Penguins Preview: Dark Horse Making Case for Bigger Role

The Pittsburgh Penguins could look to improve playing time for one of their quickly-improving forwards.

PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Penguins have been backed into a corner, with their hopes of making the postseason dying a painful death. After mounting a comeback in their previous contest, the Penguins couldn’t earn a win and dropped their second straight game at home. The Penguins are hopeful the third game of the home stand is the lucky charm as they welcome the Montreal Canadiens to town. Here’s what to watch for as the Penguins take on the Canadiens. 

Getting the most significant opportunity of his young career this season in Pittsburgh, Drew O’Connor has put together a career-best season. Playing quite a bit on a line with Evgeni Malkin, O’Connor has established career highs across all offensive categories with 30 games left to play. He has three points in his last four games, and the Pens will need more production from DOC to procure their first win of the homestand. 

The Canadiens have a group of promising and exciting forwards, and the list is only growing. Their recent first-overall pick, Juraj Slafkovsky, is the latest young player to see a jump in his game. In 55 games this season, he has 12 goals and 30 points. He’s not performing at the superstar level you expect a number-one pick to perform at, but he’s becoming an outstanding player. With more confidence in each game he skates, the Penguins must find a way to stifle the young sniper. 

Amongst a crowded field of underwhelming depth forwards, the Penguins are looking for someone to break free from the pack. One player who is making a case is Valtteri Puustinen. With nine points in 23 games, he’s showing that he can score at the NHL level and deserves a spot in the lineup. He played one of the best games of his brief career in the Pens’ most recent loss, including his second goal of the year. If he can keep this scoring up, he’ll have a permanent spot on the third line or perhaps more in the Penguins lineup. 

The Penguins and Canadiens face off at 7:00 p.m. at PPG Paints Arena. 

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