CRANBERRY TWP, PA (93.7 The Fan) – Kasperi Kapenen waived, forward Danton Heinen returns to the lineup against St. Louis Saturday afternoon maybe as a spark to the third line.
The 27-year-old worked all practice with Jeff Carter and Brock McGinn. Heinen has been a healthy scratch since January 28th when he didn’t score in that game and was a minus-one. The two games previous to that, against Washington and Florida, Heinen combined for two goals and two assists and was a plus four. He re-signed with the Pens for one year this off-season after a career-high 18 goals in 2021-22.
“Definitely gives you a burst of energy,” Heinen said of practicing with normal line rushes Friday. “All you want to do is be out there with the guys and play hockey. Just bring some energy, be reliable all over the ice. I put pressure on myself to chip in offensively, that’s what I try to do. Be responsible all over the ice and lean on the details.”
“He’s a really good pro,” said Pens head coach Mike Sullivan. “It’s not an easy circumstance when players are in those situations. I think Danton has handled it extremely well. He has a great attitude, he works hard and comes to the rink every day and controls what he can. Danton has carried himself with nothing but professionalism.”
New D
On long-term injured reserve since January 14, Jan Rutta says he’s ready to return. He said he’s obviously unhappy it’s taken so long and expected to return sooner, but says he believes he’s ready to play.
“He’s made significant progress here over the last week or so,” Sullivan said. “There is always that last element in bringing a player up to speed with respect to the performance aspect and game-like conditions. He’s checked a lot of those boxes to this point. I would anticipate him being a game-time decision.”
“Attitude, intensity, I think when a team loses a couple of games, a breath of fresh air and positivity can help as well,” Rutta said of what he can bring.
Line combinations
Jake Guentzel-Sidney Crosby-Rickard Rakell
Jason Zucker-Evgeni Malkin-Bryan Rust
Brock McGinn-Jeff Carter-Danton Heinen
Drew O’Connor-Teddy Blueger-Josh Archibald
Brian Dumoulin-Kris Letang
Marcus Pettersson-Jeff Petry
PO Joseph-Jan Rutta
Goalie improvement
Goalie Tristan Jarry said he’s still working out the timing in games. He said Friday he’s trying to find a rhythm because it’s hard when you don’t even practice very often. He said he needs to be better at being more present in games. He has seen some improvement in his two games since returning, but bottom line-he has to stop the puck.
Asked if he feels more pressure with the team’s current play and his role to help them.
“I think that’s every game for everyone,” Jarry said. “For a centerman, a winger, a defenseman, every aspect of their game is different. Whether it’s winning a draw, getting the puck out or, for me, stopping the puck. Every guy has their own pressure. It’s just learning and using that to your advantage.”
“We’ve lost a couple in a row. It’s just trying to find that consistency. We have to get some pucks on the net and play hard in both ends of the rink. That will help us and get us better results.”