Kessel proud of sister’s gold-medal win in Korea
Amanda Kessel is an Olympicgold medalist.
Her two-time Stanley Cup champion brother is psyched aboutit.
“I’m very proud of her,” Phil Kessel said Thursday after Penguins practice at UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex. “She missed a lot of time [because of concussions]. To beable to win a gold medal is a special accomplishment. I’m really proud of her.”
So is the entire country after Team USA women’s hockey beat Canada, 3-2, in a shootout early Thursday morning to end a 20-year gold medal drought — ironically 38 years to the day after the “Miracleon Ice.”
Amanda Kessel, like her brother a right winger, scored a shootout goal for the Americans, one of three they produced over six rounds.
“It was great,” Phil said of Amanda’s shootout goal — gorgeous, top shelf, obviously in the bloodlines. “There was a lot of pressure. They’re down one in the shootout. She has to make it there. She made a great shot. I’m proud of her.”
Phil said he spoke with Amanda before and after the gold-medal game.
“She can’t believe it,” Phil said. “They worked so hard. The girls worked so hard to get there. It’s every four years. That’s the biggest game they get a chance to play in. It’s a great accomplishment .”
Phil Kessel has often joked that he gets more nervous for Amanda’s games than his own, watching every one he can.
Any interactions with his Canadian teammates, Phil said, were minimal.
“They all knew I was pretty nervous about the game,” Phil said. “They came out on the rightend.”
The outcome brought up the discussion of shootouts and whether they’re the properway to end a game.
Most NHL players aren’t fans, although they do understand there are times when the circumstances call for it.
“I mean, I liked it [Wednesday] night,” Kessel said. “I don’t know. That’s a tough question. Hockey, I think they probably should play for it. You know, play out overtime. But how long has it been going on for the Olympics, a long time? I think it’ll stay that way. It’s a different event. It probably should stay that way.”
Hornqvist could be back
Patric Hornqvist rejoined the Penguins for practice Thursday and appears likely toreturn Friday in Carolina.
“He had a full practice [Thursday],” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said afterward. “We’ll see how he responds to the practice. Certainly all signs are looking positive at this point. We thought he looked good in the practice. He felt good in the practice. We’ll take it day-to-day. Certainly we’re excited with the progress that he’s made.”
Hornqvist, one of the team’s most impactful players because of his energetic style, has been out since a Feb. 2 victory against Washington, a s pan of eight games.
After starting out in a noncontact sweater, Hornqvist switched over to black midway through practice and worked on a line with Carl Hagelin and Evgeni Malkin.
Without Hornqvist, their regular net-front presence on the power play, the Penguins have gone just 2 for 16 (12.5 percent) with the man-advantage, a far cry from their NHLbest conversion rate of 30.3 percentsince Jan. 1.
In 49 games, Hornqvist has 16goals and 31 points.
New/old lines
Winning five in a row didn’t stop Sullivan from tin kering with his forward lines.
In addition to Hornqvist back with Hagelin and Malkin, Sidney Crosby was flanked by Dominik Simon and Bryan Rust.
The third line of Jake Guentzel, Riley Sheahan and Kessel remained intact, while Carter Rowney centered a fourth line with Zach AstonReese and Conor Sheary on either side, with Ryan Reaves rotating in.
It’s possible these combinations could hold Friday againstthe Hurricanes.
The previous time the Penguins played them, Sullivan scratched Reaves because his size and physicality are less of a factor against the smaller and faster Hurricanes.
Playing against a fast team also led Sullivan to put Rust with Crosby.
“When we have a full complement of players and everyone’s healthy, the coaching staff has some real difficult decisions to make,” Sullivan said. “It’s a good challenge to have as a coaching staff because it’s an indication that we’re a team that has that depth.”
Kuhnhackl’s progress
Tom Kuhnhackl skated on his own Thursday before practice.
“He’s going to come on the trip with us,” Sullivan said. We’re hoping that he’ll join the group for the morning skate [Friday].”