Tim Benz: Penguins lineup battles get interesting as stars work their way back to health

It’s impressive that Pittsburgh Penguins coach Mike Sullivan was even able to spit out the soundbite with his tongue planted so firmly in his cheek.

“I’m pretty confident that Sid is going to get a spot back in the lineup,” Sullivan joked after Tuesday’s 5-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Phew! Well, I’m sure that vote of confidence for injured captain Sidney Crosby has him breathing a little easier.

Aside from Crosby’s looming return from rehabbing his surgically repaired wrist, there are still some other Penguins that will be absorbing spots in the lineup as they make their way back from injury and the covid-19 list.

Jeff Carter, Bryan Rust and Kris Letang leap to mind. And, of course, there’s the long-term forecast for a return of Evgeni Malkin.

Despite those notable absences, the loss to the Lightning was the first game out of six thus far in which the Pens failed to earn at least one point.

So, for as much as this current Penguins lineup has earned praise for keeping the team afloat while some star players have been injured, there won’t be a lot of open spots to fill on a nightly basis.

Even though some skaters have done enough to potentially earn a regular spot in the lineup.

“We’ve got a lot of internal competition because a lot of guys are playing well,” Sullivan said. “That’s a good problem to have as a coach. These guys are competing hard.”

The blue line is fairly straightforward. As soon as Letang recovers from his covid-19 symptoms and clears protocol, he’ll hop back on a top pairing with Brian Dumoulin. John Marino will likely get paired up with Marcus Pettersson once more. And Mike Matheson will presumably skate with Chad Ruhwedel or Mark Friedman.

Up front, there is more intrigue.

Whenever Crosby and Carter come back, they’ll join Teddy Blueger as three regular centers on a nightly basis. When Malkin returns in early- to mid-December, he’ll be the fourth. But between now and then, that fourth center vacancy is one of the spots that could be won.

Based on his play thus far, Evan Rodrigues is a worthy candidate (three goals, two assists). He has occupied some top-line duties with Carter, Crosby and Malkin unavailable. In the short term, though, Rodrigues may fill the right wing spot on a line with Crosby and Jake Guentzel. At least that was the alignment at practice Wednesday with Rust still on the shelf.

Penguins, lines, pairs and power-play groups: pic.twitter.com/YSzkUZiMGq

— Seth Rorabaugh (@SethRorabaugh) October 27, 2021

If Rodrigues remains in that position for the immediate future, Brian Boyle will continue to anchor the fourth line. The 36-year-old veteran acquisition has already scored twice this season. Drew O’Connor — like Rodrigues and winger Danton Heinen — has scored a team-high three goals. He’ll also have a chance to wrangle that last center job while filling the second-line role between Jason Zucker and Kasperi Kapanen.

Assuming that Sullivan keeps the preferred third line together with Zach Aston-Reese and Brock McGinn flanking Blueger, the entire fourth line could be open to any number of combinations from the names listed above, along with Dominik Simon and Sam Lafferty.

Lafferty drew praise from Sullivan after the Lightning game.

“Sam made an impact on the game. His physicality was evident early on,” Sullivan said. “That’s the type of impact Sam can have. He can really skate. He can get in on the forecheck. He’s a big strong kid. He’s doing some penalty killing for us. He’s getting better in that aspect of the game.”

Specific traits like Lafferty’s, experience like Boyle’s or versatility like Rodrigues’ and Heinen’s could go a long way toward making Sullivan’s “good problem to have” even better once his star players start coming back.

TribLIVE beat writer Seth Rorabaugh joined me on 105.9 The X Wednesday. We discussed a host of potential lineup decisions on the horizon for Sullivan and the coaching staff. We also attempt to figure out when Crosby will return, how ticket sales are going and what Dan Potash will be wearing for 90s night.