The Penguins have won three of their last four games, including two on the West Coast, and now return East for a trio of games that carry with them added importance.
But the status of the team’s top goalie for those games seems to be up in the air.
Tristan Jarry missed practice Thursday at the team’s facility in Cranberry, as it popped home before traveling to New York to meet the Islanders Friday night.
“Tristan had a doctor’s appointment today coming off the road trip,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. “All scheduled, to check on his progress. He’ll be with us in New York.”
Jarry has been out since January 22 and has played just two full games since being injured in the Winter Classic on January 2.
And his absence has been felt.
Despite a recent run of better play, backup Casey Desmith’s numbers don’t match up to the starter’s.
Jarry has posted a 2.65 goals against average and a .921 save percentage this season, going 16-5-5 in the game’s he’s been healthy enough to play in.
But questions do remain about the durability of Jarry, who missed the first six games of Pittsburgh’s postseason series loss to the Rangers last year, and has battled injuries again this season.
Sullivan also updated the injury statuses of two other players who missed Thursday’s skate.
Ryan Poehling is day-to-day with an upper-body injury, while Mark Friedman was still being evaluated when Sullivan addressed the media.
Important ones coming up
The Penguins, who play three Metropolitan Division teams next, are in a favorable spot in the standings, in a sense.
The team currently holds the Eastern Conference’s first Wild Card spot with 63 points, but is just two points ahead of the Islanders. Pittsburgh has, however, played four less games than New York.
That means that these next three games do take on some added meaning, as the postseason draws nearer.
“By nature of competing against people in your own division, to a certain extent they take on a four-point consequence,” Sullivan said. “Every game is important. There’s points on the line every night, regardless of who you play. When you play inside of your division and conference, there are four-point implications. There’s certainly heightened meaning to those types of games.”
Sullivan’s players know the games could have a different feel, too.
“We know how important these points are, especially against a team we’re battling with," captain Sidney Crosby said. "They’re going to be a hungry group, and we have to be, too.
"From here on in, they’re all pretty important, and even more so with it being a divisional matchup. But we’re going to have a lot of those games down the stretch here.”
Pittsburgh is a point ahead of Washington in the Wild Card positions. The Capitals have played three more games. Florida is in the mix with 60 points, but has played four more games than the Penguins. Buffalo and Detroit each have 58 points and have played the same amount of games as Pittsburgh.
Trade deadline approaching
The NHL trade deadline is March 3, two weeks from Friday.
The Penguins — and general manager Ron Hextall — have been quiet so far this season. But that could change in a hurry as the teams potentially looks to bolster its bottom six.
How players deal with this time can be a challenge.
“Obviously it’s a period of uncertainty,” forward Bryan Rust said. “But I think any time of the year is a period of uncertainty. You just have to go about your business day by day, and if something happens, something happens.”