BUFFALO, N.Y. — Drew O’Connor’s acclimation period to skating on the first line took all of one shift.
Operating at left wing alongside Sidney Crosby and Bryan Rust for the first time in a game setting, O’Connor scored just 20 seconds into the Penguins’ 7-4 win against the Buffalo Sabres on Friday night at KeyBank Center.
“It's nice to put up some of those offensive numbers,” O’Connor said. “But I thought overall, it's just kind of finding your game a little bit, getting ready for the regular season. So I feel confident heading into it.”
O’Connor finished the night with a pair of goals, matching his total from Sept. 28 against Buffalo to wrap up the preseason with a team-leading four scores. Coach Mike Sullivan commended the 25-year-old winger for the caliber of play he’s demonstrated over the last few weeks.
“I thought Drew had a really strong camp,” Sullivan said. “I think he's ready to take the next step, and that certainly is our hope. We're trying to give him that opportunity. I think he's got a much better understanding of how he has to play in order to set himself up for success.”
Sullivan had O’Connor skate in place of an injured Jake Guentzel, who remains sidelined as he works back from offseason surgery on his right ankle. The 6-foot-3, 200-pound O’Connor once again effectively used his size and speed on both ends of the ice, which in part allowed him to secure a spot on the bottom six last year.
Sullivan spoke highly of O’Connor’s size and reach, which he believes has allowed him to develop into one of the Penguins’ better puck-pursuit players. While Sullivan said earlier in camp it’s probably a “safe assumption” that Guentzel will return to Crosby’s left when healthy, it was no coincidence O’Connor was elevated to the top line.
“He's forcing a lot of turnovers, and that was one of the things, one of the reasons we put him on Sid’s line was to see if in the event that we need someone like [O’Connor] to move up into the top six out of necessity,” Sullivan said. “It could be through injury, it could be through certain nights if we're stale or certain guys aren't playing well and we feel as though the team needs a jolt — sometimes you can move a player like that up the lineup and it creates a spark for your group.”
Earlier in the preseason, Sullivan experimented with putting righty Rickard Rakell on his off side with the top unit as a placeholder for Guentzel, whom president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas said in August was expected to miss the first five games of the season.
While Guentzel is back to practicing at a full capacity, Sullivan’s decision to bump O’Connor up to Crosby’s line indicates the Penguins’ top goal scorer from last season may not suit up for the season opener. Or, at the very least, that Sullivan has enough confidence to occasionally bump O’Connor up the lineup as he embarks on his second full NHL campaign.
“We were curious to see how he would respond to playing in that situation tonight,” Sullivan said. “I thought he responded really well.”
Albeit in quite a limited sample size, O’Connor has shown capable of being a part of the top six. Not only is that development of note with regards to how Sullivan deploys his lines for the beginning of the 2023-24 campaign, but it also is worth keeping tabs on after Guentzel returns.
If O’Connor were to prove his mettle on the first line once the regular season gets underway if afforded the opportunity, it would allow Sullivan to drop a more established scorer like Reilly Smith to the third line in an effort to balance the Penguins lineup. In that scenario, O’Connor would more than likely go to Evgeni Malkin’s line while Guentzel assumes his usual post.
Conversely, Sullivan could keep his projected top six intact and instead drop down O’Connor, who has demonstrated a scoring touch not before seen in his NHL career. After all, O’Connor has scored just eight goals in 78 NHL games, and recreating this level of production during the regular season is an entirely different task.
Even so, what O’Connor proved at the very least is he’s quite deserving of a spot on the roster. Despite Dubas bringing a plethora of veteran forwards into training camp with the hopes of inciting legitimate competition amongst the bottom six, O’Connor has all but assuredly prevailed.
Sullivan said pregame that with just a few days remaining before the Penguins welcome the Chicago Blackhawks to PPG Paints Arena on Tuesday to start the season, Friday night’s contest was one more opportunity for players on the cusp to present some hard evidence as to whether they should make the team.
In O’Connor’s case, there’s heaps of evidence — and plenty more to suggest an expanded role could be in store for the winger who’s continually growing more confident.
“I feel good. I just feel a lot more established at this level,” O’Connor said. “Kind of just looking to continue to evolve my game. I feel good after the preseason here and ready to go for the regular season.”
Around the boards
The Penguins’ top power-play unit generated two goals, one from Evgeni Malkin and another courtesy of Kris Letang. ... Jansen Harkins and Colin White each skated on the third line in their last auditions to crack a spot on the opening-night roster. ... Forward Radim Zohorna and defenseman Ryan Shea were both healthy scratches. ... A trio of forwards cleared waivers Friday afternoon in Alex Nylander, Joona Koppanen and Andreas Johnsson. All three have been assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
Andrew Destin: adestin@post-gazette.com and Twitter @AndrewDestin1
First Published: October 7, 2023, 1:35 a.m.
Updated: October 8, 2023, 3:04 a.m.
