CRANBERRY, Pa. -- If Casey DeSmith isn't staying in the Penguins' net Tuesday night in Newark, then these guys are getting great at disguising this sort of thing.
For one, it was Matt Murray who lingered on the rink long after practice Monday afternoon at the Lemieux Sports Complex, while DeSmith came off with all the regulars.
For another, although Mike Sullivan wouldn't name a starter to face the Devils, he did answer a question about how Murray's handling the current situation: "I think it'll serve him very well. Pro sports is a hard business. It's a hard game. Every player goes through ups and downs, and Matt is no different than any other player who's come before him or who will come after him. And it's about how you handle those ebbs and flows through the course of your career that helps you to have success. And I think Matt's mental toughness and the experiences he's gone through, he can certainly draw on and get to where we all know he's capable of being."
Sullivan then referenced Murray's extra on-ice time with Mike Buckley, which continued after this session: "Right now, he's got an opportunity to spend some time with Buck and work on some of the aspects of his game that he can improve. He can build his confidence."
Sullivan then appeared to catch himself a bit: "This by no means diminishes our faith and our trust in Matt Murray. We know he's a real good goalie. He's an accomplished goalie. I think sometimes we forget how young he is because he's as accomplished as he is. We're going to work with Matt, help him through this process, and it's no different than any other player."
OK, so he isn't playing Tuesday.
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