Pens’ Dupuis on getting booed at home: “You can’t say they weren’t right”

For a team that won 70 percent of its home games last year, the Pittsburgh Penguins’ 0-2 start at Consol Energy Center has been something of a stunner.

For their fans, it’s been frustrating to watch.

Last night, boos rained down on the Penguins during a 4-1 loss to the Islanders, a game in which Pittsburgh looked lethargic on special teams, going 0-for-3 on the power play while allowing the Isles to score on both of their man advantages.

“You can’t say they weren’t right in booing us,” Pascal Dupuis told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “You don’t want to hear it.

“At the same time, a slap in the face maybe won’t hurt.”

Pittsburgh could point to fatigue as the reason for its lackluster play. The Pens have played four of their first five on the road and four games in six nights, including a Friday-Sunday stretch in Winnipeg and Ottawa.

That said, nobody in the dressing room seemed ready to make that excuse — especially after such a poor outing on home ice.

“We’re not putting a very good product out there,” Chris Kunitz said. “They’re coming to watch supposedly a good team that goes out and plays, and we’re not doing that right now.

“[Booing is] what we’ve got to expect if that’s how we’re going to play.”