Game Day: Penguins Lines, Legare, Poulin, Joseph Featured vs. CBJ

On Monday night, the Pittsburgh Penguins will not dress their top players when the team begins the preseason schedule against the Columbus Blue Jackets at PPG Paints Arena. The game is less about the final score than individual results for a handful of players fighting to make the Penguins roster, and for some, make their NHL debut.

Penguins starting goalie Tristan Jarry will play half of the game, so fans will also get their first look at college free agent Filip Lindberg. Jarry has new black pads, and Lindberg upgraded his leg pads from the UMass red to primarily white with a bit black and gold. However, Lindberg’s UMass mask–in which he won the 2021 National Championship–remains.

Penguins fans will also get to see all three top prospects: Sam Poulin, Nathan Legare, and P.O. Joseph, who is charging hard for the roster, which could shuffle the Penguins’ expected blue line pairings. 

Head coach Mike Sullivan downplayed the results of the intrasquad scrimmages but placed the onus on performance in the preseason games. So, the real battles to win roster spots begin on Monday.

“There are certain opportunities that players have in front of them. And it’s their prerogative to take advantage of those opportunities. And so this is our first chance to play against an opponent…so there’s another level of intensity…

“We’re asking our young players to do what they do best and to make an impression, make an impact–not just get through the game, but try to make a difference in the game,” Sullivan said. “I don’t want them to overthink it. I don’t want to put too much pressure on themselves. I just want to go out there, enjoy the game and do what they do.”

Jeff Carter and Teddy Blueger will not dress for Game 1, so the team will be without its top two centers. Jake Guentzel, Bryan Rust, and Jason Zucker are also not in uniform, so three of the four top six-wingers will not be on the ice. Kasperi Kapanen highlights the lineup, as do new Penguins acquisitions Danton Heinen and PTO signer Brian Boyle.

In addition to Joseph, Cam Lee, Juuso Riikola, and Mark Friedman lead the blueliners. Tristan Jarry and

Pittsburgh Penguins Lines:

Poulin-Rodrigues-Kapanen

Heinen-Boyle-Legare

Simon-Gruden-Lafferty

Almeida-Bellerive-Drozg

Defense: 

Joseph-Marino

Riikola-Friedman

Lee-Ruhwedel

Tristan Jarry / Filip Lindberg

In case you want to clean up on some oddsmakers promos for a little preseason fun:

DraftKings Sportsbook

States: AZ, PA, NJ, IN, IL, CO, MI, TN, VA, WV

GET THE APP

SIGNUP BONUSUP TO $1,050 FREE
DEPOSIT BONUSBET NOW

Pittsburgh Penguins Roster:

Forwards:

9 – Evan Rodrigues

11 – Brian Boyle

18 – Sam Lafferty

22 – Sam Poulin

34 – Nathan Legare

42 – Kasperi Kapanen

43 – Danton Heinen

45 – Jonathan Gruden

49 – Dominik Simon

54 – Felix Robert

61 – Justin Almeida

64 – Jordy Bellerive

82 – Jan Drozg

Defensemen:

2 – Chad Ruhwedel

6 – John Marino

32 – Cam Lee

44 – Will Reilly

50 – Juuso Riikola

52 – Mark Friedman

73 – P.O Joseph

Goaltenders:

31 – Filip Lindberg

35 – Tristan Jarry