Schultz says his return is ‘getting close’

Justin Schultz has been skating with his teammates for more than two weeks. His return also has extended past the given four-month timetable. Schultz, however, is not sweating his return to the Penguins lineup.

Whenever he returns, it’ll be all about feel, Schultz said after practice Thursday at UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex. And until this point, the left leg that Schultz fractured simply hasn’t felt well enough to where he feels like he would be 100 percent.

“I’m getting close,” Schultz said. “I’m with the guys now a lot, so it’s better than being by yourself. When you’re this close, it’s exciting. You just have to stick with it.”

Schultz said that the final call will be his, which would indicate that Penguins doctors and coaches are comfortable with him playing a game whenever he’s ready.

“It’s up to me,” Schultz said. “When I feel I’m ready to play, I’ll be in.”

While Schultz was noncommittal for his status this weekend — the Penguins have afternoon home games against the Calgary Flames and New York Rangers — he said it’s important to get into a game here soon.

“I want to get in as quick as I can when I feel ready, try to get back into things,” Schultz said.

“It’s going to be tough the first couple of games. The quicker I get back in, the better.”

Back together

When coach Mike Sullivan separated his top defense pair of Brian Dumoulin and Kris Letang, he never thought it would be a long-term thing. Instead, Sullivan figured it might effect change and provide some balance. Eventually, Dumoulin and Letang would be reunited.

That was the case Wednesday, and those two were very good. Dumoulin, who was playing his 300th NHL game and leads the league with a plus-29 rating, had a tremendous game in his own zone, which allowed Letang to freelance.

Letang set up Teddy Blueger’s second-period goal and led all 36 skaters with nine shots on goal.

“When we split them up, our intent wasn’t a longterm intent,” Sullivan said. “It was a short-term decision that hopefully would have positive results for the group as a whole.”

Short of nothing

It’s all about the shorthanded goals these days for the Penguins. Not only has their power play had trouble preventing them, but they’ve become very, very good at scoring them.

Bryan Rust’s shorthanded marker Wednesday was the Penguins’ ninth this season, which puts them third in the NHL. Crazier than that, though, the Penguins have four shorthanded goals over their past nine games compared to just one on the power play.

Their nine shorties this season have actually come in a span of 27 games.

McCann comfortable

Jared McCann can’t explain it.

He has three goals in seven games as a Penguin and already has a sense of comfort in their system that never came close to existing with Derick Brassard. McCann came to the Penguins from Florida in the Brassard trade.

Similar to Matt Cullen, who said over the summer that the Penguins’ style simply fits with how he thinks the game, McCann said the fit has been natural from the start.

“The way they play here, the speed, they’re always playing fast,” McCann said. “I feel like that’s kind of my game. Playing with the puck, playing more with the puck instead of trying to dump it in all the time, make a play if it’s there. It’s been really good.”