Sidney Crosby makes his thoughts on Pittsburgh Penguins’ slow start extremely clear (Image Source: Imagn)

Sidney Crosby’s Pittsburgh Penguins have had a rough start to their season, and things didn’t improve on Sunday, as they lost 6-3 to the Winnipeg Jets, bringing their record to 3-4-0.

While goaltending has been a concern, Crosby made it clear that the team’s struggles go beyond that. He pointed out that players need to step up and play better in front of the goalie.

Coach Sullivan: "From an effort standpoint, I thought our team played really hard. I think we've got to play a little smarter. And that's on all of us to try to cure some of those areas." pic.twitter.com/joveER87b6

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) October 20, 2024

After the game, Sidney Crosby said (via The Score):

“It’s not our goalies. “It’s on us to play better in front of them.”

Crosby highlighted issues like giving up odd-man rushes and not clearing the puck effectively. He mentioned a key moment in the game where he lost a faceoff, which led to a goal against them.

“We’re giving up odd-man rushes,” Crosby said. “We’re not getting clears.

“Look at the game-winner. I lose the faceoff. Then I don’t get my guy. And it ends up in the back of the net. ‘We can’t keep giving up five or six goals a game if we want to win,” he added.

The Pittsburgh Penguins are fifth in the Metro Division with five points and are 20th in the league. The Pens have conceded the most (31) goals against in the league this season.

Sidney Crosby has accumulated six points through one goal and five assists in seven games this season.

How Jets downed Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins

On Sunday, the Winnipeg Jets hosted the Pittsburgh Penguins at the Canadian Life Center. The Jets put up an impressive performance, thwarting the Penguins with a dominant win.

The Penguins got off to a solid start, with Kevin Hayes and Lars Eller giving them a comfortable two-goal lead inside five minutes. However, the Jets responded by scoring thrice in under 10 minutes to make it 3-2 heading into the second period.

Eller scored his second at 1:39 of the second period, tying the score at 3-3 for the Penguins. However, the Jets, mirroring their first-period performance, again scored three more to cap off a resounding 6-3 win.

Sidney Crosby had five shots on goal for the Penguins, while goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic conceded five goals on 36 shots.

The Winnipeg Jets, meanwhile, continued their 100% winning record with five wins in as many games this season. The Penguins next face the Calgary Flames on Tuesday.