Training Camp Takeaways: Preseason Game 1
* The Sabres had a stacked roster for this game that featured young stars Jack Eichel, Casey Mittlestadt and this year's first-overall draft pick, Rasmus Dahlin - who came as advertised, drawing plenty of oohs and ahhs from the crowd with some of the plays he made.
This morning, Olli Maatta - one of the most veteran players in the Pens lineup despite being just 24 years old - said it was going to be a challenge to face an NHL lineup in the preseason opener, but they had to just go out there and battle and play the right way. I thought for the most part, they did that as best they could despite playing their first real game action in months.
"You don't control the opposition's lineup, so what I talked to our players about was that this was an opportunity to showcase their skill, to play their game," Pens assistant coach Jacques Martin said. "Just focus on things that you can control."
* Casey DeSmith embraced the challenge, as his battle level was off the charts and it resulted in an impressive performance. He played all 60 minutes and was strong from start to finish. The Pens netminder had a heavy workload, facing 29 shots along with plenty of Grade-A scoring chances, and he handled it well.
There was a particularly tough sequence when the Sabres had a 5-on-3 power play in the first period. Buffalo managed to convert with six seconds left off a tough bounce, but DeSmith deserved better as he made a number of ridiculous saves against a talented unit.
"I'm really happy with how I played," DeSmith said. "I was seeing the puck really well. I thought my rebound control was great. My reads were for the most part really good. A couple bad bounces there, that first one was tough. After we did a great job killing, with that to happen with six seconds left, it took the wind out of our sails a little bit. But that's hockey. It's going to happen."
Overall, DeSmith has had a really good training camp so far. He's looked great in the scrimmages and stood out tonight. He's certainly doing everything he can to earn the backup job behind Matt Murray.
"There's a level of comfortability for me, for sure, because of last year and playing at this level, it doesn't seem quite as fast as maybe it did in previous years," DeSmith said. "I think I've got my feet under me a little bit and I've had three or four good days in a row now of training camp that I've felt like I've played really well. I'm happy to keep going."
* Down at the other end, the Pens struggled to create offense for most of the night, but they made a late push - scoring twice in the final five minutes of play on nearly identical sequences to hammer away at what had been a 3-0 lead for Buffalo. First, Will O'Neil got on the scoresheet with a blast from the point, and Juuso Riikola did the same just 38 seconds alter.
"We battled back in the third, and that was awesome for the whole team and these guys to not give up and get two back there and almost get one at the end," DeSmith said. "That was pretty fun to watch and shows a lot of grit."
* Riikola couldn't stop smiling after the game, saying that even though they lost, he felt great to make his Pens preseason debut. He didn't seem to have much of an issue playing on the smaller rink after coming over from Europe, saying with a laugh, "I liked it. So far."
And Martin liked Riikola's game, saying, "For his first game in North America, I thought he adjusted fairly well. For sure, it's an adaptation. But I liked what I saw. I think he has good vision, he can move the puck, he skates well. I think it's encouraging what we saw tonight."
* I always look forward to seeing who wears A's for the Penguins in games like these, with Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang all getting the night off. Tonight Jake Guentzel, Chad Ruhwedel and Maatta sported letters on their jerseys.
"With the fact that none of our veterans were in the lineup, those guys have been around for a couple years, so it's an opportunity to showcase their leadership skills," Martin said.
