March 27, 2015
On the scene: Malkin calls Penguins ‘so bad now’ 62
Mike Johnston swoops around the ice as the Penguins warm up for practice Friday. — DEJAN KOVACEVIC
BY DEJAN KOVACEVIC
Sights, sounds and the scene at Consol Energy Center today …
• Evgeni Malkin was whirling about the ice at practice this afternoon, after which he declared there’s a ‘great chance’ he’ll return tomorrow against the Coyotes. He seemed especially upbeat that he was, in his fifth skating session since the lower-body injury, skating with usual linemates Blake Comeau and Chris Kunitz.
“Being out there with the guys, I feel good,” Malkin said. “There’s nothing bad now. No pain.”
Maybe even more uplifting was this magnificently candid assessment of the team’s current state: “We play so bad right now. It’s true. It’s not just one guy. It’s the whole team.”
He let out a loud exhale.
“I hope I come back. I hope Hornie come back. We should start to play better, listen to the coach, play better on the power play … every game is important right now because we have 91 points, and that’s not enough for playoffs. We should play better. The whole team.”
He went on to label the 5-2 loss last night at Carolina “maybe our worst game the whole season.”
All hail the bold, new No. 71, speaking out like no one else.
• Patric Hornqvist, a.k.a. ‘Hornie,’ practiced, too, and Mike Johnston seemed to rate Malkin and Hornqvist as having equal chances to return. But it might mean something that Hornqvist rotated in and out of his usual line — with Sidney Crosby and David Perron — on drills. Hornqvist acknowledged it will be ‘day to day’ if he plays.
• Other personnel stuff: Christian Ehrhoff didn’t practice and probably won’t until next week, Johnston said. Steve Downie didn’t practice because of what Johnston called a maintenance day. He’s expected to play tomorrow. Crosby left practice halfway through because of a doctor’s appointment that was scheduled a month ago. The team described it as routine.
• It will be Thomas Greiss vs. Mike Smith tomorrow, Marc-Andre Fleury on Sunday.
• Kunitz has one goal in his past 25 games, as you might have heard or read, and he hasn’t been all that visible for an alternate captain, you also might have heard or read. Well, I asked him for a minute today, and he agreed to a couple questions before a legit appointment he had to make:
• Johnston, on his stoic nature, even when things are going this badly: “I can get emotional at times, but I try to keep it in check, deal with the situation. Give direction. Be firm. Don’t get out of whack, out of character. … Every once in a while, you’ve got to step out of character to keep the team or an individual sharp, to keep them on their toes. But you’ve got to stay who you are.”
• If you’ve noticed Maxim Lapierre controlling the puck more of late, especially in the loss last night, it’s no accident.
“This is my time of year. It’s when I start feeling more confident,” he said. “And if you look at where I was before, St. Louis wanted me to do a lot of hitting. Here, it’s about puck possession. So I’m going to try to make plays.”
• Coincidence that Mario Lemieux watched the entire practice while seated with Jim Rutherford?
Eh, probably not.
For one, while Lemieux is a regular at Consol, he generally isn’t that visible for an entire hour.
For another, based on an informal chat he and I had later … let’s just say he was a tad displeased with what was witnessed in Raleigh last night.
