think of the Pittsburgh Penguins I think of Sidney Crosby. I think about back-to-back Stanley Cups (twice). I think about Mario Lemieux, Jaromir Jagr, Marc-André Fluery, and Kris Letang. I think about the post-season. I think of Mike Sullivan, who has been their coach since halfway through the 2015-16 season. When I think of the Penguins, I do not think of a team that misses the playoffs.

Right now the Penguins could miss a post-season berth for the second season in a row, which has not happened in captain Crosby's tenure with the team; he was the first pick in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft. What do the Pens need to do right now to get back into the race? Here's three things:

3. Better performance in net

Obviously putting the puck in the back of the net from a strong offense is needed to win hockey games. But what about the other end of the ice? A team's line-up between the pipes needs to be just as strong to contend for the Cup. Who the Pittsburgh Penguins have in net is not bad, but to get into the playoffs, they need to be better.

Tristan Jarry has been the main go-to as the starter in net and his 2.79 GAA and .906 SV% rank in the middle of the pack out of the 50 netminders that have played more than 23 games this NHL season. Jarry has 47 games under his belt so far, and what the Pens need from him in the last part of the season is more shutouts (while simultaneously lowering his GAA). Jarry is tied with Arizona Coyotes' goalie Connor Ingram for the most shutouts this season with six.

Even more incredible than the shutouts — Jarry is the only goalie this season to score a goal; an empty netter, but, a goal. The Penguins wouldn't likely say no to more where that came from!

The Penguins have also relied on Alex Nedeljkovic in net for 24 games this season, with his 2.95 GAA slightly larger than Jarry's and his .904 SV% slightly lower. Either way, these numbers rank lower in the pack than his counterparts and they need to be better. If the Penguins are going to rely on the tandem of both through the rest of the regular season they (collectively) can't allow seven goals like they did vs. the Rangers on March 16 or six goals like they did vs. the Capitals on March 7.

The tighter the play between the pipes, the greater chance of a post-season run.

2. Sidney Crosby needs to keep doing Sidney Crosby things

Right now Crosby is on the top of the Penguins leaderboard in points (68) and goals (33) and is on pace to continue the point-per-game season he's currently having. Should he keep this pace up (he likely will), according to NHL Media, he would tie Wayne Gretzky by completing 19 seasons at a point-per-game rate. It should be no surprise, but the 19 seasons Gretzky has with this point-per-game pace is the most in NHL history, so Crosby is knocking on the door to join Wayne at the top. The Penguins need this energy, especially down the stretch!

Crosby is also inching himself up in the record books for most career goals with one franchise.

All those numbers are great and extremely helpful when your team is trying desperately to get locked into action when the regular season finishes next month, but it is not the end all be all. What the Penguins need from their captain is his offensive skill, as mentioned here, but also his leadership. For many years that locker room has had his presence, and now more than ever the guys need to come together as a team, not take costly and unnecessary penalties, accurately shoot the puck on the net, and try to win some games.

With a leader on and off the ice like Crosby, these "things" can get done.

1. Better defense from the bottom two blueliners

Haven't you heard the saying "defense wins championships"?

This is what we need to pay attention to here, and what I think needs the most work from the Pens to get into the playoffs.

Not every defenseman can have an eye for offense, but if we look at the numbers for John Ludvig and Pierre-Oliver Joseph you can see a big drop-off from the top two defensive pairings. What sticks out to me the most here is the +/-, as Ludvig is minus-11 and Joseph is minus-10. Those numbers tell me their defense is lacking, as they're often on the ice when the opposing team scores.

It is hard to say what to change here to make this third d-line "better", but I could see pushing Ludvig up to play the point with Kris Letang and bringing Ryan Graves down, sporadically not every time, to play alongside Joseph. Graves has a plus-11 and 138 blocked shots. This switch can fill some holes that seem to be there when Joseph and Ludvig play together and could be worth a shot.

Regardless of line changes, keeping a solid defensive core is extremely important, and if the Penguins are looking for a chance at the Cup, this is an area that needs buttoning.