Dubois aces test against Penguins star Crosby
He may have grown up admiring him, and gotten his autograph a decade ago, but Pierre-Luc Dubois wasn’t in awe of Sidney Crosby on the ice Thursday.
The 19-year-old rookie didn’t just hold his own centering the Blue Jackets’ top line against Crosby’s line. He scored a goal on one of his team-high five shots, won 11 of 23 faceoffs and doled out four hits, which included checking Crosby into the benches during the Blue Jackets' 3-2 overtime loss to the Penguins.
“Baptism by fire,” Tortorella said proudly. “And I thought he stood right in there. As I said before the game, he’s not afraid of nothing. Did he make some mistakes? Yeah, but he made some really good plays and he stood right in there.”
“I felt good,” said Dubois, who had a plus-1 rating. “Obviously, they’re a good team with a lot of good players, but whether it’s them or anyone else, I don’t prepare differently. I don’t play differently. I don’t treat anybody differently. I just play my game, and whatever happens, happens.”
Tortorella has been cautious all season not to rush the skilled but raw former No. 3 overall draft pick, or overload him with situations not set up for success.
But as he’s gotten to know Dubois better, and been consistently impressed by him, Tortorella has gradually let go of the handlebars and watched Dubois accelerate faster than either the coach or general manager Jarmo Kekalainen expected. It’s why Tortorella had no hesitation in matching up Dubois against Crosby, and said as much before the game.
“When you elevate your game, as he has, and he’s in the spot in our lineup that he is, there’s more responsibility,” Tortorella said. “It’s a little fasttracked here, but he has handled some things … that we were worried about. He’s gobbled it up. And he’s not afraid of any type of situation. That’s his personality.”
Tortorella added later, “As I’ve always said, sometimes innocence is a pretty good thing. You talk all about experience, this and that. This is a nice thing, and it allows you to have some swagger.”
Dubois, who arrived at training camp unsure if he’d make the roster, has eight goals and nine assists in 36 games, with five goals and seven assists coming in the past 13 games.
“He has impressed me with his composure for a young guy,” captain Nick Foligno said. “He still finds a way to get on the scoresheet and make a difference in games, and not back down. He’s starting to understand he’s a big body (6 feet 3, 207 pounds). It’s hard to move, or intimidate, a guy like him.”