CRANBERRY, Pa. -- Last week, then-taxi squad goaltender Max Lagace spoke about the opportunity he had being the third goaltender on the Penguins' depth chart.
"I've been in this position before," Lagace said. "I'm just trying to have fun with it, I'm not trying to put too much pressure. If anything happens, I just go in and have fun. I know what I can do, I'm old enough to keep it simple. I just try to get better everyday, and good things will eventually happen. It's just staying ready, staying healthy, practice every day hard."
Just a few days later, he got one step closer to getting into an NHL game.
Lagace, 28, was elevated from the Penguins' taxi squad to the active roster prior to Sunday's game against the Capitals and backed up Tristan Jarry for the game. Casey DeSmith was unavailable due to a non-COVID illness.
DeSmith was absent from Monday's practice at the Lemieux Complex, so Lagace got into his first full practice of the season after weeks of just participating in small taxi squad group skates.
"After one practice, I felt good at the end there," he said. "But it was definitely a challenge at first to get back to game-form."
Mike Sullivan was impressed by how Lagace handled the challenge of returning to a full practice.
"I think Max did a good job," Sullivan said. "I heard him talking to (goalie coach Mike Buckley) saying that he's not used to being involved with a practice with that type of pace and that type of intensity, and that's the adjustment when you're on the ice with NHL players, and some of the best players in the game at that. I'm sure it was a little bit of an eye-opener for him. I thought he did a real good job."
The taxi squad goaltenders and active roster goaltenders are mostly kept separate, so in the event of a COVID situation the team doesn't have all of its available goaltenders go on the protocol list. Today, then, was the most he's been around Tristan Jarry since training camp. They had some interactions during practice, and then they sat on the ice talking and stretching for an extended period of time after practice.
"When I talked to him, he's a really nice guy," Lagace said of Jarry. "He's a hard-worker. There are lots to learn from both of the guys up here. It's been fun to watch the games and see all the stuff that I can improve on and bring my game to another level."
Jarry spoke of how difficult it must have been for Lagace to jump right into a practice given the circumstances.
"He's been awesome," Jarry said. "It's tough coming from the taxi squad into a full practice, it's probably his first practice in over a year. You see how tough it is and how well you have to stay in shape on the taxi squad, I think that's the challenge. I think he's done a great job so far."
Lagace was a free agent signing by the Penguins on the second day of free agency this fall. He spent the previous season in the AHL as the Providence Bruins' starter, posting a .919 save percentage and a 2.37 goals-against average.
"I feel like I took huge steps," he said of last season. "There's still a million things to take me to the NHL level, but I feel like I can work on those things and be here at some point."
If Lagace gets in an NHL game in Pittsburgh, it won't be his first. Before joining the Bruins organization, Lagace spent two years in the Golden Knights' organization. He appeared in 16 NHL games in 2017-18, and one game in 2018-19.
"It was a great time," he said of his stint in Vegas. "It came fast, I learned a lot from the experience about myself as a goalie. That made me grow into the goalie I am now. I've been in this position before, and I know what to kind of expect, or to not expect. It's just stay ready, work hard. That's how I've been my whole career. So I'm just going to stay here and wait for the opportunity, and I'll be ready whenever it comes."
MORE FROM PRACTICE
• Marcus Pettersson was a full participant again. He also worked with the top penalty kill, an encouraging sign that he might play next game.
• All of the other injured players are "status-quo," no changes to their status.
• The Penguins used these lines and pairings:
Jake Guentzel-Sidney Crosby-Bryan Rust
Jason Zucker-Evgeni Malkin-Kasperi Kapanen
Zach Aston-Reese-Teddy Blueger-Brandon Tanev
Colton Sceviour-Mark Jankowski-Sam Lafferty
(Drew O'Connor)
P.O Joseph-Kris Letang
Mike Matheson-John Marino
Marcus Pettersson-Cody Ceci
Chad Ruhwedel-Yannick Weber
• The top power play was Kris Letang, Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jake Guentzel, Bryan Rust.
• The second power play was John Marino, Mike Matheson, Kasperi Kapanen, Mark Jankowski, Jason Zucker
• The top penalty-killing unit was Brandon Tanev, Teddy Blueger, Cody Ceci, Pettersson.
• Ron Hextall and Brian Burke both watched practice from the box above the ice. Both were in and out of the office on the phone.
• Between Hextall, Jarry, and Lagace, there are a combined four career goalie goals. Jarry scored his in Wilkes-Barre, Lagace was credited with a goal while playing for the AHL's Chicago Wolves after the opposing team put it into their own net.
