CRANBERRY, Pa. -- Already hampered by Jeff Petry's injury that has him on long-term injured reserve, the Penguins' defense now faces an even bigger challenge.
Kris Letang was not on the ice for Penguins practice on Thursday here at the UPMC Lemieux Complex in Cranberry. It was later announced by Mike Sullivan that Letang's being evaluated for a lower-body injury.
Letang led all skaters in ice time with 27:01 on Wednesday night in the Penguins' 5-4 overtime loss to the Red Wings, but he did block a shot toward the end of the first period that left him hobbled and forced him to cut his shift short after clearing the puck from the defensive zone.
Have a look:
After clearing the puck from the defensive zone, Letang immediately labored back to the bench, though he didn't end up leaving for the locker room.
It speaks to just how much of a workhorse Letang is that he went on to take a season-high 34 shifts during the game, but sometimes those stingers are ten times worse the following day.
Regardless, Letang's availability is in jeopardy for the Penguins' Friday night tilt with the Devils at PPG Paints Arena.
With Petry and Letang (potentially) unavailable, as well as Chad Ruhwedel (upper-body injury), the Penguins are down to just two healthy right-handed defensemen: Jan Rutta and Mark Friedman.
They also have only six healthy defensemen on the roster at the moment. One of those six includes 22-year-old Ty Smith, who was acquired in the trade that sent John Marino to the Devils this past offseason.
Smith was one of the final players trimmed from the Penguins' roster before the regular season began, and he's spent the entirety of the season down in the AHL with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton before being recalled on Wednesday. He recorded four goals and 10 assists in 26 games down in the minors while playing on Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's top defense pairing and top power-play unit.
It marked the first time of his post-junior career that he wouldn't be playing in the NHL. Being cut from the roster was a bit of a surprise to Smith, but instead of getting bent out of shape about it, he used it as an opportunity to continue his development.
"I don't think anyone wants to be sent down, ever, or cut from the team," Smith said following practice on Thursday. "Obviously it was a little tough at first, but like I said, it's an opportunity to work on my game."
At 5-foot-11, 180 pounds, Smith's skating ability and puck-distribution skills make him a potentially-dangerous offensive weapon from the back end. The problem -- at least heading into the season -- is his defensive work.
"He's a young defenseman with a lot of upside," Sullivan said of Smith after he was cut from the roster. "We really like his offensive game, we like his offensive instincts. We know he has an opportunity to grow on the defensive side of the puck, and we're going to do our very best to help him there."
Of 209 defensemen to play at least 500 minutes at even-strength last season, Smith's isolated impact toward his team's ability to suppress quality chances against ranked 196th, per Evolving-Hockey.
While his defensive work is troubling, it's hard to ignore the 43 points (seven goals, 36 assists) Smith picked up in 114 games over his first two NHL seasons with the Devils.
I've heard that Penguins management found Smith to be more of a project than they initially anticipated upon acquiring him, though reports from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton head coach J.D. Forrest suggest Smith has taken strides defensively, even if minor.
Defensive issues or not, it's time for the Penguins to start truly figuring out what they have in Smith. I don't necessarily view him as a replacement for the role Brian Dumoulin's been playing, but how much worse could Smith really be at this point? Completely ignoring Letang's injury, it shouldn't have taken this long for Smith to get a look.
The Penguins did not take line rushes during practice, but I imagine the defense will look something like this on Friday if Letang can't play:
P.O Joseph - Jan Rutta
Marcus Pettersson - Ty Smith
Brian Dumoulin - Mark Friedman
Smith, who practiced with the top power-play unit, is comfortable playing on the right side of the ice, and pairing him with the team's best defensive defenseman, in theory, should allow him to focus on the offensive component of the game without putting the Penguins at risk of getting buried in their own end.
I'm not certain that Smith is anything more than a low-end offensive defenseman at this juncture, but getting him into the lineup is necessary, and it's looking like he'll finally make his Penguins debut on Friday.
MORE FROM PRACTICE
• Although the Penguins didn't take line rushes during practice, they did run an in-zone 5-on-5 drill that showcased unchanged forward lines:
Jake Guentzel - Sidney Crosby - Rickard Rakell
Jason Zucker - Evgeni Malkin - Bryan Rust
Brock McGinn - Jeff Carter - Danton Heinen
Drew O'Connor - Teddy Blueger - Kasperi Kapanen
• Here's the power-play personnel with Smith quarterbacking the top unit ...
PP1: Crosby, Guentzel, Rakell, Malkin, Smith
PP2: Carter, Zucker, Rust, Kapanen, Joseph
• Sullivan knows the Penguins' performance during 5-on-5 play has been slipping. He believes they need to get back to being stingy in order for everything else to fall in line. That all starts with a mindset.
"We've got get back to doing the things that make us hard to play against and help us get consistent results," Sullivan said. "I think at the end of the day, it boils down to a certain attitude and a mindset going into the game. That's where it starts for me."
• Unsurprisingly, the Penguins aren't sitting around feeling sorry for themselves after back-to-back duds coming out of the holiday break.
"We know that it's unacceptable what happened yesterday, and the past few games, it's been slipping into our game a little bit," Zucker said. "We know we need to be better, and I thought we had a good practice today. So we need to carry that into tomorrow."
• Really not trying to beat a dead horse here, but when will the madness of Carter playing center end? Over the past nine games, the Penguins have been outscored, 8-2, with Carter on the ice at 5-on-5. On the season, they've been outscored, 17-13, with Carter out there, and are controlling a team-worst 43.3% of the expected goals.
• There were a ton, and I mean a ton of fans at practice on Thursday. Standing room only. It was quite the spectacle.
DANNY SHIREY / DKPS
Emergency backup goalie Mike Chiasson looks on as Penguins fans take in practice at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry, Pa.
• Crosby was appointed an officer to the Order of Canada, it was announced on Wednesday by the Governor General of Canada. The Order of Canada recognizes "people across all sectors of society who have made extraordinary and sustained contributions to the nation" and is considered one of the country's highest honors. Along with 99 other Canadians, Crosby was appointed for community service initiatives for youth, in addition to being one of the greatest hockey players of all time.
• The Penguins will look to right the ship Friday night against the Devils, 7:08 p.m., at PPG Paints Arena. Taylor Haase will have your coverage for morning skate at 10:30 a.m., then Dejan Kovacevic will join her for the game in the evening.
