Banged-Up Maple Leafs Mash Feckless Penguins, 7-0

For years it seemed every time the University of Pittsburgh football program had a chance to make a statement in an important game the Panthers invariably lost.

Those Pitt teams have nothing on our present-day Penguins.

Several times this season, the Pens have had an opportunity to use dramatic victories as a springboard to better things. Each time they’ve failed miserably.

We responded to an impressive 3-0 whitewashing of Stanley Cup champion Vegas on November 19 by going 1-2-1 in our next four games. Following the pulsating, Tristan-Jarry-scores-a-goal comeback over the Lightning on November 30? We lost four in a row (0-2-2).

This latest fiasco may be our worst botch job yet. On the heels of back-to-back victories this week, including the thrilling 12-round shootout win over the Canadiens, the Pens simply fell apart at the seams last night against a banged-up Toronto team that was missing all-world sniper Auston Matthews, key defensemen T.J. Brodie, Mark Giordano and John Klingberg and goalie Joseph Woll.

Indeed, the 7-0 shellacking at the hands of the Leafs was arguably the worst defeat of the Sidney Crosby–Evgeni Malkin era, eclipsing even the brutal and humbling 5-2 loss to woebegone Chicago last spring that cost us a playoff berth.

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