CRANBERRY, Pa. -- The Penguins are three steps closer to finally having a healthy roster for the first time this season.
Teddy Blueger, Kasperi Kapanen and Tristan Jarry all rejoined the team for practice Tuesday for the first time since exiting the NHL's COVID protocol.
Blueger exited protocol Sunday and skated on his own prior to the afternoon start against the Sharks. Jarry exited protocol Monday, and Kapanen came out of protocol Tuesday.
All three will be available for Wednesday's game against the Blues at PPG Paints Arena, Mike Sullivan said after practice.
Jarry experienced "mild" symptoms while in protocol, Sullivan said, causing him to remain in protocol two days longer than the NHL's five-day isolation requirement for a positive test. Blueger and Kapanen exited protocol on the fifth day, as soon as they were eligible.
Blueger said that he didn't experience any symptoms while in protocol, and that he felt "completely normal."
"I feel pretty good now," Blueger said after Tuesday's practice. "Obviously it's a little tougher, missing with the Christmas break, that kind of compounds the time that I missed out on skating and stuff. But overall I feel pretty good."
With the Penguins having back-to-back games Wednesday and then Thursday in Philadelphia, getting Jarry back is an especially big boost.
"Tristan, he's been one of our best players this year," Sullivan said. "He's been just providing consistent saves for us game in and game out that's given this team a chance to win. That's what he's done. So to get him back into the mix here, I think is great news for our team. We'll prepare him as best we can here over the next little while, because we're obviously going to rely on him moving forward."
The Penguins are entering Wednesday's game on an eight-game winning streak. And as the Penguins get closer to full health, they're excited to see just how much higher the team's ceiling can go.
"I think this year with all the adversity and everything we faced, we don't even know our potential now," Kris Letang said. "We didn't have a full lineup yet. There's always room for improvement, and I think it's the case for our team."
MORE FROM PRACTICE
• Drew O'Connor tested positive for COVID prior to practice Tuesday and was added to the protocol.
• Jeff Carter remains in protocol after testing positive Jan. 1. He experienced symptoms, and Sullivan said that he'd consider Carter "day-to-day" as a result, though he noted that Carter "is feeling much better. He's improved a lot over the last few days."
• Jason Zucker, who is week-to-week with a lower-body injury, skated on his own before practice.
• Brian Boyle returned to practice after missing Saturday's practice and Sunday's game for the birth of his third child. I've got more on that in a separate story.
• Louis Domingue was the lone absence from practice, though he skated before and after the session. Sullivan said Domingue is healthy, and his absence was just a matter of logistics. They didn't need a third goaltender in practice, wanting Jarry and Casey DeSmith to both get their reps in.
• The Penguins sent Anthony Angello back to Wilkes-Barre before practice began.
• The Penguins used these lines and pairings:
Jake Guentzel - Sidney Crosby - Bryan Rust
Evan Rodrigues - Evgeni Malkin - Kasperi Kapanen
Zach Aston-Reese - Teddy Blueger - Brock McGinn
Danton Heinen - Brian Boyle - Dominik Simon
Kasper Bjorkqvist - Radim Zohorna - Sam Lafferty
Brian Dumoulin - Kris Letang
Marcus Pettersson - John Marino
Mike Matheson - Chad Ruhwedel
Juuso Riikola - Mark Friedman
• The first power play was Letang, Sidney Crosby, Jake Guentzel, Evan Rodrigues, Bryan Rust.
• The second power play was John Marino, Mike Matheson, Evgeni Malkin, Danton Heinen, Kapanen.
• Several members of Fenway Sports Group ownership were in attendance for practice in the management box above the ice, their first time around the team since becoming majority owners. They met with members of the coaching staff following practice, and Sullivan said that he came away from the meeting sensing "right away their appetite to win."
"I think these guys are really excited to acquire our team and to bring some of the resources and the insights and the expertise that they've gained in some of the other sports franchises that they've they've been associated with," Sullivan said. "I think they're excited about our team. And that excites me because I know these guys are every bit as invested as our last ownership group in trying to try to help us win championships. That's what drives us, each one of us, every single day when we get up in the morning. ... I think they're going to be a great asset for us in trying to help us find ways to continue to grow and get better, and try to create a competitive advantage now wherever they can."
• Letang said that if he had to put a number to it, he'd say that he expects to play five more seasons, though he added that it "could be more." After Evgeni Malkin recently said that he expects to play "three, four" more years, Letang joked that he "had to beat Geno. Sid's going to say six."
Like Malkin, Letang said that he isn't thinking too much about his next contract.
"I don't really think about this right now. To be honest, there's a lot of guys without contracts coming up. Right now, I'm just trying to play my game, bring the same level. My goal as every time I enter the year is to win another Stanley Cup, and that's what I focus on. The rest is going to take care of itself."
• Blueger, who captained Latvia in the Olympic qualifying tournament in the offseason, expressed disappointment that he won't be able to participate in the Beijing Games next month.
"For us, Latvia is not in it every year, so it's disappointing not to go, I think, because it is a rare opportunity," he said. "But at the same time, you do kind of understand those circumstances that played into that decision. With all the games getting postponed in the NHL and stuff, it did seem like it was heading that direction leading up to it. So it wasn't that much of a surprise. Hopefully, things settle down in the future and down the road, we'll still get another opportunity to go."