Pittsburgh Penguins Head Coach Likes What He Sees From Rakell
The Pittsburgh Penguins wrapped up preseason play on Friday with a dominating 7-1 victory over the Buffalo Sabres. Head Coach Mike Sullivan has been impressed with forward Rickard Rakell. The long time Duck came over at trade deadline last season. In his brief 19 game cameo during the regular season he had 4 goals and 13 points. He was quiet in the playoffs, producing only 2 goals in 7 games as Pittsburgh was bested by the New York Rangers in seven games during the first round.
Sullivan has this to say about Rakell's game:
«The thing that jumps out at me with respect to Raks' game is his ability to make something out of nothing. We're sitting on the bench thinking, 'okay, the play is going to die in that area of the rink, we're going to fight for possession' or whatever it may be. But he can stickhandle in a phone booth. He can really make plays in tight areas, and he tends to be able to make something out of nothing. I think that's the one element of Raks' game that has really jumped out at me. When he plays on a line with guys like Sid and Jake, or even in the instances when he played on Geno's line - I think when he brings that dimension, he just adds another level to that to that line that he plays on."
The versatile forward will need to be at his best as the Penguins look to compete in a very tough Metro division late into the careers of stars Sidney Crosby, Kris Letang and Evgeni Malkin. Many thought this could be a changing of the guard like off-season for the Pens with Letang and Malkin's contracts' expiring. They ultimately decided to stay in Pittsburgh.
| POLL | ||
Who will lead the Penguins in scoring for the 2022-2023 season? | ||
| Sidney Crosby | 52 | 46.8 % |
| Jake Guentzel | 27 | 24.3 % |
| Rickard Rakell | 13 | 11.7 % |
| Evgeni Malkin | 19 | 17.1 % |
| List of polls | ||
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