Tonight kicks off the unofficial second half of the season, when the Penguins host the Winnipeg Jets in their first game after the NHL All Star Break.

At 22-17-7 (51 points), the Penguins currently sit at fifth place in the Metropolitan Division. They are a full seven points out of the second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference. Toronto and Detroit hold the two wild card spots as of now, with the Islanders serving as a buffer team between them and the Penguins.

If there is a positive for the Penguins, it’s that they have games in hand on all of those teams. They have played three less games than New York, four less than Detroit, and one less than Toronto.

Despite that, it’s still a long road to a playoff spot, and as the team continues to stay on the outside looking in, the door remains wide open for trade speculation around guys like Jake Guentzel, a pending unrestricted free agent due for a massive raise.

Putting all of that aside, the season is not yet lost, and there are tons of ways for the Penguins to help themselves turn the season around and get back into serious playoff talks. Here are my four:

More Production From Erik Karlsson

It’s fair to say that Erik Karlsson’s first season in Pittsburgh has been underwhelming.

We knew what we were getting from him on the defensive side: virtually nothing. But we haven’t gotten the positives from him either: the point production.

After 101 point, Norris Trophy winning season last year with the San Jose Sharks, he’s on pace for 60 points this season with the Penguins. Back in July, I explored some of the caution the Penguins should have if they brought in Karlsson. This website was maybe two weeks old and I’m not even sure a single person clicked on it.

In that, I wrote that Karlsson’s 101 point season was a bit of a mirage; he had never performed anywhere near that level in his first four years in San Jose. I also wrote that Karlsson was a sort of anti-Phil Kessel. He performed a lot better when he was “the guy” on the blueline. That was the case in Ottawa and it was the case his last year in San Jose, after Brent Burns was traded.

I do think that with more time to settle in he will get better, and over the second half I do think he will start to produce a little more. But he better do it fast.

The Power Play, For God’s Sake

This is an obvious one.

If the power play is still this bad, it will be the biggest reason that they miss the playoffs. Currently converting at a 13.1% rate (only Chicago has a worse ranking), I am not exaggerating when I say this is one of the worst power plays I’ve seen in my life, if not the worst.

It’s not just the lack of scoring, it’s the talent that they possess while still being unable to score. A lineup that can regularly put out four guaranteed Hall of Famers should not be this bad…ever.

The Penguins have rotated different personnel on both units, but nothing has yet to click for a team that desperately needs something to click.

Get Jesse Puljujärvi Going

Jesse Puljujärvi officially signed a two-year deal with the Penguins this weekend. The forward was playing in the AHL on a professional try out while he got reps in after rehabbing from double hip resurfacing surgery.

We know the struggles of the former fourth overall pick: he fell out of favor with the Edmonton Oilers, got his groove back temporarily, then lost it again. In Carolina, things didn’t get any better.

But Puljujärvi has shown what he can do. In the 2021-22 season, he recorded 36 points in 65 games. He has size and skill, and now he has a new chance with a new team.

If all goes well, he could provide a spark for a reeling bottom six that is almost entirely devoid of depth scoring. The Penguins need to get as good a look at Puljujärvi as possible. He’s slated to start on the third line, which is the sensible place for him to start.

But the Penguins need Puljujärvi to be everything they haven’t seen from the majority of the bottom six. It’s a tall order for Puljujärvi to fill.

Get Key Wins Early

I mentioned the teams that are ahead of the Penguins, but I waited until now to give you the teams behind them. Both the Washington Capitals and New Jersey Devils have the same amount of points (51) as the Penguins. Those teams have both played one more game than the Penguins, but are right there with Pittsburgh as the wild card race will only heat up.

The Penguins have a very up and down start to their second half of the season: vs Winnipeg, at Minnesota, at Winnipeg, vs Florida, vs Chicago.

Aside from Chicago, that is a rough five game stretch for the Penguins coming out of the break. Minnesota has been disappointing, but is still competitive; Winnipeg is a surprise Stanley Cup contender, and Florida is a lethal combination of scrappy and skilled.

It will be quite the hard ask, but the Penguins desperately need points in at least four of those games. If it’s four wins, great. If it’s three wins and an overtime loss, alright.

This is critical for two reasons: one, it gives the Penguins momentum instantly. And two: it helps separate the Penguins from the logjam of teams they are currently in.

The longer they toil around in the area where teams like Washington and New Jersey currently are, the less and less likely their faint playoff hopes get. Pittsburgh needs to jump out of the game immediately if they have any shot at leapfrogging all the way up to a wild card spot.

(Featured photo of Erik Karlsson by AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)