Disco Dan, where have you been THE ENTIRE SEASON!?! While Coach Bylsma was coaching the Wilkes Barre-Scranton Baby Penguins to a first place record in the AHL, Former Head Coach Michel Therrien (FHCMT) was running the Pittsburgh Penguins into the ground for far too long. The savior of this season may be Blysma, but the primary assist goes to Ray Shero. In Shero We Trust is the motto amongst Penguin fans and we trust for good reason.
Disco Dan knows how to coach. From the day he was named Interim Head Coach he promised a change in the way the Penguins were going to play. He wanted to implement a north to south game that plays to the Penguins' strengths. The results so far are too good to be true. In his first 12 games as an NHL coach, Disco Dan has compiled a 9-1-2 record. This team led by Bylsma has earned 20 points out of a possible 24 points. Thats no typo. No one could have seen this coming, myself included.
I knew that the team would improve after FHCMT was fired, but not at this clip. In a matter of a few weeks the Penguins moved up from 10th to 6th place in the Eastern Conference Standings. All of a sudden, home ice advantage in the first round is very much within reach as this rejuvenated team only trails the hated Philadelphia Flyers by 3 points as the Penguins have 79, opposed to the 82 of the Flyers. You heard it here, the Penguins WILL be the 4th seed once the playoffs start in April. Disco Dan has made me a believer in his system and its hard not to when you look at the results that have been produced.
First and foremost, the Penguins have been outshot all season long. They currently rank 25th in shots on goal per game. Thats flat out embarrassing and you can blame FHCMT for that ugly stat. For a team that averages only 28.3 shots per game, they sure seem to have remedied that problem as if they remedied that problem as of late.
In their last four games combined, the Penguins have recorded 160 shots. Thats an average of 40 shots each game which has resulted in a 3-0-1 record. Remarkable job by the whole team and it starts with Disco Dan. No goalie wants to have to make close to 40 saves in a game. No goalie can withstand an average of 40 shots per game in a playoff series so it is important for the Pens to keep doing what they are doing offensively.
The Pens hopes of obtaining home-ice advantage and a long playoff run can be expressed with these three words: SHOOT. THE. PUCK.
Keywords: Pittsburgh Penguins
