COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The basic eye test suggested that the Penguins didn't seem terribly interested in their preseason finale at Nationwide Arena Saturday night.
The stat sheet wasn't nearly so flattering.
The game was nearly 50 minutes and they had generated all of 13 shots on Blue Jackets goalie Elvis Merzlikins, whose most impressive feat to that point might have been resisting the temptation to take a nap in his crease.
Then, in the matter of a few shifts, everything changed.
The Penguins began to throw pucks at -- and past -- Merzlikins, ultimately transforming a 3-1 deficit into a 4-3 victory when Jason Zucker knocked in a Jeff Carter rebound from close range during a power play a 1:18 of overtime, after Columbus had been caught with too many men on the ice.
Can't blame the Blue Jackets for trying that tactic, though, after the way they had been outmanned while the teams were playing with five men each during the second half of the third period.
"I just thought we started to play," Mike Sullivan said. "It looked like, in the first couple of periods, we were just trying to get through the game."
Bryan Rust began to rewrite the story of this game at 10:22 of the third, when he carried the puck across the blue line, then drove to the net before sliding a shot between Merzlikin's legs to cut Columbus' lead to 3-2.
"I think that when we scored, it gave us a little boost of energy on the bench, and we were able to get some momentum," Sullivan said. "For the first two periods, we certainly weren't at our best."
Or even in the same time zone as their best, for that matter. And while reversing the flow of a game isn't supposed to be as easy as flipping a switch, the Penguins made it look that way.
"We just started playing downhill, playing at them," said Chad Ruhwedel, who had scored their first goal. "And took the game to them in the second half of the third."
In addition to the late-game surge, there were a few things Sullivan and his staff probably liked about the game.
The penalty-killers did not allow a goal, despite having to fend off the Blue Jackets' power play for nearly nine minutes during the first period, and Tristan Jarry had a strong showing. Indeed, he was the primary reason the Penguins had an opportunity to stage their comeback, since he prevented Columbus from building an insurmountable lead.
"I thought Tristan was really good tonight," Sullivan said. "I thought he really was seeing the puck well. He made some high-quality (saves) during the first couple of periods."
That Jarry faced such a high volume of dangerous shots won't please the coaches, but he viewed it as getting one final warmup before the real games get going.
"Shots are good," Jarry said. "I think that helps me get in the game. That helps me focus on the things I want to work on and get what I want to get out of the exhibition games."
With the Penguins starting the season with an injury-diluted lineup and facing a string of accomplished opponents during the next few weeks, they will need consistently strong play from Jarry to avoid slipping down the standings in the ultra-competitive Metropolitan Division.
Jarry said he believes this training camp has prepared him for the challenges ahead, and that his confidence level is "high" going into the regular-season opener Tuesday in Tampa.
"Getting that extra game, getting some shots, getting some more game play, I think that helps," he said.
The Penguins will have one more practice before the opener, and while Sullivan wishes he had more time to prepare his team for the regular season, he seems reasonably satisfied with what has been accomplished during this camp.
"We've been able to establish the foundation of how we want to play," he said. "I think the structure there is evident. I think the execution needs to continue to improve. I still think we have a long way to go. There's no doubt about that, but I thought we improved each day.
"We'd always like to have more time, as coaches, to work on things, and there are always details of our game that we can improve on and get better, but the reality is that there's always a finite amount of time, so this is always a work-in-progress."
Sometimes, that progress comes more quickly than expected. Like in the middle of the third period.
MORE FROM THE GAME
• The Penguins played most of the game with five defensemen after Mark Friedman was assessed a five-minute spearing major and game misconduct for jabbing Blue Jackets center Sean Kuraly after Kuraly bowled over Jarry in the crease at 9:47 of the first period.
"(The referee) thought that he speared him," Sullivan said. "That was their viewpoint. I certainly appreciate us sticking up for one another in those types of instances, but I think we have to do it in a smarter way."
Kuraly got a goalie interference minor and Sam Lafferty got two minutes for cross-checking after he leveled Kuraly, so Columbus came out of the sequence with a five-minute power play that the Penguins managed to kill.
• The Penguins had a 26-23 edge on faceoffs, with Brian Boyle's 5-2 mark setting the pace.
• Ruhwedel, on the Penguins' greatest strength heading into the season: "We're a fast team. We use it. ... If we use our speed, we're pretty hard to beat."
• Brock McGinn had two assists, tying linemate Teddy Blueger for the team scoring lead.
• For a change, Kris Letang didn't lead the Penguins in ice time. He played 24 minutes, 20 seconds, which was 35 fewer seconds than John Marino.
• Drew O'Connor, Dominik Simon and Kasperi Kapanen played in five of the Penguins' six preseason games.
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
• Live file
• NHL scoreboard
• Standings
• Statistics
THE THREE STARS
As selected at Nationwide Arena:
1. Jason Zucker, Penguins
2. Sean Kuraly, Blue Jackets
3. Max Domi, Blue Jackets
THE INJURIES
• Sidney Crosby (wrist surgery) has not had a target date to rejoin the lineup announced.
• Evgeni Malkin (knee surgery) is expected to be out until at least December.
• Jake Guentzel was diagnosed with COVID-19 a week ago.
• Zach Aston-Reese was diagnosed with COVID-19 Sept. 27.
• Mike Matheson has an unspecified lower-body injury.
THE LINEUPS
Sullivan’s lines and pairings:
Danton Heinen-Jeff Carter-Bryan Rust
Jason Zucker-Evan Rodrigues-Kasperi Kapanen
Brock McGinn-Teddy Blueger-Dominik Simon
Drew O’Connor-Brian Boyle-Sam Lafferty
Brian Dumoulin-Kris Letang
Marcus Pettersson-John Marino
Mark Friedman-Chad Ruhwedel
And for Brad Larsen's Blue Jackets:
Patrik Laine-Alexandre Texier-Jakub Voracek
Gustav Nyquist-Jack Roslovic-Oliver Bjorkstrand
Eric Robinson-Sean Kuraly-Yegor Chinakhov
Boone Jenner-Cole Sillinger-Max Domi
Vladislav Gavrikov-Adam Boqvist
Jake Bean-Andrew Peeke
Mikko Lehtonen-Gavin Bayreuther
THE SCHEDULE
The Penguins will be off Sunday, then practice Monday at UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex before traveling to Tampa for the regular-season opener Tuesday at 7:38 p.m.
THE CONTENT
Visit our team page for everything.
