Kessel listens to Sullivan, thinks more about offense

Penguins coach Mike Sullivan has spent a lot of time lately encouraging Phil Kessel to shoot the puck more often.

The message evidently got through, considering that Kessel launched a game-high seven shots at Columbus goalie Sergei Bobrovsky in the Penguins’ 3-1 victory against the Blue Jackets in Game 1 of their opening-round playoff series Thursday night at PPG Paints Arena.

Of course, it would have been pretty hard for Kessel — or anyone else — to argue with Sullivan’s logic after Kessel scored what proved to be the winning goal.

The Penguins, holding a 1-0 lead, were on a power play at 3:45 of the second period, when Kessel whipped a wrist shot past Bobrovsky and under the crossbar from the left dot.

Kessel’s description of the goal was nothing special — “I was fortunate to just get [the puck into the] far side,” he said — but the shot that made it possible certainly was.

“He has one of the best wrist shots in the game,” Sullivan said. “He’s accurate. He’s got a deceptive release. He’s got a quick release. The velocity on it … it’s as hard a wrist shot as there is in the league.”

Impressive as that goal was, Kessel had an assist that was nearly as striking.

About 2½ minutes before he scored, Kessel had kicked the puck to linemate Bryan Rust in the slot, allowing Rust to score the goal that put the Penguins in front 1-0.

So, are Kessel’s feet as gifted as his hands?

“On that play,” Rust said, “they were pretty good.”

Kessel scored just two goals in the final 26 games of the regular season, but burnished his reputation as a high-stakes player in the Penguins’ Stanley Cup drive last spring.

That truth wasn’t lost on his center.

“He’s an amazing player,” Evgeni Malkin said. “He’s a playoff guy.”

So, for that matter, is Malkin, who picked up two assists in his first game after sitting out 13 because of a shoulder injury after he blocked a shot March 13 in Calgary.

“He definitely stepped right in there and did what he does best,” Rust said. “He was making plays.”

It was, by almost any measure, an impressive performance, although Malkin suggested that he should be capable of better as the series progresses.

“It’s not easy,” he said. “I’m tired. After the second period, I was a little bit tired. I think the next game, I’ll feel a little bit better.”

The Penguins can only hope that’s the case, because Columbus’ dominant performance in the first period underscored the problems the Blue Jackets can cause as the series moves along.

“It’s a good first win, but we need to be ready,” Malkin said. “That’s not an easy team.”