Games within a game

Tuesday, 15 January 2013 19:15

Written by Dave Molinari

Coach Dan Bylsma wants the Penguins' scrimmage tomorrow at 7 p.m. at Consol Energy Center to be as realistic as possible.

So much so that he's planning to fake a number of game situations during it.

Bylsma said today that he intends to "stage" various events during the game to assure that his players get a chance to work on things like four-on-three power plays and six-skaters-on-five situations that occur after a team has replaced its goalie with an extra attacker.

What's more, Bylsma said there will be a five-minute overtime and five-round shootout after three periods, regardless of what the score is at the end of regulation.

Players from the Penguins' farm team in Wilkes-Barre are being brought in after their game in Norfolk this evening so that each squad can dress 12 forwards and six defensemen, and Bylsma said lineups carefully constructed by the coaching staff.

He said, for example, that members of the No. 1 power play unit will be on one team, members of the No. 2 unit on the other.

"The coaches picked, and we had some purpose (in how personnel is split)," he said.

Bylsma added that he will coach on team for two periods, the other for a period and the overtime.

Eric Tangradi and Beau Bennett, the top candidates to fill the left-wing spot on a line with Evgeni Malkin and James Neal, will be on the same squad as Malkin and Neal and that, Bylsma said, definitely is not something that happened by accident.

"You’ll see Eric play there," he said. "You probably will also see Beau play there.
"That wasn’t out of the hat. That was planned."

Like just about everything else associated with the scrimmage, it seems.