Penguins notes: Awkward quarantine encounter with Flyers, no injuries
Not long after arriving at the NHL’s Eastern Conference “bubble” established in Toronto, Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang found himself among some unfamiliar — and sometimes-unfriendly — faces.
Just part of the quarantine life of these unique Stanley Cup playoffs.
“Maybe the first day, we were trying to look around, and I ran into the entire Philly team,” Letang said during a video call with media Wednesday.
The Penguins traveled to Toronto over the weekend before their first practice there Monday. All 12 of the Eastern Conference teams that qualified for this postseason are staying in a makeshift temporary community that is closed off from other humans. Interactions with playoff opponents are unavoidable.
“Just walking around you say hello, you chat a little bit,” Penguins goalie Tristan Jarry said. “But other than that, it’s that not too awkward yet that we haven’t been playing. But I am sure as we get playing, there might be a little (animosity) that builds.”
Letang acknowledged “awkwardness” of unintentionally entering a social circle of an organization that prides itself on antagonizing the Penguins most.
“But I know Mr. Voracek really well,” Letang said of Flyers veteran Jakub Voracek, “so it made me feel a little bit better.”
The Penguins faced the Flyers on Tuesday in the teams’ lone exhibition game in Toronto.
Experience rules?
Wednesday morning, Montreal Canadiens coach Claude Julien made note of one of the most obvious disadvantages his team has against the Penguins during their qualifying-round playoff series that begins Saturday.
“Experience-wise, we don’t compare to Pittsburgh,” Julien told reporters during a video call.
“So, the chance that we have of winning is by having everybody being able to step up and play a little bit above their heads and have the confidence to do that.”
Penguins coach Mike Sullivan has far less to gain by pointing out an obvious edge his team has in a 5-vs.-12 seed mismatch. But he did allow himself to acknowledge a perceived edge in playoff experience can be beneficial.
The Penguins claimed the Stanley Cup championship at the end of the each of the postseasons just three and four years ago.
“I think experience is a great teacher for all of us because we all learn through our experiences, regardless of what endeavor in life,” Sullivan said. “So with respect to playing in the NHL, when players and coaches and teams have the opportunity to go through the challenges of a Stanley Cup playoff run and experience the successes and the championships — but also experience the hard aspect of it when you don’t have success and you lose — it offers you a certain perspective. And so you have the benefit of those experiences to draw on.“
No apparent new injuries
The Penguins emerged from Tuesday’s exhibition game unscathed in regards to injuries.
Though practice sessions are closed to media and team personnel are prohibited from speaking publicly regarding specific injuries, Sullivan confirmed that no players were absent from Wednesday’s practice in Toronto.
“Everybody participated in practice today,” he said.
Chris Adamski is a TribLive reporter who has covered primarily the Pittsburgh Steelers since 2014 following two seasons on the Penn State football beat. A Western Pennsylvania native, he joined the Trib in 2012 after spending a decade covering Pittsburgh sports for other outlets. He can be reached at cadamski@triblive.com.
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