The Pittsburgh Penguins may very well be getting a boost from the return of Jordan Staal for Game 4 tonight of the Eastern Conference semifinal against the Montreal Canadiens, but they will be without veteran Bill Guerin and probably big bruiser Mike Rupp as well.
Staal took the morning skate with his teammates and looked far better than he did a day earlier.
While he was still favouring the right foot with the damaged tendon that was only mended last Friday night, Staal's movement was more fluid and he seemed to be adjusting well to the awkwardness of using one foot more than the other.
Staal said "it's everyone's two cents" when asked whose decision it is whether or not he plays. But from the sounds of it, the decision will rest largely with Staal. And if that's the case there's little doubt he'll play.
"Talking to the doctors and talking to Jordan, it's about him being comfortable in the boot. There's no danger to the procedure that he had or any other dangers," head coach Dan Bylsma said. "When and if he was able to play, we'd probably put him in a situation where's he's not directly back in (for) 20 minutes a night."
If it's only about Staal's comfort, there's no one other than him who can determine that. And the past two days he sounds like a man who is ripping his hair out watching his teammates play.
Guerin out, Rupp doubtful
Meanwhile, Guerin skated with his teammates Thursday morning and looked to be at full speed, but he told reporters afterwards that he will miss his second straight game with an undisclosed injury or illness.
Mike Rupp, who took part in Wednesday's optional practice with the Penguins, did not skate Thursday morning and was described as doubtful for tonight's game by Bylsma.
At times in this series, Rupp has been an intimidating physical presence for the Penguins, but at other times has not taken advantage of his size to hit the smaller Canadiens when he had a chance.
Habs look to spread ice time
Over the past six games, Canadiens coach Jacques Martin has essentially gone with three lines to camouflage his team's lack of depth up front. It appears like that will change tonight.
Martin moved Travis Moen onto a line with Glen Metropolit and Tom Pyatt at the morning skate, while Dominic Moore and Maxim Lapierre were joined by Mathieu Darche. The top two lines saw a return of Andrei Kostitsyn to his regular spot with Tomas Plekanec and Michael Cammalleri, while Benoit Pouliot was with Scott Gomez and Brian Gionta.
Darche had the unfortunate assignment as a bench door opener in Game 3, not seeing the ice for a single shift. Metropolit has also seen very limited ice time in the series and the playoffs in general, but he's hopeful that will change tonight.
"I've been averaging five minutes a game and it's kind of frustrating when you know you can do a lot more offensively," Metropolit said.
Being on a line with Pyatt and Moen should ensure that Metropolit sees more of a regular shift tonight, while Darche will be guaranteed of seeing more ice time than he did in Game 3 as soon as he sets foot on the ice for the first time tonight.
Martin says he needs to spread the wealth a little bit if he wants his top forwards to survive the series from a physical standpoint.
"When you're looking at the big picture and looking at the series, I think that's what the intentions are," he said.
Pyatt has not been hurting for ice time in the playoffs as he appears to have gained Martin's trust, averaging nearly 12 minutes a game in the playoffs and playing a key role on the penalty kill. An excellent skater and very responsible defensively, Pyatt is proving to be far more than a simple throw-in to the deal that brought Scott Gomez to Montreal from the New York Rangers.
"It gave me an opportunity to surprise people," Pyatt said when asked what it feels like to be described as a throw-in. "I've been kind of flying under the radar my whole career, people didn't talk about me too much. I wanted to prove I can play in this league and I want to get better every day, every year. I think that was a pretty good deal."
Considering how well Gomez has played in the playoffs and the pleasant surprise of Pyatt, one would think the Canadiens think the same thing.
As the world turns
While Andrei Kostitsyn looks to be getting another opportunity to prove his value as a top-six forward, there was more drama surrounding his younger brother Sergei this morning as Martin met with him prior to the morning skate and asked him to go workout in the gym rather than join his teammates on the ice.
"No reason," Martin said when asked why he didn't want Kostitsyn on the ice. "Let's say our concentration and focus is on tonight's game."
Kostitsyn's talent is undeniable, but his work ethic and character have often come into question over his time with the Canadiens, which looks like it's coming to an end.
He was cut out of training camp this year and refused to report to the AHL's Hamilton Bulldogs. After meeting with Bob Gainey and his agent Don Meehan, Kostitsyn finally did report and worked his way back to Montreal by November.
He played in four of the first five games against Washington in the first round, but in Game 5 Kostitsyn just watched a puck that he had a chance to clear out of the defensive zone. That puck eventually wound up in the Montreal net off the stick of Alexander Ovechkin.
Kostitsyn got one more shift in that game, but the lazy play appeared to be the last straw for Martin and he hasn't dressed for a game since.
Then on Tuesday, after the morning skate, Kostitsyn was leaving the Montreal dressing room when he was asked by backup goaltender Carey Price - who had just left the ice, long after Kostitsyn - why he wasn't practising with the rest of the scratches.
"Too good?" Price asked him as Kostitsyn walked away.
It was a glimpse into what Kostitsyn's teammates think of him, and Martin finally decided today to quarantine him from the rest of the players.
