Penguins Notebook: New Look Power Play; Jobs Open on Blue Line

CRANBERRY, Twp — The Pittsburgh Penguins have begun work on their power play.

The ill-fated unit that provided more benefit to opponents than themselves by punting momentum, giving up shorthanded goals, and wasting opportunities last season has undergone one important change. More changes are expected.

On Monday, the first power play unit included Kris Letang, Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Bryan Rust, and Rickard Rakell. However, Erik Karlsson remains absent from practice due to injury, so it is unknown how the personnel may change in the coming weeks.

However, the biggest change is behind the bench. Assistant coach David Quinn replaced former associate coach Todd Reirden on the Penguins staff following a couple of stagnant seasons with the man advantage, culminating in last season’s abysmal 15.2% conversion rate.

New ideas and thinking immediately hit home. Gone was the firm bumper position, in which a forward staked claim to the middle of the ice and distributed the puck. The Penguins instead had a player in the slot to create traffic and puck support. Expect a few more tweaks and alterations over the coming weeks.

“(Quinn) changes a lot. He brings new ideas. Obviously, everybody has his own vision, and we had the chance to play against him, so he saw the way we operated,” said Letang. “And he wants to bring certain details that he thinks we should exploit. It’s always an adaptation and new ideas flow. Guys are excited by it.”

The Penguins used the large training camp roster to roll with four power-play units, and curiously, top prospect Rutger McGoarty was on the fourth unit. PP2 also used the increased bodies for traffic near the net, forgoing the traditional bumper look.

Matt Grzelcyk was the point on the second unit, with Kevin Hayes also playing high. Michael Bunting, Anthony Beauvillier, and Lars Eller were the other forwards.

One of the primary things coaches want to see is better zone entries that set up puck possession rather than a repeat of last year’s Arthur Murray two-step dance of dump-in and clear.

“Zone entries certainly weren’t a strength of the group (last year). But if you look back at the history of our power plays over the time we’ve been here, I don’t think entry is ever been the strength of our group,” said coach Mike Sullivan. “Having said that, I think it’s an opportunity for us to get better. If you can win faceoffs, you can establish zone time, then give your power play an opportunity to do what they do best.”

Blue Line Jobs

The ballyhoo surrounding the Penguins’ overflowing chalice of forwards has dominated the attention and discussion, but the blue line might not be as settled as we assumed.

Penguins defenseman Ryan Graves has been a fixture with third-pairing right-side defenseman Jack St. Ivany in training camp. That’s the same pairing that appeared in the final couple of months last season until Graves became a healthy scratch and then injured.

Graves didn’t necessarily have his best game Saturday in Buffalo, though we strongly caution that a veteran playing in a preseason road game isn’t usually at full throttle. There are a pair of depth defensemen in camp who have former ties to Penguins president of hockey operations/GM Kyle Dubas, Filip Krall, and Mac Holloway.

Ryan Shea had a few NHL stints last season, as did John Ludvig.

Could they earn a spot in the lineup?

“I think there’s spots to be won and spots to be earned. And that’s our plan. So, we’re going to reserve judgment. We’re going to watch the camp evolve and try to give players an opportunity to show what they can do– if they can earn spots to help us win games and play,” Sullivan said. “And that’s how we look at it. We’ve got a number of exhibition games coming up. We’re going to try to get some guys in those exhibition games to see if they show something that gives us some sort of insight or inclination that they are someone that we could add to our lineup that can help us have success.”

Shea was one of those surprise additions last season.

Hollowell,25, is a small defenseman, even when compared to other small defensemen. He is listed at 5-foot-9, 170 pounds, though some of that may be the magic of friendly media guides. He was paired with Graves on Saturday, and like most of the team, the pair struggled.

Hollowell made his NHL debut with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2022-23 and played six games, registering two assists.

Krall, 24, had a few standout moments in the intrasquad scrimmages last week, but he did not play in the first preseason game. Like Hollowell, Krall is an offensive defenseman. His slick passes and quick steps are immediately apparent.

“I think he’s a good player. I think he has good poise with the puck–You saw him in the power play scrimmage today, for example. You know, I think he’s got a pretty high panic threshold for a young guy,” said Sullivan. “He’s a pretty good player. He sees it pretty good offensively. I can’t say that I’ve seen enough of him that I can give you a detailed analysis of his overall game, but our initial impressions and watching him play throughout the course of training camp, we’re excited about what we’re seeing.”

Krall did run the third power play unit at practice with Jesse Puljujarvi, Emil Bemstrom, Jimmy Huntingdon, and Valtteri Puustinen. He is not a small defenseman–standing 6-foot-2, 198 pounds.

Krall also made his NHL debut with Toronto in 2022-23, getting a sweater for two games.