The Pittsburgh Penguins pulled off an improbable 3-2 win against the New York Rangers on Friday with an injury-depleted roster.
And it looks like their roster will be even more depleted heading into the second leg of their back-to-back on Saturday.
With captain Sidney Crosby already ruled out for Saturday’s game against the Philadelphia Flyers – he skated Saturday morning and is feeling “better than he did [Friday], according to head coach Mike Sullivan – forward Bryan Rust was placed on injured reserve with a lower-body injury, dealing yet another blow to an already-thin lineup.
Forward Boko Imama – who was also injured Friday – is unavailable for Saturday’s game.
Although they don’t anticipate Rust’s injury to last beyond the upcoming 4 Nations Face-off – this is the Penguins’ final game before the break – it’s still going to be quite the challenge, as the team is now down two of its top-three points producers and goal-scorers.
“Rusty’s a very good player for us,” Sullivan said. “And, once again, it’s going to challenge our group, it’s going to challenge our depth, and it’s going to provide opportunities for others to step up and make an impact.”
One of those players is forward prospect Vasily Ponomarev, who was recalled from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton – Pittsburgh’s AHL affiliate – ahead of Saturday’s game.
Ponomarev had a brief three-game NHL stint earlier this season. Although he didn’t register a point in those three games, he does have 11 goals and 27 points in 31 AHL games and has been one their primary contributors.
Sullivan and the Penguins like Ponomarev’s energy and versatility.
“He’s played really well for Wilkes-Barre,” Sullivan said. “He brings a lot of energy. He can skate, he’s tenacious on the puck, he’s scored some goals down there, he can play center, he can play wing… so I think there’s some flexibility to his game. I think, in all those ways, he can help us.”
In addition, Joel Blomqvist will get his first start in goal since Jan. 25 in a 4-1 loss to Seattle. The rookie has been reliable for the Penguins in his brief NHL career so far, but given the recent play of Alex Nedeljkovic, it has been hard to get Blomqvist a lot of looks.
“He’s a hard-working guy,” Sullivan said. “He’s had a lot of reps in practice, and he’s played a fair amount of games all year long. So, I don’t think it’s anything that we’re worried about. He’s a good goalie.”
Here is the Penguins’ full lineup for Saturday’s, which is a bit different than Friday’s:
As for the Flyers, the Penguins are set to face a team that has lost five straight games. They are injury-riddled as well, including missing forward Owen Tippett and defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen. They also just traded forwards Joel Farabee and Morgan Frost to the Calgary Flames for Andrei Kuzmenko and defenseman Jakob Pelletier – who is also on injured reserve.
The Flyers sit just two points behind the Penguins in the Metropolitan Division standings and are one of the few teams in the league that have played as many games as the Penguins’ 56.
