CRANBERRY TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- In an era when NHL teams rarely keep line combinations together for a week, let alone a season, nicknaming them is usually a pointless exercise.
Take, for example, the Penguins' second line of Riley Sheahan, Phil Kessel and Dominik Simon. That makeshift trio looks to make their debut in Game 1 of Pittsburgh's second round series against the Capitals on Thursday night. At just four games, Kessel is the longest continuously-tenured second liner.
With Evgeni Malkin and Carl Hagelin out with injuries for Game 1 at Capital One Arena, Kessel has a new center and left wing to work with.
Fortunately for the Penguins, Kessel has previous work experience with Sheahan. Before the Penguins acquired Derick Brassard in late February, Kessel and Sheahan had been linemates on what was a productive line.
"Anytime you get a chance to play with someone for an extended stretch, it helps," Kessel said of Sheahan after Wednesday's practice at the Lemieux Sports Complex. "I was able to play with him, I don't know, 20 games or so this year. You build a little chemistry and know where people are and where they like to play. He’s a good player, obviously. ... He does all the little things right. He’s got really good skills, too."
Of course, Kessel is the most highly-skilled player of the group. He's a three-time All-Star, two-time Stanley Cup champion and coming off a career year in which he set new highs for assists (58) and points (92). When Mike Sullivan reunited Kessel with Malkin before Game 3 of the Flyers series, it was with the express intent to better utilize Kessel's powerful snap shot, one of the heaviest and most accurate shots in the league.
Kessel used that shot on his 2-on-1 with Malkin in Game 4 for his lone goal of the series:
Scoring, Sullivan said, is still the goal. Despite the injuries, Sullivan is still trying to balance out his offense over four lines.
“I think we’re trying to find complementary skill sets, guys that have shown an ability to work together and be successful," Sullivan said. "So we have some history to draw on. So based on that history, we’re trying to make decisions that make us the most competitive."
Sullivan has full confidence in Sheahan, who has shown himself to be a proven commodity regardless of what role or which linemates. He has been a chameleon of sorts, not looking the least bit out of place whether centering the second line or the fourth. Sheahan says his game doesn't change.
"Just try to make space for them, use my body and get to the front of the net and just be ready to make some plays because they’re offensive-minded guys," he said. "Just got to get open for them and create opportunities and be sound in the defensive zone for them."
Indeed, after a slow start in Pittsburgh, Sheahan has displayed a decent scoring touch, scoring 11 goals in 73 games and emerging as the Penguins' most reliable defensive forward. In the six-game Philadelphia series, Sheahan had three points, including this goal to close out Game 4:
The X-factor on the line, of course, is Simon. Here, I asked Kessel about working with his young linemate:
While Kessel has played in 692 consecutive regular season games, the 23-year-old Czech hasn't played in three straight games since the first week of March. Since then, he has been in and — mostly — out of the lineup. Only when Patric Hornqvist went out with an upper-body injury in Games 4 and 5 against the Flyers was Simon reinstated from the press box.
Then, Simon skated on the first line and produced an assist in each game, including this between-the-legs pass at the far blue line to Sidney Crosby, who set up Jake Guentzel in Game 5:
Like Sheahan, Simon has played everywhere but has more of a top-six skill set. He had 12 points (four goals, eight assists) in 33 games.
He says which line he plays on matters little to him — it's "still the same game" — but he believes he can complement his new linemates.
"I feel like I'll be good," he said. "I'll try to make some space, make great plays. We'll just try to have the puck a lot and play responsibly defensively, and, yeah, I feel it could be good."
MATT SUNDAY GALLERY