OTTAWA, Ontario -- Drew O'Connor won't be in the Penguins' lineup this season, but he has moved a step closer to getting back on active duty.
He was one of a dozen players to participate in an optional game-day skate Thursday, and he did so having been cleared for contact.
O'Connor will sit out his 11th consecutive game because of an unspecified upper-body injury (believed to be a collapsed lung) when the Penguins face the Senators tonight at 7:08 at Canadian Tire Centre, but being allowed to take contact is significant.
He had a strong showing at training camp and has carried that over into the regular season, part of which he has spent with the Penguins' farm team in Wilkes-Barre.
"I think he's had a really good year for us, quietly," Mike Sullivan said. "He came into camp in terrific shape. Coming back this year, I just think he's so much more comfortable with what the expectations are. He's more comfortable in his surroundings. I just think his overall development has improved.
"He brings a combination of speed and size. He's strong on pucks. He has finishing capability, and we've been working on other aspects of his game. His ability to play center, for example. His versatility for us is one of his strengths, as well."
Like O'Connor, Valtteri Puustinen seems destined to spend this evening in street clothes, but Sullivan seems intrigued by his potential, too.
"(Puustinen) is, without a doubt, in the conversation when we're discussing lineups and those decisions," Sullivan said. "He's had a really good start to the season in Wilkes-Barre and from the time of training camp until now, his learning curve has been very steep. That's one of the reasons why he's here. He's played extremely well and deserves the opportunity to get called up."
MORE FROM THE SKATE
• Casey DeSmith will start in goal for the Penguins, Matt Murray for Ottawa.
• Because of Covid, provincial regulations cap attendance at tonight's game at 500, which means there won't be much of an atmosphere. "There are some nights when you have to manufacture your own emotion," Sullivan said. "I just think that's probably just human nature, with the environment that the guys are accustomed to playing in. This is the reality of today's world, and we're going to have to find a way to bring the necessary emotion that helps us to be at our best."
• Optional skate participants: Brian Boyle, Dominik Simon, Valtteri Puustinen, Tristan Jarry, Casey DeSmith, Marcus Pettersson, Mike Matheson, Chad Ruhwedel, Drew O'Connor, Mark Friedman, Radim Zohorna and Michael Chaput.
• Because it was an optional, there were no personnel combinations of consequence.
