Penguins backup goaltender Casey DeSmith is ready to be the starter (again)

Casey DeSmith doesn’t quite know when his next start will come.

But that’s generally the case for any backup goaltender.

The rest of his teammates (and much of the NHL) are sharing that experience at the moment.

At the moment, the schedule says the Penguins’ next game is at home against the San Jose Sharks on Sunday.

But considering the Penguins have had five consecutive games postponed because of concerns related to covid-19, it’s more accurate to label that game as a hope than a guarantee.

If it is played, there’s a decent chance DeSmith will be in net when the contest begins. And perhaps beyond.

Among the eight players the Penguins have in NHL protocols for the virus, the most prominent is starting goaltender Tristan Jarry.

That means DeSmith is the team’s top goaltender for the time being.

“It’s just business as usual,” DeSmith said. “A next-man-up mentality. Obviously, always thrilled to get the opportunity to play. I wish it was under different circumstances. Obviously, don’t love (Jarry) having covid or anything but looking forward to getting a chance to play hopefully.”

DeSmith has been thrust into the top spot before on the occasions when former starter Matt Murray was absent from the lineup.

During the 2017-18 season, Murray took a leave of absence in late January after the death of his father. Serving as the starter for four games, DeSmith had a 3-1-0 record, a 1.77 goals-against average and a .944 save percentage.

Then, in the midst of the 2018-19 season, Murray was sidelined through parts of November and December with a concussion. In his place, DeSmith appeared in 10 games and had a 6-3-1 record as well as a 2.59 goals-against average and .921 save percentage.

“Casey’s been very good for us,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. “When you look at his body of work as a Pittsburgh Penguin, he has a strong body of work. He’s had the net for stretches of time … and he’s performed extremely well. We believe in him. We know he’s a high-quality goalie. He’s a competitive guy. He embraces the challenge. He gets excited about it. We have complete faith that Casey’s going to make the timely save for us that’s going to give us a chance to win.”

Those timely saves didn’t exactly come in abundance during the early stages of this season.

In his first four starts of this season, DeSmith was 0-3-1 with a 4.33 goals-against average and an .867 save percentage.

His results have improved considerably in his two most recent starts, each of which came in early December. Going 2-0-0 with one shutout, DeSmith has a 0.50 goals-against average and a .984 save percentage.

DeSmith cites a subtle adjustment to his equipment as being partially responsible for his improvement.

“I got new skates, and they were supposed to be like the same but they weren’t quite the same,” DeSmith said. “And I was lacing them up the same as my old skates. So, I was putting my weight back on my heels. Started lacing them up a little bit differently. It allowed me to get a little bit more on my toes. Get a little bit more explosiveness back that I might have lost when my weight was back.”

The weight of expectations could be greater for DeSmith depending on how long Jarry is sidelined. DeSmith seems to be better prepared for that challenge than he might have been at the start of the season.

A couple of starts have been pretty good to build some confidence,” DeSmith said.

“Working on some different things with (goaltending coach Andy Chiodo). Just kind of getting on my toes, playing a little more athletic, my style. Lots of little things like that. Just put them all together and figuring them out, little by little.”

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