Sully Says: Penguins vs. Sabres (Preseason Game 2)

The Pittsburgh Penguins lost their second exhibition game of the preseason Tuesday night at PPG Paints Arena, falling 3-2 to Buffalo.

Jack St. Ivany and Kevin Hayes each scored for Pittsburgh. Goaltenders Alex Nedeljkovic and Joel Blomqvist split the game in net for the Penguins. Nedeljkovic turned aside 13 of 16 shots in his first preseason action, and Blomqvist stopped all 11 shots that he faced over the second half.

St. Ivany, who signed a three-year deal with Pittsburgh in the summer, opened the scoring three minutes into the first period after he found a loose puck in the crease behind Sabres goaltender Michael Houser. He’s one of the many defensemen fighting for a spot with the Penguins.

“I feel like there’s tons of competition in here,” St. Ivany said. “Like the old saying, ‘iron sharpens iron,’ so we’re all just getting better in here and I know that everyone is coming to the rink working their hardest. It doesn’t matter who you are, I think everybody knows there is spots available, and everyone is pushing for one of them.”

Early into the second period, Hayes got his first goal a Penguin after banging home a loose puck.

“Saw Glasser coming through the neutral zone to my side,” said Hayes. “Didn’t have a ton of space, so I went to the other side to find more space. He made a good play, cut to the middle, shot it. There was a rebound. I try to use my big frame as much as possible and go to the net.”

Hayes admitted to his struggles in St. Louis last season after an All-Star year with the Flyers, and is looking forward to this opportunity in Pittsburgh to get back to being the player he knows he is capable of being.

“I mean, two years ago, I was in Philly, thought I had a good year. Then last year didn't go as planned,” Hayes said. “Just kind of reset… Just kind of work hard. I could kind of play center or wing, whatever they need me to play. So, kind of just a reset, back to basics, and just trying to work as hard as I can.”

Hayes, who has been switching between center and wing during camp, won 16 out of 21 faceoffs. He skated on a line with Rutger McGroarty and Glass during Tuesday’s game. After the first period, Hayes said that he got more comfortable as the game went along.

“I thought the first period didn't really go to plan. I didn't feel good out there. Was kind of fumbling a lot of pucks. I thought as the game went on, got better every shift,” Hayes said.

Head coach Mike Sullivan provided his thoughts after Tuesday’s game.

Coming off a tough game in Buffalo, how do you think Joel Blomqvist rebounded? “I thought it was a great response for him. It was one of the reasons why we wanted to get him back in there. I thought he played a very calculated game. He had a calm demeanor. He was tracking pucks. He made a couple of good saves for us. I think that's a really good sign when a player has the ability to bounce back the way he did.”

What have you seen from Jack St. Ivany in this camp? “He's really developed so well since he's become a Pittsburgh Penguin. Last year, when he came up and played NHL games, I thought he fit right in. He defends well, he's long, he has good size, he has good reach, he's mobile, he's physical, he battles at the netfront, he plays within himself, he plays a calculated game. This year he comes back to training camp, he's got a whole lot more confidence. I think he has a belief that he's an NHL player, and it's showing up in his play. So not just tonight, I thought he was one of the brighter lights in the game from our standpoint. But throughout the course of the camp. I think he's really shown that he's capable of playing at this level.”

What were your thoughts on Cody Glass and his line? “I thought that line had a lot of chances for us. It was our best line. I thought they had a lot of opportunities to score, and Cody was a big part of that. He has good speed. He challenges with outside speed. I thought on the power play breakouts, he had a couple of noticeable speed bursts coming through the neutral zone. I thought he played well. From that standpoint, he was certainly noticeable. I thought that line, for us, generated a fair amount of scoring chances. I don't think they got rewarded for the amount of chances that they got. They could have had a few more given the amount of chances that they got. They were quality looks. He was a big part of that.”

What was your sort of opinion or evaluation of Kevin Hayes on the outside having not spent a ton of time around him, versus what you've seen since camp started? “First and foremost, he's a terrific person. He brings a whole lot of personality to our locker room. I think he's a really smart hockey player, and he makes a lot of plays with the puck. We’re pushing Kevin to play the game with a little bit more pace, and that's one element that we’ve been on him about because we think he could make a contribution and help us win games if he continues to try to play the game with pace, playing on his toes and not getting in glide mode. But from a hockey player standpoint, I think his hockey IQ is really high. He has real good offensive instincts. He's good in the faceoff circle. He's a good penalty killer. He's got a good stick. He reads plays well. These are all the things I think that he's good at, that he brings to the table also. So, he's a terrific person and we're going to continue to push him just on the pace side of it. Because I think if we can elevate his pace, I think there's another level to him.”