Sullivan's changes walk a fine line

Dominik Simon had to know what the score was, and that was long before the puck even dropped on Thursday night's crucial Game 4 against the Capitals.

All Simon had to do was look around during warm-ups to see Daniel Sprong skating as if he were a legitimate possibility to play.

Thanks to Tom Wilson, there was considerable question as to who would dress in Zach Aston-Reese's spot as the 12th forward. Could it really be Sprong? The organization's top prospect would have been the sexier pick, but Mike Sullivan, as he has throughout his tenure, knew exactly what was required.

Desperate times call for, well, not throwing a 20-year-old kid who hasn't played in the NHL in four months into the middle of a hotly-contested playoff series.

But in a game where defeat would have pushed the two-time defending champions to the brink of elimination, it did call for changes, including breaking up a line that had scored every one of his team's even strength goals in the first three games against Washington.

Sullivan moved Patric Hornqvist down to the second line, reuniting the power forward with Evgeni Malkin and Carl Hagelin, who was making his first appearance of the second round after missing the previous three games with an upper body injury.

Sullivan explained his rationale for the switch:

Filling in for Hornqvist on the most productive line in the Stanley Cup Playoffs was ... Simon. Yes, the same Simon who was a healthy scratch for four of the six games against the Flyers and the one who couldn't buy a goal in Game 1 against the Capitals.

Pressure to win? Pressure to keep a spot in the lineup? All of the above?

"I mean, I try to keep it same as always," Simon told me. "Just try to get ready for every game."

Well, even after playing with Jake Guentzel and Sidney Crosby, the two leading scorers in the playoffs, Simon still hasn't scored a goal. It wasn't for a lack of trying though:

But he was more than just a third wheel. He was a contributor in the Penguins' 3-1 win that evened this best-of-seven at two games apiece.

Simon earned the primary assist on Guentzel's goal at 9:21 of the second period:

He collected Crosby's backhanded pass in the slot and threw a quick shot — one of his three attempts — on Braden Holtby, who was able to make only the initial stop. Guentzel corralled the rebound and slid the puck just within the left post to open the scoring. It was Simon's third assist in just six games this spring, giving him more points than Conor Sheary (2) and as many as Derick Brassard, Bryan Rust and Riley Sheahan. More on that later, though.

"We played with Dom before, we have the chemistry and know what kind of player he is," Guentzel said. "Obviously, stepping right in and did a good job. Really happy for him. Hope he keeps it going."

Indeed, Simon had 12 points in 33 games during the regular season with Crosby involved in seven of them. Simon has decent offensive skills and works well in small spaces, which certainly helps in the playoffs.

But that's just how good the Penguins' top line has been through the first nine games of this postseason. No offense to Hornqvist or Simon, apparently it doesn't matter who is playing with Guentzel and Crosby. They're going to find ways to score.

At least that's how the captain looks at it. Changing up the line, he says, is no big deal.

"You have confidence with whoever you play with that they’re going to play their role and do what they need to do and contribute in any way they need to," Crosby said. "I think, as players, what you need to do doesn’t change regardless of the line you're on. For the most part, there's little subtle adjustments here or there.

"Sometimes coaches want to do that. As players you have to go out there and do what you need to do."

And that perfectly sums up what the Penguins did in Game 4: They did what they needed to do. No more, no less. It wasn't aesthetically pleasing, but it got the job done. They now find themselves in a best-of-three going into Saturday night's Game 5 in D.C.

Whether the lineup that Sullivan employed Thursday travels with them below the Mason-Dixon Line remains to be seen. If you hadn't heard about his lines, "nothing is etched in stone." But it would seem that the coach has at least found his top two lines.

"I thought Geno's line was good," Sullivan said. "I thought they had offensive zone time, they were on the puck. 

"The other thing (the Malkin line) does for us, it creates more of a two-way line. Haggy and Horny are both conscious defensively and I think that helps the overall balance of the line."

Malkin, Hornqvist and Hagelin didn't register a point — the former two combined on Malkin's game-winning power play goal at 17:31 of the second period — but they did have four shots on goal and two other attempts.  In a tightly-played defensive game without a lot of open ice, their possession numbers at 5v5 were pedestrian at best (Hornqvist was the best of the three with a 50.0 Corsi For percentage). But for a first game back together, not bad.

Defensively, though they were better. If one sequence showed the sense of urgency the Penguins needed to play with to get this must-win, it's this one midway through the third period:

That's Hornqvist getting tagged by a Michal Kempny slap shot and then getting back up to try and block another. And that's Malkin throwing his entire 6-foot-3, 195-pounds in front of another Kempny blast.

But as inspiring as it is to see the should-have-been Hart Trophy finalist giving up the body, it's his job to score goals. Same with Brassard and Phil Kessel, who looked completely lost, hurt or both:

Someone besides the top line has to start scoring. Just as a reminder, the Penguins have now gone 14 periods of hockey without getting an even-strength goal from a player not named Guentzel or Crosby.

And it's probably not realistic to assume that Guentzel, who has 10 goals in 10 games, is going to keep scoring at that pace for the next month or so.

"First line played an unbelievable game for us," Malkin said. "We need more second, third, fourth line support. Help the team, help the first line, score a little bit more. We have like 20 guys who are amazing players here, but they need a little bit of help."

MATT SUNDAY GALLERY