The Penguins hope a number of things will be different when they meet the New York Islanders in Game 2 of first-round playoff series tonight at PPG Paints Arena.
Especially the outcome.
How the game will turn out is impossible to say, but the Penguins can be assured of at least one noteworthy change from their 4-3 overtime loss in the opener Sunday: The size of the crowd.
Because of a recent relaxation in Pennsylvania's COVID-19 restrictions, there should be more than 9,000 fans in the building for the game, which is scheduled to begin at 7:38 p.m.
That's up from the 4,672 who were on hand for Game 1.
Will it have an impact?
There's no way of being certain, of course, but Mike Sullivan said Tuesday that having more fans should be a plus for his team.
"Anytime we can put more of our fans in the building at once, it's a bonus for our team," he said. "We have such passionate fans and they're such great supporters of our team. I know our players are so appreciative of what they bring to the environment. It's just not the same without them.
"We feel our home-ice advantage is significant, given the fan support and the energy that they bring. We're thrilled to have more people in the building. We all look forward to the day when we can sell it out again."
While it's a given that there will be more fans at PPG Paints Arena, it's unclear whether Evgeni Malkin and/or Brian Dumoulin will be.
Actually, the issue isn't so much whether they will be present for the game, but whether they'll spend it in street clothes or their uniforms.
Malkin sat out the opener because of an unspecified injury and Dumoulin was hobbled after being hit by a shot and did not practice Monday.
Both took part in an optional game-day skate this morning -- Malkin also had a lengthy on-ice session with skills coach Ty Hennes beforehand -- and were pronounced by Sullivan to be "game-time decisions."
He also said that backup goalie Casey DeSmith did not skate today and will not be in uniform for Game 2.
Regardless of who is in the lineup, Sullivan said the Penguins believe they can perform better than they did in Game 1.
"We think we have another level," he said. "We've got make sure we heighten our level of intensity, we heighten our level of urgency. Our execution can improve and get better in certain areas."