CRANBERRY, Pa. -- There are a number of ways the Penguins could prepare for the stretch of games directly in front of them.
The best might be to simply dive head-first into a chipper-shredder.
This, you see, is not merely a block of challenging games the Penguins are facing, beginning with a trip to Tampa Thursday; they'll be running a seven-game gauntlet.
Twenty-four hours after taking on the two-time defending champion Lightning, the Penguins will be in Raleigh to face the Hurricanes, who are second in the overall standings.
They then will return home to meet Florida, which sits directly behind Carolina in the league points race, the Golden Knights and the Hurricanes.
At that point, the Penguins might be happy to get back on the road, except that their first two stops on a three-game swing will be in Nashville and St. Louis, a couple of places that aren't particularly hospitable to visiting clubs.
"It's a big test for us," Evan Rodrigues said after practice Tuesday. "I think it's something we need. We have to start playing the right way and getting these wins, playing almost playoff-type hockey."
Tampa Bay, whose lineup is headlined by the likes of Victor Hedman, Andrei Vasilevskiy and Steven Stamkos, is favored by some to complete a natural hat trick of championships this spring.
And if it doesn't represent the Eastern Conference in the Stanley Cup final, it's entirely possible that one of the two clubs the Penguins will face after the Lightning will.
If nothing else, this series of games against quality opponents should prep the Penguins for what's to come in a couple of months.
"These are dress rehearsals for the playoffs," Brian Boyle said. "You're going to find yourself in different situations in the playoffs, where it could be going great for you or you could be trying to climb back into a series, or a game or whatnot. A lot of different things can happen, so you want to prepare as best you can."
Weekend victories against the Rangers and Blue Jackets were a good start, as the Penguins shut out New York and held Columbus to two goals after yielding six to New Jersey last Thursday.
"The last two games, we defended well," Marcus Pettersson said.
Rodrigues suggested that the Penguins pulled out of their recent three-game losing streak because of that renewed commitment to playing well defensively.
"We've gotten away from going chance-for-chance with teams," he said. "We're playing the right way. Playing sound defensively, and letting the offense come. Letting our power play take over games."
While their past two games could provide a template of sort for how to handle what's ahead, the Penguins can't afford to let them improvement flat-line anytime soon.
"We're still not a finished product," Boyle said. "We need to get better."
And, almost certainly, to start doing it in the next couple of days.
MORE FROM THE PRACTICE
• Teddy Blueger, who is recovering from a broken jaw, made a quick wardrobe change as practice was about to begin, swapping a white (no-contact) jersey for a conventional gold one. Turns out it wasn't because the medical staff had breathlessly passed along an update clearing Blueger to be a full participant in the workout. "It was an oversight on my part," Mike Sullivan said. "When the trainers came down and asked for the jersey colors (for practice jerseys), it was my mistake." This was Blueger's first full-contact practice.
• Pettersson, on why Blueger is such a valuable member of the penalty-killing unit: "He can do it all. He's great on faceoffs. He's a great shot-blocker. He kind of commands our (penalty-kill). He takes charge. When our PK is struggling, everybody's not on the same page and everybody's decision-making is not fast, he takes charge on the ice and shows everybody else that they can follow him."
• Barring injuries to other centers in the interim, Blueger's eventual return could prompt Sullivan to move Boyle back to left wing, a move Boyle said would not trouble him. "I've done a lot of both the last five or six years," he said. "So I'm really comfortable kind of anywhere up there."
• Injured goalie Louis Domingue worked out on the ice with goaltending coach Andy Chiodo for about 50 minutes before the team practice. Domingue was in full equipment and, near the end of the session, faced some wrist shots by Chiodo from above the hash marks.
• Rodrigues said backup goalie Casey DeSmith "seems more poised" since pulling out of his struggles earlier this season. "He was getting unlucky bounces at the beginning of the year that kind of test your confidence," Rodrigues said.
• Boyle is one of about two dozen players who are exempt from the NHL's mandatory visor rule and decline to use one. And he doesn't seem likely to change his mind anytime soon. Boyle said he had to wear one in an exhibition game several years ago after breaking his nose, and it didn't go well. "After one shift, there was so much sweat and junk on the shield ... I was, like, running into people. I was like, 'I'm 100 percent going to get a concussion here. I can't see anything.' So I took it off." He added that, "It's not a 'cool-guy' thing. I'm not trying to be Craig MacTavish." MacTavish was the last player to appear in an NHL game without a helmet.
• Sullivan said left winger Jason Zucker, who is recovering from core-muscle surgery, has not resumed skating.
• Personnel combinations:
Jake Guentzel-Sidney Crosby-Bryan Rust
Danton Heinen-Evgeni Malkin-Kasperi Kapanen
Brock McGinn-Jeff Carter-Even Rodrigues
Zach Aston-Reese-Brian Boyle-Dominik Simon
Brian Dumoulin-Kris Letang
Marcus Pettersson-John Marino
Mark Friedman-Chad Ruhwedel
