Yohe’s 10 observations: Malkin and Crosby put on a show, Karlsson’s injury, Graves’ usage

Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin have produced countless shows in hockey rinks around North America over the past two decades.

They added a new one on Sunday.

Making their respective preseason debuts, Malkin recorded a hat trick and Crosby added two goals as the Penguins defeated the Ottawa Senators 5-2 in the 2024 Kraft Hockeyville Canada game, giving the crowd at Sudbury Community Arena on Sunday precisely what it came to see.

Malkin finished the evening with four points and Kris Letang , the other member of the Big Three, added two assists in his preseason debut.

This marks an unusually busy stretch for the Penguins, who have preseason games in five of six days this week because of Saturday's game being rescheduled in Detroit due to the Penguins' plane troubles.

• While three future Hall of Famers on the Penguins roster were putting on a show in Sudbury, Erik Karlsson was back home in Pittsburgh. It remains unclear when he will return to the ice.

The Penguins are hopeful he can be ready for the Oct. 9 opener against the New York Rangers but they aren't making any guarantees.

Karlsson has missed all of training camp with an upper-body injury. He was skating regularly for about a week, then had a couple of scheduled days off from the ice, but was shut down from skating during each of the past four days.

The Penguins naturally aren't giving away any injury specifics but it's fair to surmise Karlsson endured some kind of a setback during the past week.

• It didn't happen because the Penguins' game on Saturday in Detroit was postponed, but Ryan Graves , the veteran defenseman who struggled so mightily last season, was supposed to play in that game. He also played in the first two preseason games of the season. This is highly unusual for a veteran player.

Before the Penguins departed for Sudbury, I asked Mike Sullivan what the thinking was behind giving Graves three straight outings. I also asked what he thought of Graves' camp so far.

Sullivan simply explained the coaching staff wants to get Graves involved early and often. He didn't assess what he had seen from Graves so far during camp.

His performance in the first two games, quite frankly, was pretty bad. This typically isn't a big deal. Let's not make preseason games to be something bigger than they are. But given how horrid Graves was last season, it's safe to say there should be considerable concern.

• Malkin and Crosby lit up the Senators on Sunday. While I admittedly don't think much should be taken from preseason games — and I happen to think the NHL should cut the number of preseason games in half — there was something very cool about a couple of hockey icons showing up in Sudbury and putting on such a show.

In particular, getting a chance to see Crosby up close must have been an incredible thrill for so many fans who presumably had never seen him play in person before. He's the captain of Team Canada and he takes these kinds of appearances in his home country very seriously.

"I think that's something that sticks with you," Crosby said of the reception in Sudbury. "It's a great welcome, and we appreciate the hospitality. It's a great hockey community and hopefully, we put on a good show for them here."

• I was more interested in watching Letang simply because of how his season ended in April. Letang was so good in the first half of last season and so bad in the second half that I was curious to get an early look at his form.

So far, so good. I thought Letang was perhaps the best player on the ice. His skating looked in mid-season form, his set-up of Crosby's first goal was a beauty and in general, he looked quite sharp.

• OK, let's talk power play. It's what crippled the Penguins last season and without a dramatic improvement with the man advantage, the Penguins are going nowhere this season.

We won't appreciate what assistant coach David Quinn has in mind in regards to the power play until Karlsson is healthy. Still, the early days of camp and the preseason have made some things pretty clear.

For one, Malkin is going to play down low more this season than he has in past years. This is a good idea. Malkin doesn't move like he once did and his one-timer, while still a weapon, has slowed down a notch. However, Malkin's size and strength remain and he can be a weapon near the goal line. Also, Malkin playing close to the goal line will make him less of a liability when the opposition attempts to challenge the Penguins at the blue line. Remember, the Penguins gave up the most short-handed goals in the NHL last season and Malkin playing closer to the blue line was very much an issue.

• Something else is very clear. When Quinn studied what went wrong last season and implemented a plan for this power play, the tempo was heavily discussed.

Last season, Karlsson and Malkin played catch at the point so often it became nauseating. Crosby sometimes joined that party as well. There was an almost obnoxious patience to the Penguins' approach last season. The best power plays in the league looked urgent to score. The Penguins looked like they were taking a stroll through the park while they had the man advantage.

Quinn has taken note of this. In practice, the Penguins are moving the puck far more quickly than before and are looking to shoot the puck. This was evident in Sudbury on Sunday.

Crosby and Malkin each scored a power-play goal against the Senators.

Baby steps.

• Tristan Jarry played the first half of the game against Ottawa and allowed two goals. Jarry looked relatively sharp, stopping 24 of 26 shots.

I still think the smart money is on Jarry starting the season as the No. 1 goaltender, though it's hardly set in stone. Sullivan seems genuinely pleased with Jarry's offseason conditioning work.

Filip Larsson played the second half of the game and, while he wasn't tested nearly as often as Jarry, he stopped all 12 shots he faced.

• I like the Penguins' second-round draft pick from June, defenseman Harrison Brunicke .

Oh, he's young and he's going to make mistakes. He turned 18 in May, after all. But he looks the part and you can see why the Penguins are so high on him. He looks the part. He's got a large wingspan and his 6-foot-3 frame hasn't even filled out yet. Brunicke also possesses a nice feel in the offensive zone, showcasing strong instincts for getting pucks through to the net.

He's just a kid and won't be ready to make his name in Pittsburgh for a little while. But the potential is very clearly there.

• I was skeptical, at first, of the idea Anthony Beauvillier should be playing on Crosby's left wing. I'm still not sold.

But he was pretty good in this game and he's been pretty good in camp. Crosby loves playing with fast wingers and this is a player who can skate. Beauvillier is only 27 and certainly had some good years in the early days of his career with the Islanders .

If Beauvillier finds his form from his Islanders days, it would be a nice bonus for the Penguins.

• Blake Lizotte was hit in the face by a puck early in the game and didn't return.

"Scary thing," Sullivan said. "He never saw it coming. That was a tough one. I don't think the guys were used to the bench being that far down into the zone. That's a little bit different in this rink."

(Top photo of Kris Letang and Sidney Crosby: Nicole Osborne / NHLI via )