Harrington sent down; Pouliot’s return possible
NEW YORK — The Penguins re-assigned defenseman Scott Harrington to their minor league club in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Thursday, which opens the door for a potential return by Derrick Pouliot.
Harrington had served as the club’s seventh or extra defenseman for the playoffs.
Coach Mike Johnston described Pouliot as well as right winger Beau Bennett as “close to playing.”
Pouliot suffered an undisclosed injury in the 4-3 overtime loss April 7 at Ottawa, but has been skating with the team for several days. There was no word on whether Pouliot will rejoin the lineup in New York tonight for Game 5.
If he does, Pouliot would add a dimension the club has been missing — offensive skill and finesse from the blue line.
“I think he handles pressure well,” defenseman Paul Martin said. “He's one of those guys that can do a lot of things for us as far as creating things offensively. If he's ready to go, we'll wait and see.”
Chorney’s wish granted
Defenseman Taylor Chorney has played in 400 games in the American Hockey League, including 62 this season at Wilkes Barre/Scranton, the Penguins’ AHL affiliate. He has played in places such as Springfield, Peoria and Oklahoma City.
The NHL can seem like a far-away dream during the grind of an AHL season in one of those minor league outposts. And there were times this 27-year old defenseman wondered if he was going to play in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
But now, after late-season injuries decimated the Penguins defense, Chorney has gotten that opportunity in the opening round.
“I’d be lying if I said it was always roses for me, thinking there were great things going for me,” said Chorney, who had previous NHL stints with Edmonton and St. Louis. “At the same time, I always had confidence in my ability. It was just a matter of whether I’d get to show it again or not.”
Chorney was paired primarily with defenseman Brian Dumoulin for approximately 50 AHL games this season and they have served as the Penguins’ third pairing through the first four playoff games.
“They’ve looked poised,” Johnston said. “A lot of it is because they’ve played together. The second part of it is that they’re ready. They’ve done a good job in [Wilkes-Barre/Scranton]. Those two guys are ready for playoff hockey at this level.”
Tip-ins
The Penguins canceled practice Thursday at Consol Energy Center and staged off-ice workouts before going to New York. … Rangers coach Alain Vigneault said the possibility of defenseman Kevin Klein playing tonight was “50-50.” He has been out since March 11 with a broken left forearm. … Klein, defenseman Keith Yandle and center Mats Zuccarello skipped practice. Klein was dealing with what was described as soreness, and Yandle and Zuccarello were given “maintenance days.”