Pos | Role | Name |
C | 1 | Sidney Crosby  ActiveSidney Crosby scored a goal and picked up an assist in Wednesday's 5-0 Game 4 win over the Philadelphia Flyers. Crosby's assist on Evgeni Malkin's opening goal tied him with Mario Lemieux for the most playoff points in franchise history. Crosby then broke the record with a goal to give him sole possession of the record with 173 points. He's now up to nine points through four games this post-season. The Penguins will head back to Pittsburgh with a 3-1 series lead with Game 5 scheduled on Friday. Apr 18 |
| 2 | Evgeni Malkin  SidelinedThe Pittsburgh Penguins have confirmed that Evgeni Malkin (leg) will miss Game 6. As we previously reported, Malkin didn't join the team for their pregame warmups, so we anticipated him being ruled out of the game. However, it's official now so we're passing that along. It's certainly a big absence for the Penguins, but the silver lining is that Patric Hornqvist is returning from his upper-body injury. Apr 22 |
| 3 | Derick Brassard  ActivePenguins coach Mike Sullivan was very happy with Derick Brassard's performance in Game 3. Brassard only got 11:15 minutes of ice time in the contest, but he did contribute a goal and registered two hits. He also led the Penguins in terms of Corsi For percentage in that contest. It's all particularly encouraging because Brassard missed the last five games of the regular season due to a lower-body injury and it seems he's needed some time to get back up to speed as a result. "I think he's getting better with every game he's played," Sullivan said. "He’s coming off an injury where he hadn't had the opportunity to get into any sort of a flow. We'd really liked his game prior to the injury that he had. We thought he was really gaining traction, but since he's come back, we think he's getting better with each game that he plays." Apr 17 |
| 4 | Riley Sheahan  ActiveRiley Sheahan could see more ice time Sunday with Evgeni Malkin questionable to play. Even if Malkin is able to go, he likely will not be close to 100 percent, giving extra ice time to both Sheahan and Derick Brassard. Sheahan had 11 goals and 32 points in 73 games for Pittsburgh after they acquired him from Detroit early in the season. Apr 22 |
| 5 | Carter Rowney  SidelinedCarter Rowney (upper body) took part in Friday morning's skate. Rowney, who has not played since March 14th, was wearing a no-contact jersey during the skate. The next step for Rowney is to participate in the Penguins' full practice. There is no timetable for that, however. Apr 14 |
LW | 1 | Jake Guentzel  ActiveJake Guentzel recorded two assists in a 5-0 win against Philadelphia in Game 4 on Wednesday. Guentzel has excelled in the first round with a goal and seven points in four games. That puts him in a three-way tie for fourth place in the NHL's postseason scoring race. Among Penguins players, he ranks second behind only Sidney Crosby. Apr 19 |
| 2 | Bryan Rust  ActiveBryan Rust found the back of the net in a 4-2 loss to Philadelphia in Game 5 on Friday. Rust has two goals in four games this playoffs. He only netted 13 goals during the regular season over 69 appearances, but he has elevated his game in the postseason before. Remember, he had 15 goals in the regular season in 2016-17 and ended up with seven goals and nine points in 23 playoff outings a year ago. Apr 20 |
| 3 | Carl Hagelin  ActiveCarl Hagelin picked up a goal and an assist in Wednesday's 7-0 win over the Philadelphia Flyers. Hagelin stripped Flyers center Sean Couturier of the puck moments before he tipped home the Penguins' second goal of the night. He also registered the only assist on Evgeni Malkin's tally just over four minutes later. Hagelin finished the game with a plus-1 rating and three shots on goal in 18:55 of ice time. Sidney Crosby (three), Jake Guentzel and Bryan Rust also found the back of the net for the Penguins, who lead the best-of-seven series 1-0. They dominated this game from beginning to end. Apr 11 |
| 4 | Tom Kuhnhackl  ActiveTom Kuhnhackl will be back in the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Devils. Kuhnhackl has missed the last eight games because of a lower-body injury. He'll skate on Pittsburgh's fourth line with Riley Sheahan and Carter Rowney. He has two goals and six assists in 50 games. Feb 27 |
RW | 1 | Phil Kessel  ActivePhil Kessel has been consistent when it comes to scoring goals in the playoffs. Over 75 career playoff games, Kessel has only gone four straight contests without a goal on five occasions. Kessel didn't have a goal in the first three games of the Penguins' first round series this year, but he avoided making it four-in-a-row by scoring a goal and registering an assist in Game 4. He's coming off a terrific regular season where he had 34 goals and 92 points in 82 games. Apr 20 |
| 2 | Patric Hornqvist  ActivePatric Hornqvist (upper body) is officially ready to return Sunday afternoon. Hornqvist took part in the pregame warmups, so this announcement was expected. Look for him to serve on the top line with Sidney Crosby and Jake Guentzel. Apr 22 |
