Penguins forward Alex Galchenyuk, who has been nursing a lower-body injury, returned to practice on Wednesday and is considered a “game-time decision” for Thursday’s season opener at PPG Paints Arena.
“I thought he had a good practice,” coach Mike Sullivan said. “He reported to us that he felt strong. Obviously, we’ll see how he responds overnight.”
Galchenyuk was acquired this offseason from Arizona as a part of the Phil Kessel trade. He first popped up on the injury report prior to the Penguins’ preseason game last Wednesday. After he participated in the morning skate, the Penguins scratched Galchenyuk from the lineup that evening and held him out of practice for about a week as he recovered from what Sullivan described as a “nagging” lower-body injury.
Initially, Sullivan called it “precautionary.” But as the new forward’s absence dragged on, questions started to surface about Galchenyuk’s availability for the season opener.
“Injuries are part of what we do,” Galchenyuk said. “It happens. It’s how you come back and respond to it. Me and the training staff put a lot of work into it. We’re pretty happy and confident about it. Hopefully, it will keep going in the right direction tomorrow.”
The Penguins like to play their star centers in a tandem with one set winger. Sidney Crosby typically plays with Jake Guentzel, for example. This year, Evgeni Malkin and Galchenyuk are expected to spend a lot of time on the ice together.
This training camp, they’ve been working to build some early chemistry. Despite the fact that Galchenyuk missed a week, Malkin said he believes the two players made enough headway in the first few weeks to become familiar with one another.
Of course, the fact that they both speak the same language doesn’t hurt, either.
“It’s always fun when you speak a little bit of Russian on the ice,” Malkin said. “I hope he’s ready to play tomorrow. … He skated very well today. I hope he’s playing.”
Crosby ‘good to go’ after injury scare
In other injury news, Crosby skated with the team again for the second straight practice. After taking a puck off the boot in the final exhibition game of the preseason, Crosby doesn’t appear to be showing any signs of the injury.
Sullivan said that Crosby is “good to go” for the opener on Thursday night.
Mike DeFabo: mdefabo@post-gazette.com or on Twitter @MikeDeFabo.
First Published: October 2, 2019, 7:13 p.m.