The Pittsburgh Penguins will play their first game at PPG Paints Arena since Jan. 17 on Thursday night.
The Penguins will try to make it five wins in a row when the Chicago Blackhawks come to town. This will be the second of two meetings between the two teams this year, following the Penguins’ 7-3 win in Chicago on Dec. 28.
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It was the Penguins’ first game after the Christmas break, and it put them on the right track, as they’ve won 11 of their last 15 games. This hot streak has landed them in second place in the Metropolitan Division, but they still have to keep stacking wins if they want to make the playoffs.
They’ll play a Blackhawks team that has lost three in a row and six of its last eight games. Connor Bedard is back after missing the last matchup between these two teams and is having a tremendous season, compiling 20 goals and 49 points in 40 games.
Frank Nazar will be on the top line with him and has six goals and 21 points in 37 games this year. Tyler Bertuzzi leads the team with goals (25) and has 39 points in 50 games. Andre Burakovsky, Teuvo Teravainen, Ryan Donato, and Ilya Mikheyev have also scored double-digit goals this year.
Arvid Soderblom will start in goal for the Blackhawks. He has a 5-8-2 record with a 3.75 goals-against average and an .874 save percentage this year.
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The Penguins have tweaked their lineup due to Bryan Rust’s three-game suspension and Jack St. Ivany’s long-term hand injury. Here’s a look at the projected lines for Thursday’s game:
Forwards
Rakell-Crosby-Brazeau
Chinakhov-Novak-Malkin
McGroarty-Kindel-Mantha
Dewar-Lizotte-Acciari
Defensive pairs
Wotherspoon-Karlsson
Kulak-Letang
Solovyov-Shea
Arturs Silovs will start in goal after he was Stuart Skinner’s backup on Sunday.
Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. ET on SportsNet Pittsburgh. Fans can also listen to the game on 105.9 ‘The X.’
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