Meaning the skill to catch that pass with with his skate. The acceleration. The glide. The lateral cut. The toe-drag between the hashes. And, of course, the finish.
And after the Penguins' 5-2 victory over the Capitals in the season finale tonight here at PPG Paints Arena, I'd tell the young man precisely that.
What I didn't know, as I'd add, was that he had this:
Catch that?
If not, check it out again, and keep a close on those shifty wrists ... in the split-second before he slides that puck across to Sidney Crosby for the classic statue finish. The play developed off a turnover created by Connor Dewar, and Tomasino stepped off the boards to find Sid ... hey, why was Sid there?
"Where'd he even come from?" Tomasino'd ask me.
To which I replied that he'd just bounded off the bench for a change on the fly.
"Well, all I know is I look up, and there he is. I've got to get the puck through to him."
Through was the key. Jakob Chychrun, Washington's recently extended $72 million defenseman, focuses -- correctly -- on cutting off any pass. One knee down. Shaft down. At the worst, in theory, he'll force Tomasino to saucer and, thus, create a bumpy landing at the far end.
Nope. Because there's one tiny hesitation in Tomasino's delivery -- that's just enough to send Chychrun skidding harmlessly out of the low slot and clearing the path.
"Yeah, but how about that finish?" was all Tomasino would say when I initially broached this.
I tried again, and all I got was, "Man, when it's Sid, just need to get it there."
Fine. Let the record show I tried.
And, infinitely more important, that Tomasino made plenty of his first 51 games in Pittsburgh, all following the Nov. 25, 2024, trade in which Kyle Dubas sent a fourth-round pick in the 2027 NHL Draft to the Predators, the team that took him in the first round in 2019 but, apparently, gave up: Tomasino finished with 11 goals and 12 assists in those 51 games, this despite doing some bottom-six duty along with some alongside Evgeni Malkin.
He's still only 23, too. Sequences like those above don't sour at that age.
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THE ASYLUM
Dejan Kovacevic
6:29 am - 04.18.2025UptownDrive to the Net: Tomasino twist
I knew Phil Tomasino had this:
Meaning the skill to catch that pass with with his skate. The acceleration. The glide. The lateral cut. The toe-drag between the hashes. And, of course, the finish.
And after the Penguins' 5-2 victory over the Capitals in the season finale tonight here at PPG Paints Arena, I'd tell the young man precisely that.
What I didn't know, as I'd add, was that he had this:
Catch that?
If not, check it out again, and keep a close on those shifty wrists ... in the split-second before he slides that puck across to Sidney Crosby for the classic statue finish. The play developed off a turnover created by Connor Dewar, and Tomasino stepped off the boards to find Sid ... hey, why was Sid there?
"Where'd he even come from?" Tomasino'd ask me.
To which I replied that he'd just bounded off the bench for a change on the fly.
"Well, all I know is I look up, and there he is. I've got to get the puck through to him."
Through was the key. Jakob Chychrun, Washington's recently extended $72 million defenseman, focuses -- correctly -- on cutting off any pass. One knee down. Shaft down. At the worst, in theory, he'll force Tomasino to saucer and, thus, create a bumpy landing at the far end.
Nope. Because there's one tiny hesitation in Tomasino's delivery -- that's just enough to send Chychrun skidding harmlessly out of the low slot and clearing the path.
"Yeah, but how about that finish?" was all Tomasino would say when I initially broached this.
I tried again, and all I got was, "Man, when it's Sid, just need to get it there."
Fine. Let the record show I tried.
And, infinitely more important, that Tomasino made plenty of his first 51 games in Pittsburgh, all following the Nov. 25, 2024, trade in which Kyle Dubas sent a fourth-round pick in the 2027 NHL Draft to the Predators, the team that took him in the first round in 2019 but, apparently, gave up: Tomasino finished with 11 goals and 12 assists in those 51 games, this despite doing some bottom-six duty along with some alongside Evgeni Malkin.
He's still only 23, too. Sequences like those above don't sour at that age.
Want to participate in our comments?
Want an ad-free experience?
Become a member, and enjoy premium benefits! Make your voice heard on the Steelers, Penguins and Pirates, and hear right back from tens of thousands of fellow Pittsburgh sports fans worldwide! Plus, access all our premium content, including Dejan Kovacevic columns, Friday Insider, daily Live Qs with the staff, more! And yeah, that's right, no ads at all!
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