Hornqvist in lineup after one-game absence

It’s difficult to think of a better Christmas present for the Penguins.

After flying home on his own from the recent road trip to have an upper-body injury evaluated, Patric Hornqvist returned to the lineup Thursday against the Columbus Blue Jackets at PPG Paints Arena after missing only one game. Even better for the Penguins, Hornqvist said he doesn’t expect the injury in a 4-2 win over Arizona Dec. 16 to linger.

“It’s going to be a gametime decision, but I got better here every day,” Hornqvist said following the Thursday morning skate. “I feel pretty good right now.”

Having Hornqvist back for a key divisional game was important for several reasons:

• This marked the first meeting between the Penguins and Columbus since a five-game victory in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals.

• The Penguins had lost five of seven and desperately need points, with six of their next eight coming inside the Metropolitan Division.

• There’s two more games after Thursday and before the NHL’s holiday roster freeze is up. You have to think general manager Jim Rutherford will be using them to make any final determinations-about his team.

• The power play entered Thursday’s game in a season-long, four-game funk that totals 13 chances. Furthermore, in their past five losses, the Penguins had scored a total of eight evenstrength goals. Having Hornqvist in front of the net provides a great equalizer.

His energy tends to be infectious.

No matter how you slice it, the Penguins could use a pick-me-up right now, and Hornqvist avoiding anything serious could turn out to be that.

“We have to figure it out in here,” he said. “We have to start playing better. We know that.”

Line it up

Penguins coach Mike Sullivan separated Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel, putting Hornqvist on Malkin’s right wing and Kessel with Riley Sheahan.

Matt Murray started in goal, which means it has been awhile for Tristan Jarry, who hasn’t-played since Dec. 11.

Ian Cole and Tom Kuhnhackl were the healthy scratches. Cole was a healthy scratch three times in late November, but the acquisition of Jamie Oleksiak combined with a few too many Cole penalties have put the shot-blocking menace back in the press box.

“I think at times he’s been very effective for us,” coach Mike Sullivan said of Cole. “At times, he hasn’t been as effective. I think you could say that for a lot of our guys in our lineup at this point.”

Milestone night

Matt Hunwick logged 500th NHL game Thursday, but the way he sees it, it’s something that should have happened awhile ago. For myriad reasons, he has never played more than 76 games in an NHL season. He hs averaged 62 games played over the past three seasons. “I probably should have been there a long time ago without injuries and other stuff. It’s cool, but it’s not too big on my mind.”

Missing Dubinsky

If you find Columbus center Brandon Dubinsky a bit of a pain, you’re not alone. “He’s a pain in the [butt] on the bench,” Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella said. “He’s emotional. That’s important.”

Tortorella was answering a question about line construction — and how it’s more difficult with Dubinsky out for an extended stretch because of an orbital fracture under his left eye. Dubinsky had gotten off to a slow start, but as the Blue Jackets have hit a few rough patches, Tortorella said they’ve missed Dubinsky.

“He doesn’t have big numbers this year,” Tortorella said. “He makes a ton of mistakes in the game, all the time. But I miss him on the bench. The boys miss him on the bench. We miss him. He’s a little bit of the heartbeat of our team. But we don’t have him, and we’re probably not going to have him for a while here. We have to make it work here.”

Oleksiak will play

Oleksiak made his Penguins debut on his 25th birthday, skating next to Hunwick. Big moment for a big man.

As for the Hunwick pairing, the veteran said it won’t be a big thing given they’ve only really had one practice together. “With any new player, it’s communication,” he said. “You’re just feeling your way through the game as far as talking on the bench, talking in between shifts. You kind of have an idea what to expect before the game. Just try to make him feel as comfortable as possible.”