Casey DeSmith's season is off to a miserable start.
At best.
He has appeared in just three of the Penguins' first 18 games, and hasn't done much to justify a heavier workload.
DeSmith is winless (0-2-1) and owns the fifth-worst save percentage (.856) and goals-against average (4.71) among the 79 goalies who have appeared in an NHL game this season.
Not the kind of numbers a guy who is eligible for unrestricted free agency next summer would like to put up, obviously.
Equally apparent is why he's spent so much time on the bench during the first six weeks of the season.
And it's not just because so many pucks have eluded him.
The Penguins' schedule so far has been less than grueling -- they've played on consecutive days just once -- and Tristan Jarry, their go-to goalie, has been their best player in 2021-22.
What's more, despite their impressive three-game winning streak, the Penguins are in 11th place in the Eastern Conference, based on winning percentage (.556). Clearly, they need every point they can collect.
Take all of those factors into account, and it's easy to understand the coaching staff's temptation to consistently call upon Jarry, even when it means straying from its preliminary plan, as was the case for the Penguins' 3-1 victory in Winnipeg Monday.
DeSmith had been penciled in to start against the Jets, but the plan changed when Jarry entered the week with back-to-back shutouts and a streak of 151 minutes, six seconds without yielding a goal.
Jarry didn't give Mike Sullivan any reason to second-guess that decision, turning aside 30 of 31 shots in a victory that allowed the Penguins to return home with six points from their three-game swing through Canada.
When a goalie has rejected 80 of 81 shots -- on the road, no less -- it might seem perfectly reasonable to deploy him as often as possible, including in both ends of a double-header if the NHL sees fit to schedule one.
But it isn't.
Not in today's NHL.
Fact is, DeSmith is a logical candidate to get the call against the Canucks Wednesday at 7:08 p.m at PPG Paints Arena. Vancouver is 1-5-1 in its past seven games, has the fifth-lowest winning percentage (.368) in the league and has been ineffective in virtually every meaningful facet of play.
The Canucks rank 28th in goals-for (2.37), 23rd in goals-against (3.21), 23rd in power-play conversions (16.2 percent) and dead-last in penalty-killing (62.3 percent).
While there are no guarantees in the NHL, an evening against Vancouver might be one of the closest things to a potential 60-minute infusion of confidence for which a struggling goaltender could hope. Even when the team in front of him has just returned from a week on the road, which often leads to it being sluggish or out of synch for the first game back.
Still, much as a reliable point-producer shouldn't be expected to break out of a slump with a four-point night, regardless of the caliber of the opposition, no one should assume that DeSmith will be able to instantly get his game in order and elevate it to the level anticipated before the season.
Especially when he's made it into just one game since Oct 28. No goalie, regardless of pedigree, should be counted on to remain sharp when he's playing about once a month.
Still, a single solid showing -- especially one that rewards him with a victory -- could be all that's needed to begin lifting DeSmith out of his rut.
Confidence can be an underrated commodity, but the reality is that a player who feels good about his game is more likely to perform well.
And make no mistake, it is imperative that the Penguins have a capable partner for Jarry.
DeSmith has proven that he is able to fill that role -- remember the public distress when he wasn't available to replace Jarry after Jarry fizzled in Round 1 against the Islanders last spring? -- and there's no good reason to think that he can't continue to do so.
Not after he's only made it into three games, anyway.
The onus, of course, will be on DeSmith to prove that he still can be an effective backup.
At the same time, Sullivan and his staff have a responsibility to give DeSmith a reasonable opportunity to succeed, and playing once in the past 11 games doesn't qualify.
Regardless of what the Penguins view as a realistic objective for 2021-22, they almost certainly will need a reliable No. 2 goaltender to achieve it.
DeSmith deserves an opportunity to demonstrate that he still can handle that duty.
If he can't, the Penguins need to begin looking for someone who can.
But not until DeSmith has been given a fair chance to prove himself.
Which means using him often enough that he doesn't need to consult a GPS to find his way to the crease.