The Penguins' power play had its best game of the season Saturday, scoring on three of four chances during a 6-4 victory against the Predators at PPG Paints Arena.
And while it won't be possible to maintain that level of efficiency, their executing that night could provide a template worth following, because just about every aspect of the Penguins' work with the man-advantage went as well as could be expected.
They got into the attacking zone effectively, moved the puck around well and got it -- and bodies -- to the net with regularity.
"We had good execution," Patric Hornqvist said after the Penguins game-day skate. "That's the key on the power play."
There was nothing terribly complicated about any of that, but it's hard to argue with the results that fundamentally sound approach generated.
"The guys who were on it, they executed," Mike Sullivan said. "They made good decisions. I thought we shot the puck at the right times. We established that point shot from the top."
The Penguins' power play has climbed to 15th place in the NHL rankings, entering their game against Ottawa tonight at 7:08 with a conversion rate of 19.3 percent. That's still far below expectations, but Sullivan suggested a performance like the one Saturday could provide the impetus for increased productivity.
"Hopefully, we can build on it," Sullivan said. "I have to believe it's going to give us a whole lot more confidence."
• Joseph Blandisi is expected to replace Sam Lafferty between Dominik Simon and Hornqvist tonight. Sullivan did not confirm that a switch will be made, but praised what Blandisi brings when he's in the lineup. "He brings a dimension," Sullivan said. "He can really skate. He's hard to play against. He's responsible, defensively. He can win faceoffs."
• Tristan Jarry was the first goaltender off the ice at the game-day skate and is the Penguins' presumed starter. He has played in 12 of the past 16 games.
• Although Ottawa is anchored near the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings, Hornqvist cautioned against overlooking them. "Tonight's going to be a tough matchup against a team that's hungry, young and plays with a lot of energy," he said. "We have to match that."
• Ottawa coach D.J. Smith announced that Marcus Hogberg will get the start for his team. Hogberg, 29, has just nine career appearances in the NHL, so this will be the first time most of the Penguins have faced him, at least at this level. "Our goalie coach (Mike Buckley) will do homework on both of the other team's goalies, depending on who's playing," Blandisi said. "We'll have an indication of what his tendencies are and where pucks tend to beat him."
• Sullivan said Sidney Crosby did not skate today because he had a scheduled day off in his rehab from surgery in mid-November to repair a sports hernia. Nick Bjugstad did work out on the ice, but defensemen Brian Dumoulin and Justin Schultz have yet to resume skating.
• Here are the Penguins' personnel combinations from their game-day skate:
Jake Guentzel -- Evgeni Malkin -- Bryan Rust
Dominik Kahun -- Jared McCann -- Alex Galchenyuk
Dominik Simon -- Joseph Blandisi/Sam Lafferty -- Patric Hornqvist
Zach Aston-Reese -- Teddy Blueger -- Brandon Tanev
Jack Johnson -- Kris Letang
Marcus Pettersson -- John Marino
Juuso Riikola -- Chad Ruhwedel
• The Senators didn't have a game-day skate, but here are their personnel combinations from their 4-3 overtime loss to New Jersey Sunday:
Brady Tkachuk -- Jean-Gabriel Pageau -- Connor Brown
Vladislav Namestnikov -- Chris Tierney -- Anthony Duclair
Tyler Ennis -- Artem Anisimov -- Colin White
Nick Paul -- J.C. Beaudin -- Scott Sabourin
Thomas Chabot -- Cody Goloubef
Mark Borowiecki -- Erik Brannstrom
Andreas Englund -- Christian Jaros
