The Pittsburgh Penguins are gearing up to try to take their third straight win on Thursday night and have named a starting goaltender.
As reported by Pens Inside Scoop and Daily Faceoff, Arturs Silovs will man the crease vs. the Utah Mammoth. Silovs’ numbers have been improving. He now has an .890 save percentage with a 2.87 GAA, two shutouts, and a .500 quality starts percentage.
Silovs’ last two starts have been remarkable, having allowed just two goals while making 50 saves on 52 shots against. Pittsburgh has done its job defensively, but Silovs ultimately backstopped the Penguins to two straight wins over the Florida Panthers and Nashville Predators.
That said, Silovs faced Utah once already this season on Oct. 19 and allowed five goals on 29 shots. He will need Thursday night’s performance to match what he did against Florida and Nashville for Pittsburgh to have a chance.
It won’t only be Silovs. The entire lineup must step up against one of the NHL’s best young hockey teams.
Pittsburgh Penguins Projected Lines And Pairings vs. Utah
On Wednesday, Pens Inside Scoop shared the lines and defensive pairs at the morning skate, adding, “Sam Girard (lower-body, 3 games missed) is now wearing a regular jersey. No Rutger McGroarty or Avery Hayes.” Pens Inside Scoop also added that “Dan Muse said Sam Girard will be a game-time decision.”
The latter is definitely worth watching heading into Thursday’s matchup as Tommy Novak, Sidney Crosby, and Rickard Rakell look like the first line.
Egor Chinakhov, Ben Kindel, and Evgeni Malkin look slated to take the second line. All three missed the previous matchup vs. Nashville. They will be a massive boost for the Penguins should the projection hold.
NHL.com added that “Kindel will play…” while further elaborating that “Malkin is expected to return after missing one game because of an illness, Chinakhov should play after missing two games with a lower-body injury…”
Andrei Kuzmenko, Hendrix Lapierre, and Ville Koivunen are projected to slot in as the third line. Koivunen scored the game-winning goal in that Oct. 24 win over the Predators.
Connor Dewar, Blake Lizotte, and Nick Robertson are the projected fourth line. Dewar also got on the board with a goal in Pittsburgh’s win over Nashville.
Spencer Stastney and Erik Karlsson are once again projected for the first pairing. Karlsson finds himself in a career points race against none other than Brent Burns.
Declan Carlile is slated to line up alongside Kris Letang on the second pair. Sam Girard looks like he will take a spot on the third pairing if he’s ready to go. Kaedan Korczak should line up alongside him.
Overall, Pittsburgh will have gotten a lot healthier in a short span should these projections hold.
Penguins Could Win Three In A Row For The First Time This Season
Through 12 games, Pittsburgh has just two regulation wins, so they would love to change that narrative with a statement win over the Mammoth. A win will also keep them further ahead of the Columbus Blue Jackets and Philadelphia Flyers — two heated rivals who have also been up and down this season.
A win over Utah would also mean Pittsburgh is more than capable of upending some of the best teams in hockey week over week. The game will begin at 7:00 p.m. EDT.
Pittsburgh Penguins Make Goalie Call After Back-to-Back Strong Performances