OTTAWA -- It's on.
Mike Sullivan will once again load up the Penguins' top line tonight against the Senators with Sidney Crosby playing between Jake Guentzel and, yes, Phil Kessel.
Sullivan clearly liked what he saw from that trio in Thursday night's win over the Islanders. They combined for 10 points, with Kessel earning four of them. Two of his points were goals -- one even-strength, one power-play -- that were the direct result of Crosby passes down low that Kessel merely had to tap home.
These are three of the Penguins' most offensively gifted players, and it's a bit of a departure from Sullivan's philosophy of trying to get balanced scoring down the lineup. But with Dominik Simon on IR and now Patric Hornqvist out for at least one game with an upper body injury, the coach put Crosby and Kessel right back together again.
"I thought we'd start there and see where it goes," Sullivan explained. "Certainly, they're two elite players. I think they know each other very well. Sid has the ability to adjust and adapt his game based on who we put around him. I think Sid and Jake have played a lot together most of the year. We tend to move different people around on the right side and then adjust accordingly. But when Phil plays with those two guys, there's a whole other threat because of the elite player that he is: His scoring ability, his passing ability, his speed, his ability to make plays off the rush."
Indeed, Kessel is best off the rush while Crosby is best working down low in tight spaces. But if Thursday's exhibition was any indication, these two very different players -- and people -- can co-exist quite nicely.
"He likes to get ahead of the play and create some open ice for himself especially down the wing," Crosby said. "I just have to make sure I support him when I do get him the puck."
And don't underestimate Guentzel's role on that line, either. He had arguably the most quiet three-point night of his career against the Islanders.
"Just get them the puck as much you can," he said. "Two high-end players. Obviously, it's different."
Of course, that line comes with an inherent risk, notably, defense. Sullivan admitted that there were more than a few defensive breakdowns Thursday but added that the reward outweighs the risk for the time being. Besides, Crosby and Guentzel can make up for Kessel, who will never be confused for a Selke candidate.
"Sid brings an element of defense or defensive conscience to that line," Sullivan said. "Sid's a good 200-foot player. He can play both sides of the puck. He's good in his own end. Jake, too. He's a guy who can play both ends of the rink as well. I think that line has the ability to be good at both ends of the rink and we're going to need them to be."
Kessel can be difficult to deal with on the bench -- he's had some legendary arguments with Evgeni Malkin-- but Crosby insists that is never an issue. All of them do play on the top power play.
"It's not like I don't know the guy," the captain said. 'I think we're all pretty intense. If you've ever been on our bench, there's lots of disagreement. Everyone's pretty competitive. That's normal."
THE ESSENTIALS
THE INJURIES
• Penguins: Patric Hornqvist, right winger, will miss his first game since suffering an upper body injury on Thursday. He is day to day. ... Dominik Simon, forward, will miss his second game with an upper body injury sustained Tuesday. He is on IR. ... Matt Murray, goalie, is out longer term with a lower body injury. … Matt Cullen, center, is out longer term with a lower-body injury. ... Both Cullen and Murray are on the trip and skated on their own again on Saturday, after their teammates. ... Justin Schultz, defenseman, is expected to miss four months after fracturing his leg Oct. 13 in Montreal.
• Senators: Mark Borowiecki, defenseman, is on IR with an undisclosed injury. He will miss his seventh straight game. ... J-G Pageau, center, is on IR with an Achilles injury but is skating.
THE SKATE
• Casey DeSmith was the first goalie off the ice and will make his fourth straight start.
• With Hornqvist out, Jean-Sebastien Dea will be in, one day after he was recalled from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the AHL and the same week he was reclaimed off waivers from the Devils. It marks the beginning of his second stint with the Penguins, who lost him in training camp.
Dea said that Devils assistant GM Tom Fitzgerald had informed him that he was being placed on waivers and that there wasn't much discussion about being sent down to the AHL. The Devils knew Pittsburgh was likely to poach him right back. Dea scored three goals in 20 NHL games but none since Oct. 16.
"It's part of the business," he said. "They have to make changes, and hopefully it's for their best."
• Marcus Pettersson did not play a lot on the power play in Anaheim, but he could be on the second unit tonight. He, along with Olli Maatta, manned the points on the second unit Saturday morning.
• Tanner Pearson says he's feeling more and more comfortable each game with the Penguins. The biggest adjustment he's had to make is playing with Malkin. In L.A., he was a straight-line player on the wing. With Malkin, you have to be ready to be anywhere.
"I'm going down the boards and I'm taking my natural route that I'm used to, but he wants me to come in and cut over," Pearson said. "Just little things like that will benefit for us."
• Odds are pretty good that Zach Aston-Reese will get his third goal of the season season tonight. Come on, he's scored half of his six career goals in three games against the Senators. He doesn't know why, either.
"I think sometimes the hockey gods are on your side against a certain team," he told me.
• Murray and Cullen not only made the three-game road trip that will continue with stops in Long Island and Chicago, but also took the ice together following Saturday's skate. Sullivan said it's an encouraging sign. The next step for both is to participate in a full team practice.
THE OTHER SIDE
The Senators are not about to feel sorry for the Penguins.
On Saturday, they announced that Matt Duchene was going on IR with a groin injury and is expected to miss a couple weeks. Also, Bobby Ryan is out with a concussion and there's no timetable for his return. Both had appeared in all 29 games this season to date. Duchene is Ottawa's leader in assists (22) and his 34 points are 10th in the league, more than Crosby, Malkin or Kessel. Though he's far removed from his Anaheim glory days, Ryan still had 18 points (six goals) and was on the top power play.
With those two out, Guy Boucher had to scramble his lines. Boucher said he hasn’t decided whether he will go with 12 forwards or seven defensemen. But it appeared that the new fourth line will feature Tom Pyatt with Max McCormick and Nick Paul. The latter two have appeared in 17 games combined this season. Paul was recalled on Friday.
“It’s an opportunity for other guys to step up and fill roles,” said Craig Anderson, who will start in goal.
THE COMBINATIONS
• Here's a look at the Penguins' lines and pairs based on who's available and ... intuition:
Guentzel — Crosby — Kessel
Pearson — Malkin — Sheahan
Aston-Reese — Brassard — Rust
Dea — Grant — Wilson
Dumoulin — Letang
Pettersson — Johnson
Maatta — Oleksiak
• These are the Senators' lines and pairs:
Tkachuk -- White -- Stone
Boedeker -- Tierney --Batherson
Dzingel -- Smith -- Paajarvi
McCormick -- Paul -- Pyatt
Chabot -- DeMelo
Lajoie -- Ceci
Harpur -- Jaros
THE SCHEDULE
Faceoff tonight is at 7:08 p.m. at Canadian Tire Centre. The Penguins will have an off-day Sunday. They will face the Islanders on Monday night in Uniondale, N.Y.
THE COVERAGE
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