The Penguins play six of their next seven games against Metropolitan Division rivals.
While four of those six games will be important matchups against the Rangers (three) and Islanders (one), the first game of that slate will be against the basement-dwelling Blue Jackets, 7:08 p.m. Tuesday night here at PPG Paints Arena.
Despite their poor season, the Blue Jackets aren't to be underestimated. It'll be important for the Penguins to focus on the task at hand rather than looking ahead, something Mike Sullivan preaches to his players on a daily basis.
"They're a really talented group," Sullivan said of the Blue Jackets following the Penguins' optional morning skate Tuesday. "They have some game-breakers. I think their power play can be really dangerous. (Patrik) Laine's as good a one-timer threat as there is in the league. (Johnny) Gaudreau is as good a power-play guy on the flank as there is in the league. These guys have some game-breakers on their side.
"I think their power play has the ability to be a difference-maker. I just think there's so much parity in this league. Regardless of where people sit in the standings, every night is a battle, every team has good players, every team is well-coached. It's really more about trying to bring a certain game and looking at ourselves that sets our team up for success and trying to dictate the terms out there. But certainly, this is a team that has a lot of threats throughout their lineup, their power play has the ability to be a difference-maker. We've got to be sure to bring our very best game."
MORE FROM THE SKATE
• Jake Guentzel is good to go and will play against the Blue Jackets after missing Monday's practice for a maintenance day. He hit the ice for the optional morning skate.
• There was a whole lot of nothing going on at the morning skate. Including Guentzel, only six skaters took the option to participate. The other five: Evgeni Malkin, Drew O'Connor, Dmitry Kulikov, P.O Joseph, Chad Ruhwedel.
• Tristan Jarry gets the start in goal for the Penguins. He is 19-7-5 this season with a .916 save percentage, 2.77 goals against average and 6.8 goals saved above expected based on the quality of chances he's faced, per Evolving-Hockey.
• Elvis Merzlikins will start in goal for the Blue Jackets. He is 7-17-2 with an .879 save percentage and 4.15 goals against average while allowing a league-worst 24 more goals than expected.
• There's no change in status for Ryan Poehling, who is continuing to deal with a nagging upper-body injury. He practiced with the team Monday, but did not participate in Tuesday's morning skate.
• Here's how the Penguins are expected to line up:
Jake Guentzel - Sidney Crosby - Rickard Rakell
Jason Zucker - Evgeni Malkin - Bryan Rust
Drew O'Connor - Mikael Granlund - Jeff Carter
Danton Heinen - Nick Bonino - Josh Archibald
Brian Dumoulin - Kris Letang
Marcus Pettersson - Jeff Petry
Dmitry Kulikov - Jan Rutta
• And here's how Brad Larsen's Blue Jackets lined up during their morning skate:
Johnny Gaudreau - Boone Jenner - Kirill Marchenko
Kent Johnson - Jack Roslovic - Patrik Laine
Eric Robinson - Cole Sillinger - Mathieu Olivier
Liam Foudy - Lane Pederson - Emil Bemstrom
Tim Berni - Erik Gudbranson
Nick Blankenburg - Andrew Peeke
Gavin Bayreuther - Adam Boqvist
• Joseph will find himself out of the Penguins' lineup for just the fifth time this season in favor of recently acquired Kulikov.
"Whenever we make lineup decisions with our team, we always have conversations with our players and explain the whys," Sullivan said. "We talk to all the players about what the expectations are for their respective games and how they can help us win. We ask them to control what's within their power and trust that the coaching staff is gonna make the best decisions for the hockey team."
• Puck drops against the Blue Jackets at 7:08 p.m. at PPG Paints Arena. Dejan Kovacevic and I will be there for your coverage.
