Ryan Shea could be on the door step of his NHL debut with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Through a mixture of injuries and under-performances from certain players, the Pittsburgh Penguins may be looking at a couple of early changes to their lineup.

Most notable among them could be the addition of defenseman Ryan Shea who skated with the Penguins first defensive unit at the most recent practice.

Shea was added to the roster this past offseason and is yet to make his NHL despite spending three years at the AHL level.

The Penguins are yet to give a full update on the status of Kris Letang who missed practice with a lower-body injury.

Shea skated in Lateng’s place on the top pairing, but this isn’t his only chance to make the lineup.

Third-pairing defender Chad Ruhwedel has gotten off to a rocky start to kick off the season and the Penguins may be interested to see what they have in Shea.

Regardless of when, where, or why Shea gets in, he’ll be ready for the call.

“It’ll be great to get into the lineup, whenever that is,” Shea said. “Obviously, I can’t really control that. I just got to keep doing my part.”

If the Penguins need him and they do decide to go with Shea, they like what they’ve seen so far through his preseason and practice performances.

Head coach Mike Sullivan spoke highly of Shea’s defensive attributes and noted that he continues to get better at every opportunity.

“Hit pace of play is improving with every practice that he has with us,” Sullivan said. “We really like what we’ve seen from Ryan to this point.”

According to Sullivan, Shea is right in the middle of the conversations being had about possible adjustments to the lineup.

The Penguins might soon see changes from the offense and defense and Shea is waiting in the on-deck circle for his chance.

“When the opportunity comes I’ll be ready.”

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