It appears as if the Penguins will be as close to full strength on Thursday night as they've been all season. Along with center Sidney Crosby , defenseman Kris Letang will also be returning to the Penguins lineup when they take on the New York Rangers, appearing in his first game since he was hit by Dallas' Eric Nystrom back on February 29.
Letang is Pittsburgh's top defenseman, and an argument can be made (and has been made -- by me) that his return might actually make a bigger impact on the Penguins' Stanley Cup chances than the return of Crosby. As crazy as that may sound, it's very simple: Without Crosby Pittsburgh still has two more top centers with Evgeni Malkin and Jordan Staal and one of the highest-scoring offenses in the league ... without Letang they simply don't have another No. 1 defenseman.
| Crosby Returns |
| More NHL coverage |
In 40 games this season Letang has scored nine goals and recorded 22 assists and has been a workhorse on the blue line, averaging over 25 minutes of ice time per night. The Penguins power play has suffered in his absence, scoring just one goal on its past 19 attempts without him.
On the other side, the Rangers will still be without goaltender Henrik Lundqvist as he continues to recover from the flu, which means veteran backup Martin Biron will get the start in net.
New York's captain, Ryan Callahan , will also remain out of the lineup with a foot injury and will miss his third straight game.
For more hockey news, rumors and analysis, follow @EyeOnHockey and @agretz on Twitter and like us on Facebook.
