Penguins

Hornqvist on surge: ‘I always like to score goals’

Dave Molinari
Posted on
[get_snippet]

To continue reading, log into your account:

[theme-my-login show_title=0]
Dominik Simon and Patric Hornqvist celebrate Hornqvist's goal in Las Vegas Tuesday night. -- AP

LAS VEGAS -- Patric Hornqvist is playing as well -- and scoring as often -- lately as he has at any time since joining the Penguins in 2015.

He's also as healthy as he's been in quite a while.

None of which is a coincidence.

That's because Hornqvist, who has 10 goals in 26 games this season, has made a career of operating in high-traffic areas, the places where many goals are scored -- and paid for with contusions, sprains and fractures.

So for all he has accomplished in this league, including playing a prominent role on two Stanley Cup winners, there are some things Hornqvist can't ever hope to achieve. Like, say, making a serious run at Doug Jarvis' ironman record of playing in 964 consecutive games. The way Hornqvist goes about his job, he's lucky if he can string together 964 minutes without needing some sort of surgery or extended rehab.

"He's only going to play the game one way," Mike Sullivan said after the Penguins had an optional practice at T-Mobile Arena today.  "That's the only way he knows how. And that's the way he can best be effective."

Injuries forced Hornqvist to sit out 17 of the Penguins' first 43 games, but a recent 10-game absence didn't seem to affect him for long. After being shut out in his first game back, Hornqvist has four goals in the past five games, pushing his 26-game total for the season to 10.

"He's playing really well for us right now," Sullivan said. "He's just a real good player when he's playing the game the way he is playing right now, and I think his health has a lot to do with it. He plays hard, so he puts himself in harm's way a lot. He plays in the battle areas. He's a real effective player, the way he's playing right now."

Hornqvist, who sat out the practice, said simply that, "I feel good," and suggested that the Penguins' early elimination from the Stanley Cup playoffs last April has contributed to the productive season he's having.

"I felt good coming into training camp," Hornqvist said. "The long summer helps, too. We had a few years there where we couldn't do a lot of training. You take advantage when you get the chance to train a lot."

If Hornqvist can stay healthy -- which is far from certain, obviously -- and continue scoring at his current pace, his 65-game goals total will be 25. That's not all that far off his personal high of 30, set when he was with Nashville in 2009-10.

And it would be a nice bounce-back season after he put up just 18 in 69 games in 2018-19.

"I always like to score goals," Hornqvist said. "You always want to beat your own record. That's why I'm still in this league. I want to get better."

And he's not afraid to go where he knows he must to make all of that happen.

MORE FROM PRACTICE

• Shortly before the Penguins were scheduled to begin practice, word came out that only a handful of players would go on the ice. Word of the workout being made optional presumably was kept quiet so that players wouldn't be tempted to enjoy Las Vegas to excess after their 4-3 victory against the Golden Knights Tuesday.

• Sullivan said the coaching staff has "really liked" Jared McCann when used at center, but that he almost certainly will be used on the wing if he's cast in a top-six role when Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are in the lineup. Sullivan added that McCann "is a guy who has the ability to be effective at both positions."

• Crosby was one of the players who participated in the practice, and also worked out on the ice before it, as did Nick Bjugstad and Justin Schultz:

Crosby initially was expected to speak with reporters when he returned to the dressing room, but team officials said he would not do interviews because of where he is in the rehab process.

• Sullivan said that if Joseph Blandisi, who was put on waivers today, clears at noon tomorrow, the current plan is to keep him on the major-league roster to provide "flexibility."

To continue reading, log into your account: