Jan Rutta has been a perfectly fine 3rd pair defenseman, but with the flat salary cap and Chad Ruhwedel sitting in the stands, was it unnecessary to sign him? The Pittsburgh Penguins return to action against the defending Stanley Cup champions, the Colorado Avalanche. The Penguins are looking to start the back end of the season on the right foot as they take on one of the premier teams in the league. Here's what to watch for in this matchup. 1. Crosby vs. MacKinnon The most intriguing matchup between these two teams is the battle of two of the game's best players: Sidney Crosby vs. Nathan MacKinnon. The prides of Nova Scotia are close friends and even fiercer competitors. The Avalanche took both matchups last season against the Penguins, with MacKinnon pitching in four points over those two contests. Crosby will be looking for a little revenge against his good pal in this matchup between the Pens and Avalanche. 2. Penguins Close to Full Health With the exception of defender Jan Rutta and goaltender Tristan Jarry, the Penguins are nearly back to a healthy lineup. Their forwards at least, appear to be all ready to play. Fourth liners Ryan Poehling and Josh Archibald rejoined practice alongside Teddy Blueger to reunite their high-energy fourth line. Kasperi Kapanen slotted back into the third line with Jeff Carter and Brock McGinn. The top-six also saw a brief shakeup in practice, as right-winger Rickard Rakell took rushes on the first line with Sidney Crosby and Jake Guentzel. The switch with Bryan Rust reunites him with Jason Zucker and Evgeni Malkin on the second line. With a few weeks until the trade deadline, the Pens will have a limited number of games to find better results before Ron Hextall must make some final roster decisions. Getting healthy is a great start. 3. Cup Champions Still Hungry For More The Colorado Avalanche are a fantastic team, and despite injuries to MacKinnon and captain Gabriel Landeskog the defending champs are 27-18-3. Led offensively by the Finnish dynamo, Mikko Rantanen and the perennial Norris candidate, Cale Makar, the Avalanche are still just as deep as they were last season. Crosby put it best when he said: "They've got a lot of guys that are game breakers. so defensively we're going to have to be good." To make matters worse, the Avalanche are getting healthy at the right time. Combine that with the goaltending duo of Alexandar Georgiev and Pavel Francouz, and the Penguins will have their hands full against the potent Colorado Avalanche team. The Penguins face off against the Avalanche at 7:00 p.m. Make sure you bookmark Inside the Penguins [http://insidethepenguins.com/]for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns and so much more! Penguins Named Perfect Fit for Brock Boeser [https://www.si.com/nhl/penguins/news/pittsburgh-penguins-named-perfect-fit-brock-boeser] Penguins Hope to Reset, End Volatility After Break [https://www.si.com/nhl/penguins/news/pittsburgh-penguins-reset-end-volatility-after-break] Penguins Should Still Look at Trading First Round Pick [https://www.si.com/nhl/penguins/pens-talk/pittsburgh-penguins-still-look-trading-first-round-pick] Penguins Shift Lines Upon Return From Break [https://www.si.com/nhl/penguins/podcasts/pittsburgh-penguins-shift-lines-return-break] Ron Hextall Says Penguins Trade Talks Are Picking Up [https://www.si.com/nhl/penguins/news/ron-hextall-pittsburgh-penguins-trade-talks-picking-up] * undefined * undefined
