1 day Ago By Justin Guerriero
Jesse Puljujarvi couldn’t put his finger on exactly how many of his 374 career NHL games he’s deployed at left wing other than admitting it’s been with far less frequency as compared to the right side. Regardless, on the left is where coach Mike Sullivan has seen fit to place Puljujarvi, a right-handed shot, the past five games dating to Nov. 11.
During that stretch, Puljujarvi has contributed a pair of goals in back-to-back games Nov. 16 and 19 against the San Jose Sharks and Tampa Bay Lightning. “I think he’s playing really well for us,” Sullivan said.
“He’s in on the forecheck. He’s good on the walls. He’s going to the net.
I think he’s playing very well.” The 26-year-old Puljujarvi has shuffled around the Penguins’ bottom-six corps of forwards of late, which has been necessary in the aftermath of Lars Eller’s trade in addition to several injuries. Encompassing his current modest two-game point streak, Puljujarvi has skated as left wing on a Penguins’ third line centered by Drew O’Connor, with Sam Poulin factoring in at right wing.
“It’s pretty good for me,” Puljujarvi said of playing left wing. “I can learn more. I’ve been strong playing left, too, with chances.
You can come (over the) middle, and you have backhand, forehand a little different. It’s been a good change and gives me an opportunity to be (a) better player overall.” Puljujarvi scored the opening goal Tuesday night in an eventual 3-2 overtime loss to the Lightning.
The sequence that led to the goal was begun by Puljujarvi himself, who pressured Tampa Bay defenseman J.J. Moser into making an errant pass out of the defensive zone on the forecheck.
After Moser’s attempted wall pass to Michael Eyssimont in the neutral zone missed its mark, Sam Poulin tapped it back the way of Puljujarvi on the offensive blue line. Following passes between Puljujarvi and O’Connor, Poulin kept the play alive, forwarding the puck to Marcus Petterssson. From there, Puljujarvi broke toward the net and received a precision pass from Pettersson, tapping it in past Andrei Vasilevskiy at the crease.
“It was a nice pass,” Puljujarvi said. “I feel like we had (a) good forecheck there and then you have to keep both feet moving and find those spots.” Poulin, who’s now suited up in games with Pittsburgh after being recalled from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League, notched a secondary assist on Puljujarvi’s goal for his first point of the year and second of his NHL career.
The Puljujarvi-O’Connor-Poulin line also managed to capitalize in the Penguins’ previous game, with Puljujarvi burying a loose puck after Sharks goalie Vitek Vanacek made a kick save on an O’Connor shot. Puljujarvi, a former first-round (No. 4 overall) pick by the Edmonton Oilers in 2016, has scored three goals with five assists this season through 18 games played.
A healthy scratch for a handful of games this year, Puljujarvi played part of last season with the Penguins after being brought aboard on a professional tryout contract, eventually appearing in 22 games with three goals and an assist. Signed to a two-year deal with the Penguins worth $800,000 annually last February, Puljujarvi’s opportunity with the Penguins followed his exit from the Carolina Hurricanes organization after appearing in 17 games for the 2022-23 campaign. That summer, Puljujarvi underwent double hip surgery, leading to limited NHL opportunities to start 2023-24.
Last season, those significant surgeries were apparent in his overall play. Now, with his health improved, Puljujarvi looks to continue a new chapter of his career that’d gotten off to a promising start for parts of six seasons in Edmonton. “I think his skating is stronger, he’s faster, he’s more powerful, he’s stronger on pucks, he’s not falling down as much when he’s over the puck and I’m sure his confidence is building because of all those things,” Sullivan said.
.
