3 Things: Turning the Page, Practice Updates and Rookies Re-Assigned

Here are the 3 biggest takeaways from the Penguins' Friday practice at PPG Paints Arena.

1. Turning the page
The Penguins were back on the ice following their tough loss to Philadelphia in this same building the night before. They skated for about 20 minutes, with head coach Mike Sullivan calling it more of an active recovery with the quick turnaround ahead of their rematch with the Flyers on Saturday at 1 p.m.
As they look to turn the page from Thursday - where the Flyers rallied for a 4-3 comeback victory after the Penguins scored three goals in a 71-second span in the opening minutes of play - Sullivan said they discussed the areas where they need to improve and get better, and how they're going to learn through that experience.
"And now, we've got to be able to look by it and be ready for the next challenge," Sullivan said. "So, we had some discussions with our players. We've pushed out some video to them that that is specific on some of the discussions that we had. And now we've got to be able to respond the right way."
While Cody Ceci admitted that the setback definitely stung, the players are focusing on the fact that they get to play the Flyers again so soon. It will be the third straight matchup between the cross-state rivals.
"We just know we have to be better, and I think the good thing about this schedule is that we get them tomorrow," Jake Guentzel said. "We know we got to bounce back. We know we got to be at our best."
2. Injury updates and practice notes
Defenseman Mark Friedman was absent from practice after leaving in the second period of the contest, where he scored his first career NHL goal in the first period.
He was injured after trying to lay a hit on his former teammate Nolan Patrick. The Flyers forward braced for the impact and instead sent Friedman flying to the ice. He had to be helped off and headed straight to the locker room, where he did not return.
"Frieds is continuing to be evaluated right now," Sullivan said. "He's out with an upper-body injury. I don't have anything further for you there."
Defenseman Brian Dumoulin (15 games missed) and forward Evan Rodrigues (16 games missed), who have been sidelined with the same lower-body injury, were full participants in practice for a third straight day.
"They're making progress there," Sullivan said. "We'll see how they respond, and we'll visit with our medical staff and make decisions accordingly."
Here is the workflow the Penguins used…
Guentzel-Crosby-Rust
McCann-Malkin-Kapanen
Aston-Reese-Blueger-Tanev
Lafferty-Jankowski-Angello/Rodrigues
Dumoulin-Letang
Pettersson-Marino
Ceci-Matheson
Riikola-Ruhwedel
It was especially encouraging to see Dumoulin back in his usual spot on the top pairing alongside Letang, as it has a ripple effect upon the rest of the blue line.
"When we do have Dumo in our lineup, it puts the other defenseman in positions that set them up to be successful," Sullivan said. "When you lose a guy like Dumo - a real good, reliable 200-foot defenseman that plays the type of minutes that he plays against the type of players that he plays against - we're asking other guys to step up and fill that void, and that's not an easy challenge."
3. Sullivan talks Joseph and O'Connor being re-assigned
This morning, the Penguins re-assigned their two rookies to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League: defenseman P.O Joseph and forward Drew O'Connor.
With young players like that, Sullivan said they are always going down parallel tracks as a coaching staff: what kind of an impact are they having on the game here at the NHL level, and how do they have the ability to help them in their own personal development?
"We don't want them on the sidelines too long," Sullivan said. "We all feel strongly that part of the learning experience and the development process is experiential learning through the games. And so, if it's not going to happen here on a consistent basis, then we need to give them the opportunity to play lots of minutes in Wilkes-Barre and continue to grow and develop their game."
Joseph, 21, has played 16 games for Pittsburgh in his first NHL season - tallying one goal, four assists and five points. As Sullivan said recently, he's had flashes of brilliance along with some inconsistencies. But one thing is for sure: Joseph is still a big part of the Penguins.
"We're really excited about his game and where it's at and where we think it potentially could go," Sullivan said. "We still feel very strongly that P.O is part of the group here in Pittsburgh, even though right now he's playing games in Wilkes-Barre. It's more about his own personal growth and development."
Meanwhile, O'Connor, 22, has played in nine games for the Penguins - registering an assist in his NHL debut on Jan. 26 at Boston.
"He was a guy that was playing eight to 10 minutes here on the fourth line, and he's had some inconsistencies in his game," Sullivan said. "And the question we asked ourselves was, would it better serve him and expedite that development process if he's playing 20-plus minutes a night in Wilkes-Barre and getting lots of time in lots of key situations?"
As Sullivan said, there's not always a right answer.
"But my experience has usually been it's a combination of both: play here in Pittsburgh with the NHL roster, but also get in game situations," he said.