Penguins Notebook: Sam Girard Nears Return To The Lineup

The Pittsburgh Penguins held their final practice before Thursday's game against the Utah Mammoth on Wednesday.

All healthy players were accounted for, along with several players who missed Saturday's game against the Nashville Predators, including Evgeni Malkin, Egor Chinakhov, Ben Kindel, Justin Brazeau, and Sam Girard.

Girard was finally in a regular jersey after starting the week in a no-contact jersey and looks poised to return to the lineup. He skated with Kaedan Korczak and told reporters after practice that he felt great. 

"I feel great," Girard said. "It's probably the day I felt the best, so I'm very excited for tomorrow."

That definitely sounds like someone who is expected to return on Thursday. He's been injured for the last week and a half after he went hard into the boards against the Vegas Golden Knights. 

He'll be a big addition to the lineup since he was playing some exceptional hockey before the injury. 

Here were the practice lines and pairs: 

Forwards

Novak-Crosby-Rakell

Chinakhov-Kindel-Malkin

Kuzmenko-Lapierre-Koivunen

Dewar-Lizotte-Robertson

Defense

Stastney-Karlsson

Carlile-Letang

Girard-Korczak

- Justin Brazeau served as the 13th forward before he was assigned to the AHL's Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins after practice. He's going to WBS on a conditioning stint so that he can get some games in. He hasn't played this year after getting hurt in the pre-season. 

- All three of Chinakhov, Kindel, and Malkin are slated to return to the lineup with Girard on Thursday. Malkin is over his illness, while Chinakhov's injury appears to be healed. Finally, Kindel is thankfully alright after having a vasovagal episode on the team plane last Thursday. 

- Rutger McGroarty didn't practice on Wednesday, but appears to be the 13th forward after Avery Hayes was sent back to WBS. Defenseman Chase Pietila also got assigned to WBS. 

The Penguins will try to win their third straight when they finish their home stand against the Mammoth. This will be the second of two meetings between the teams after the Mammoth won 5-4 in Salt Lake City on Oct. 19. 

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