PHILADELPHIA — Sidney Crosby should have no problem receiving feedback when he reports for work on Saturday.
Provided, of course, he actually steps onto the temporary ice surface that has been installed in the center of Lincoln Financial Field, surrounded by some of Philadelphia’s finest who surely will have a few suggestions on what the Penguins captain could do in his spare time or a place or two he could keep his stick.
All of that usually elicits a wry smile from Crosby, who loves playing across the street at Wells Fargo Center and would probably love even more to torture the Flyers the same way in this building.
“It doesn’t change a whole lot over the course of time I’ve been here,” Crosby said of the rivalry. “It feels intense and emotional. It always feels like there’s a little extra when the two teams play each other. I think the two teams bring out the best in each other. That’s what we expect [Saturday].”
Only turned up, oh, about a dozen or so notches because of the crowd and the opportunity for Flyers fans to be … let's say well-prepared by puck drop.
“It’s hard to think you could add to it,” said Crosby, who has 17 goals and 46 points in 31 career appearances at Wells Fargo Center. “But if you could, this would be a way to do it.
“Everyone gets motivated for these games. The fact that you put this game outside, a lot of guys have played outside growing up. It’s not something you typically do.”
Nor is playing in the rain, which means this game could actually get pushed to Sunday.
The NHL issued a statement Friday saying it was monitoring the weather forecast and would provide another update at noon Saturday.
It’s doubtful they would play in rain — “It’s not a great thing to be playing in,” Crosby said — and would bump the game to Sunday afternoon if they couldn’t find a dry window.
“I’m willing to do anything,” Crosby said. “It’s the same for both teams, so whatever they decide. Playing-wise, you’d love for conditions to be great and for clear skies and great ice conditions. If that doesn’t happen, it’s part of playing outside. We’ve all been through it at certain points in our lives. You have to deal with it.”
A new look
Having allowed an NHL-worst 13 short-handed goals this season and mired in a funk where they haven’t scored a power-play goal in 10 of their past 14 contests, the Penguins tested out a new man-advantage look Friday during practice at Lincoln Financial Field.
Two of them, actually.
One unit consisted of Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Marcus Pettersson, Patric Hornqvist and Justin Schultz. The other featured Phil Kessel, Nick Bjugstad, Jake Guentzel, Kris Letang and Brian Dumoulin.
While coach Mike Sullivan said nothing was final, that he and the coaching staff still had to talk, they’re obviously at least considering a fairly significant shakeup.
“As a group, we have to be better on the power play,” Sullivan said. “We’ve gone a long time with the units that we have. We haven’t seen the necessary momentum that we think we need to continue.
“Having said that, we know we have a group of five that we can put out there that’s dynamic when they’re on the top of their game. We’ll make those decisions on a game-by-game basis. [Friday] we practiced some different options. Whether we choose to go with those, that’s going to be a discussion the coaching staff will have almost daily.”
Good memories
As a San Diego, Calif. native, Chad Ruhwedel didn’t grow up playing a ton of outdoor hockey the way someone like, say, Matt Murray did.
But when Ruhwedel thinks about his outdoor hockey career, he certainly has something positive to look back on.
Two years ago, Ruhwedel scored the fourth and final goal against the Flyers at Heinz Field.
“Since that game two years ago, being out on the ice, it brings you back,” Ruhwedel said. “Once that game starts, it’s about getting those two points and playing a good, solid game.”
Blueger biding time
Teddy Blueger admitted he was somewhat surprised when he lost his lineup spot Tuesday in New Jersey after scoring three goals in his first nine NHL games.
At the same time, Blueger knows he’s in a tough spot. The Penguins have a competitive roster, and he just has to bide his time.
“I just have to be patient,” Blueger said. “I feel like certain parts of it are out of my control.
“You know it’s a really good team with a lot of good players,” Blueger said. “The competition for spots is high. Sometimes it’s just how it goes. It’s part of it. Been through it before. Just have to keep working and hopefully get a chance here soon.”
Around the boards
Brian Elliott, and not superb rookie Carter Hart, will start in goal for the Flyers.
A lot of talk about growing up playing hockey outdoors, that sort of stuff. One of the best anecdotes might’ve come from Murray, who said he and his buddies used to skip school to play on his uncle’s backyard pond.
“That’s where it all started,” Murray said.
Jason Mackey: jmackey@post-gazette.com and Twitter @JMackeyPG.
First Published: February 23, 2019, 2:09 a.m.
