With Ryan Poehling out of the lineup, Danton Heinen will return to the ice with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
PITTSBURGH - Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan confirmed that forward Ryan Poehling will not be in the lineup against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Thanks to an upper-body injury, Poehling will be out day-to-day meaning Danton Heinen will make his return to the Penguins lineup.
Heinen has been a healthy scratch for three straight games thanks to a drop off in production; in his previous 17 games before being scratched he only recorded three assists.
In place of Heinen went Kasperi Kapanen who earned himself a longer stay in the lineup thanks to five (4G-1A) points in three games.
After playing above expectations in his first year with the Penguins last season, Heinen hasn’t held on to that same consistency.
He started the season with six points in five games, and at one point was promoted to the first line with Sidney Crosby, but hasn’t had the same luck since late October.
What can fans expect from Heinen as he makes his re-enters the lineup? Sullivan hopes to see a return to regular form.
“Just his consistency of play,” Sullivan said. “He’s got good offensive instincts. I think he’ll bring offensive dimension to the lineup.”
This recent set of scratches from the lineup isn’t the first time Heinen has been in Sullivan’s dog house.
Last year, Heinen played a stretch of games where he held the lowest amount of ice time on the Penguins.
Heinen came out of that run as a much improved player and capped off a 33-point season with five points in his last eight games.
“When he’s strong on the wall, when he’s contentious defensively,” Sullivan said. “I think his overall game gets better. He ends up with better offensive looks.”
Sullivan notes that Heinen is an important player for the Penguin and will be looking for a complete game on both ends of the ice.
“He’s a very good player for us,” Sullivan said. “He’s a guy that can help us in so many different ways on both sides of the puck. I think he’ll bring an offensive dimension to the bottom six.”
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