| 3 | Conor Sheary  ActiveConnor Sheary only received 8:15 of ice time in the 5-1, Game 2 loss to the Flyers. Sheary, who has struggled thus far in the post-season, started the contest on the Pens' third line but didn't finish there as Zach Aston-Reese flipped spots with Sheary. With only 12 shifts Friday (a few in the third period on the fourth line) Sheary will need to play better pretty soon or he will continue to marginalized. Apr 14 |
| 4 | Dominik Simon  ActiveDominik Simon registered an assist in Pittsburgh's 5-0 win over Philadelphia in Game 4 Wednesday night. Simon was making his NHL playoffs debut after Patric Hornqvist (upper body) was ruled out for the contest. Simon finished with a plus-two rating in 12:36 minutes of ice time. Apr 19 |
| 5 | Zach Aston-Reese  ActiveZach Aston-Reese chipped in an assist in the Penguins' 5-0 win over Philadelphia in Game 4 on Wednesday. It was Aston-Reese's first career playoff point in his fourth game. The 23-year-old rookie had four goals and six points in 16 regular season contests. Apr 19 |
D | 1 | Kris Letang  ActiveKris Letang did not look good in the Penguins' Game 5, 4-2 loss to Philadelphia. Valtteri Filppula was primarily responsible for making Letang look bad as he stickhandled around him on Claude Giroux's goal, beat him for a shorthanded goal, and pressured him into a turnover for the empty-net goal. Letang is going to have to be a whole lot better if the Penguins want to retain the Stanley Cup. Apr 21 |
| 2 | Justin Schultz  ActiveJustin Schultz collected three assists in Sunday's 5-4 overtime victory over Philadelphia. Schultz helped set up goals by Patric Hornqvist (power play), Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby to give the Penguins a 4-3 lead at the time. He has accounted for 23 points in 57 matches this season. Mar 25 |
| 3 | Brian Dumoulin  ActiveBrian Dumoulin scored his first of the playoffs Sunday. Dumoulin scored the fourth Penguins goal and it tied an NHL record as the Penguins scored twice in five seconds. After a five goal, 18 point performance in 80 regular season games, Dumoulin has three points in three playoff games thus far. He averages a goal every 35 games during the regular season but improves that to one in 16 during the playoffs. Apr 16 |
| 4 | Olli Maatta  ActiveOlli Maatta (illness) participated in Wednesday's practice. Maatta will be available for Wednesday's contest against Vancouver. That's not surprising given that Maatta had been playing through the sickness, but it is worth confirming because he had recently missed some practices. Nov 22 |
| 5 | Chad Ruhwedel  ActiveChad Ruhwedel will be a healthy scratch in Saturday's game against the Canadiens. Ruhwedel has two goals and three assists in 42 games this season. This will be the second consecutive game he watches from the press box. Mar 31 |
| 6 | Matt Hunwick  ActiveMatt Hunwick will be a healthy scratch in Friday's game against the Philadelphia Flyers. Hunwick was also scratched in the first four games of the series. He had four goals and six points in 42 games this season. Patric Hornqvist and Carter Rowney will both miss the game due to injury. Apr 20 |
| 7 | Jamie Oleksiak  ActiveWhile the Penguins are full of players with a wealth of postseason experience, Jamie Oleksiak is looking to make his playoff debut. Pittsburgh acquired Oleksiak from Dallas back in December to add some defensive depth and provide the squad with a towering, physical blueliner. He went on to record four goals, 14 points, and 69 penalty minutes in 47 games with the Penguins. He should be in the lineup for Game 1. "Honestly it’s more excitement than it is nervousness," Oleksiak said. "We played that game in Columbus [Thursday] night, which was as close to a playoff game as you’re going to get in the regular season. That was a lot of fun. I’m looking forward to kind of going in with this group. I think it’s a great group to go into the playoffs with." Apr 9 |
G | 1 | Matt Murray  ActiveMatt Murray allowed three goals on 24 shots in Friday's 4-2 loss against the Flyers in Game 5. Murray faced a motivated Philly team playing for their season. The Pens still have a 3-2 series lead going into Sunday's contest with a chance to advance to Round 2. Murray has been superb in his playoff wins this year, but his defeats have been another story. In the team's three victories he has allowed a total of just one goal. In the two losses, he has yielded seven goals on 43 shots. Apr 20 |
| 2 | Casey DeSmith  ActiveCasey DeSmith turned aside all 35 shots he faced in Friday's 4-0 win over the Ottawa Senators. The Penguins goaltender waited until the final day of his team's season to pick up the first shutout of his NHL career. He's won three of his last four outings. He'll finish the regular season with a 6-4-1 record with a 2.40 goals-against-average and a .921 save percentage this season. If the Pens make a long playoff run, it's probably because DeSmith won't see much action. Apr 6 |