The Penguins on Monday sent Zach Aston-Reese and Zach Trotman to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, nearly completing their opening-night roster.
Neither was a surprise, really. Trotman was a given to start in the American Hockey League, but there remained a small amount of hope that Aston-Reese would overcome the fact that he’s still on a two-way contract.
He did not.
Perhaps it was the broken jaw that affected his summer training, or the fact that he wasn’t assertive enough at the beginning of the preseason, but the Penguins want Aston-Reese to regain his “swagger” in the minors.
“We don’t think it hurts for a guy like him to get a handful of games playing a lot of minutes in critical situations and to get his confidence back,” coach Mike Sullivan said Monday. “Get the swagger to his game back.
“We don’t see any downside to that process. As I said to Zach, by no means does this diminish what we think of him as a player. We know he’s an NHL player. We know he’s a guy who’s going to help this Pittsburgh Penguins team win.”
So does this complete what the Penguins will look like Thursday night against the Washington Capitals?
Well, sort of.
It’s what the roster will look like.
Who’s actually healthy enough to play remains to be seen. Of note Monday:
• Brian Dumoulin is day-to-day with an upper-body injury. He skated on his own before practice, an indication that he could return in time for the Capitals game.
“Obviously the fact that Dumo’s on the ice is encouraging,” Sullivan said.
• Tristan Jarry is day-to-day with a lower-body injury, although it appears doubtful at this point he’ll be ready for opening night.
That means Casey DeSmith will remain Matt Murray’s backup.
• Daniel Sprong (knee) rejoined the group Monday in a non-contact capacity, although he did take some light contact with assistant coach Mark Recchi afterward.
Sprong said as long as everything checks out fine Wednesday, he anticipates wearing a regular sweater for practice Wednesday — the club is off Tuesday — and being available Thursday.
“After I got the injury and had it evaluated, the thought in my head was to get ready for Thursday,” Sprong said. “Right now, every step I’ve taken there’s been no setbacks.
“The knee feels really good. I’m happy with the process. I know how the knee feels right now. I should be ready to go for Thursday.”
Kessel: ‘I thought I did OK’
Phil Kessel didn’t let on whether he wrote his own speech for a ceremony he attended last week at the Library of Congress, where he received the Excellence in Cancer Awareness award from the Congressional Families Cancer Prevention Program.
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” Kessel joked.
Whomever wrote it did a terrific job. In his opening remarks, Kessel cracked a joke about people in Washington clapping for him and delivered a solid speech for a cause that’s near and dear to his heart.
“It went well, I thought,” Kessel said. “I thought I did OK. I’m not the best public speaker, but I did OK.
“I had a good time there. It’s something I went through in life. Made me stronger.”
Kessel had surgery for testicular cancer in 2006 when he was a member of the Boston Bruins.
It’s something he has grown more comfortable talking about, although it’s never easy, Kessel admitted.
“It’s tough,” Kessel said. “Not everyone likes to talk about it. For me it happened a long time ago. I try to forget as much as I can, move past and move on with life.”
Riikola first out?
For pretty much every practice where he’s healthy and participating, Bryan Rust is first on the ice.
Monday was an exception.
Preseason sensation Juuso Riikola beat Rust out on the ice Monday, although Rust downplayed it afterward.
“It’s not first; it’s 15 minutes before [is when] I like to get out there,” Rust said. “I think we were done with meetings a little bit earlier [Monday], so guys were ready a little bit earlier. Those things are going to happen.”
Green laces
The Penguins Monday wore green skate laces — and no, they weren’t celebrating St. Patrick’s Day early.
The green laces were worn to promote "Sports Matter," a program created by Dick's Sporting Goods to help save youth sports across the country.
Since 2014, the Dick's Sporting Goods Foundation has pledged over $50 million for youth sports initiatives.
Dick's sells green laces at its stores and donates $2 of each purchase to the foundation.
Jason Mackey: jmackey@post-gazette.com and Twitter @JMackeyPG.
First Published: October 1, 2018, 6:12 p.m.
