The one spot in the Penguins' lineup that has been immune to shuffling _ Conor Sheary on Sidney Crosby's left _ is now up for grabs, as coach Mike Sullivan announced after practice Wednesday that Sheary would miss approximately 4-6 weeks with an upper-body injury.
It's not exactly clear how Sheary was hurt. He played 16:52 in Tuesday's 4-2 win over the Predators, attempted six shots and tallied an assist.
It cuts short what was shaping up to be a career year for Sheary: 17 goals and 35 points in 42 games, on pace for only the third 30-goal season by a winger in the Crosby/Evgeni Malkin Era.
Despite the unlikeliest of paths to the NHL, Sheary had answered the perpetual question for the Penguins of who will play and produce with Crosby.
"He was having a real good year," Sullivan said at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry, Pa. "That's a tough one for us. He's been a real good player for us. Once again, our depth will be tested. We've got guys who can step up. We know we have guys that can fill different roles. That's been one of the strengths of this team. It will continue to be a strength."
There's a couple of routes Sullivan could go. All of them are different.
It may not be the most likely, but it is the most newsworthy: Matt Cullen, out six games with a broken foot, returned to practice Wednesday and appears to be tracking toward a Friday return.
Cullen has been a 40-year-old Swiss Army Knife for the Penguins and last season occupied all 12 forward spots at one time or another.
"I've been pleasantly surprised with how it's come along here and how it feels in the skate," Cullen said of his injury, which seemed to affect him not at all the past few days.
Conditioning has been no big thing. Cullen, who has already outperformed his contract with eight goals and 17 points in 43 games, said he has skated four of the past six days and feels ready to go.
"Everything is moving in the right direction," Cullen said. "It shouldn't be too long."
The second option could be Scott Wilson, who had a red-hot training camp before cooling. Wilson has grown his game on the fourth line, carving out a style more akin to a pair of players he idolizes: former Maple Leafs Darcy Tucker and Gary Roberts.
"I always played a little gritty growing up," Wilson said. "I like to hit. For me, once you get on the ice, you turn on a little switch."
What Sullivan wants is someone to play the give-and-go game that Sheary did so well with Crosby. That might not necessarily be Wilson's core competency, a phrase Sullivan often uses to describe what individual players bring to a team.
Someone who could get a chance to prove he can produce alongside Crosby is Jake Guentzel. The Penguins gave Guentzel a sniff at center but would prefer he plays wing because of how effective he is there.
Hockey sense is a term Sullivan likes to use when talking about Sheary. Guentzel is the son of a hockey coach. He has hockey sense in spades. Plus, he's probably more of a natural scorer than Wilson, if the Penguins go the youth route.
A fourth option could be old faithful, Chris Kunitz, Crosby's regular left wing throughout his career.
The problem here is that Kunitz has helped form an effective fourth line for the Penguins along with Wilson and Eric Fehr, a trio that combined for a goal and two assists, seven hits and 10 shot attempts Tuesday against Nashville.
"We're not a line that wants to carry it through the neutral zone or create turnovers at the blue line," Kunitz said. "We know that we have to earn every shift that we get."
Essentially limit turnovers, carry play and don't get too cute.
Whatever route the Penguins go, Sheary's shoes won't be easy to fill. But, as Sullivan said, they do have plenty of options.
