Sully Says: "We Just Said, We're Capable of Coming Back"

The Penguins erased a four-goal deficit for the first time since Dec. 11, 2006 to earn a 5-4 overtime victory over Columbus on Tuesday at PPG Paints Arena, with Sidney Crosby scoring the game-winner on a power play.
"We'll take those two points, but obviously, we know it wasn't the most ideal game for us," Jason Zucker said.

The winger quipped that "absolutely nothing good" happened in the opening period of play, as the Blue Jackets took a 3-0 lead into the first intermission.
The start of the second featured a couple of goalie changes. Michael Hutchinson replaced Elvis Merzlikins, who was sick, between the pipes for Columbus. And after the Blue Jackets went up 4-0 on their 12th shot of the night less than three minutes in, Casey DeSmith came in and relieved Tristan Jarry.
The Penguins showed a lot more life in the middle frame, with Zucker - their heart and soul - getting them on the board as they built a 17-9 edge in shots during that period. After that, the floodgates opened in the third.
The Penguins scored three goals in the opening 3:59 to even the score at 4-4. Noted Blue Jackets killer Jake Guentzel scored just 21 seconds in, and from there, the Penguins just kept coming. Zucker got his second of the game at the 3:16 mark, with Columbus using its timeout as the Penguins celebrated… with Danton Heinen scoring immediately after to tie the game.
After Zucker drew a hooking penalty in overtime, the captain put home a feed from Evgeni Malkin - who collected his third primary assist of the night - to get the Penguins their fifth win in the past six games after a tough loss on Saturday in Florida.
The Penguins had to dress 11 forwards and seven defensemen, with new winger Mikael Granlund missing the game due to illness and Bryan Rust scratched for personal reasons. Alex Nylander made his Pittsburgh debut after getting called up on an emergency basis from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, recording two assists. Here's what head coach Mike Sullivan had to say after the game.
On what he said during the timeout to try and get the game turned around:"We just said, we've got a lot of hockey left to play, and we're capable of coming back in this game. We just have to stay with it, but we've got to do things differently moving forward. I thought we self-destructed in the first period at the beginning of the game. A lot of the impetus of the goals started in the offensive zone. We had the puck, and we didn't execute. Whether we didn't get pucks through people from the blue line, or didn't take care of the puck in the top half of the offensive zone - we just fed their transition game and put ourselves in a tough spot. But having said that, we can't change what just happened. All we can do is react the right way. So, that's what we discussed in the timeout, is let's just dig in here and work to get the next goal. We've got a lot of hockey left. This team is capable of coming back at games like that. We just got to dig in and work to get the next goal, and just try to play the game the right way."
On what he noticed emotionally that guys were able to tap into after 40 minutes that maybe they didn't find after 20: "I just think that we're at a particular stage in the season where we've had a lot of conversations as a hockey team, and as a group. I think there's a clear understanding of what needs to happen to set ourselves up for success and what that game looks like. We've got to put that game on the ice consistently, and we got to be committed to it. It boils down to a lot of details, it boils down to execution. There's a number of things involved. But I just think we've had a lot of conversations, and now it's about acting. We just got to go out, and we've got to perform. We've got to stay in the moment. It's not always going to go the right way. We're going to have struggles. We got to work through them. I thought that's what we did tonight. I think it's a great lesson for our whole group. Number one, we don't want to start games like that. But also, just showing the ability to work through a challenge like that, I think says a lot about our group."
On Alex Nylander's performance: "I thought he played a solid game. One of the reasons why we moved him up the lineup the way we did is because we liked what we saw, and we thought we'd give him a shot with Geno's line. I thought he played really well. He's come a long way. I had a great conversation with J.D. (Forrest), our Wilkes-Barre coach, this morning. They've done a real good job working with Alex, and Alex deserves a lot of credit for the growth and development of his game. You could see his playmaking ability and his offensive instincts. He's a talented player. He's got real good instincts. I think he's starting to round out his game on both sides of the puck, and things of that nature."
On if Tristan Jarry was still feeling the effects of the illness that kept him from starting on Saturday in Florida, or if he was just on the wrong end of how the team was playing:"He's feeling better. I think the challenge is we just haven't got him on the ice enough. He hasn't been on the ice a whole lot. He had one practice, and for goalies in particular, I think it's important for them to see reps. They need to see the puck, they need to get repetitions. That's how their game gets sharp, and stays sharp. I think Tristan is a guy who, when he gets repetitions in practice, that carries over to his game. I think it's a little bit of that as well. So hopefully, we can get him on the ice here a little bit more, and get him some repetitions so that he can get into a rhythm. But it was a combination of the two. I don't think Tristan was at his best tonight, but I don't think we helped him, either, as a team in front of him."
On what Casey DeSmith gave the Penguins after the goalie change:"I thought Case was sharp. He made a couple of big saves in the third period in particular when we needed him to. Never an easy position for a goalie to come in in that circumstance, but I thought he was up to the task. I thought he played real well. He made some big saves for us when we needed him, and those are the saves you need that gives your team a chance to win. When you're trying to climb back into a game, they're even that much more important. If they were able to get the next goal, that might have been a tough one to overcome. I thought Case made some big saves to keep the score where it was to give us an opportunity to climb back."
On how the team so often takes on the personalities of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, and what Jason Zucker brings to the team in that regard:"His personality can be contagious. I think he's very well-liked in our locker room. He's a bit of the team comedian, as well. I just think he brings some juice. He brings energy, he brings a certain swagger, and he plays that way as well. It's the combination of his personality with how he plays, I think our team feeds off of that. He had a huge game for us tonight. He's had a really good year. This is the best year he's played for us as a Penguin. It's also the healthiest he's been, since he's been a Penguin. So, Zuck is a real important player for us. But from a personality standpoint, we don't have a ton of those guys. He just brings a certain swagger to the group that I think is contagious."
On if he finds it beneficial having such a veteran group in a situation like tonight:"I have to believe that the experience that we have helps us in those situations. These guys have been through a lot through the course of their careers. They've had their fair share of successes. They've had their fair share of disappointment. It's just the nature of pro sports. It's hard to win every year, but these guys have built an impressive legacy. So to draw on those experiences, both the good and the bad, I think can only help us in these situations. There haven't been too many experiences the core group of players hasn't experienced throughout the course of their careers, on both sides, the positive side and the negative sides. This can be a humbling game, sometimes, you know? It's hard to win in this league. There's a lot of good players, there's a lot of good teams. And if you're not at your best, you're going to run the risk of losing. All of us have been on both sides of that. So, I have to believe that that having been through those experiences just offers our team a certain perspective and being able to react the right way, so that we don't necessarily overreact."