As the Pittsburgh Penguins prepared for the 2016 Stanley Cup Final that begin tomorrow with 2 weekend practices, two key players weren't on the ice. Nick Bonino and Kris Letang were not on the ice, but according to coach Mike Sullivan it was just "maintenance".
One backup for that might have been how they lined up today:
Conor Sheary - Sidney Crosby - Patric Hornqvist
Chris Kunitz - Evgeni Malkin - Bryan Rust
Carl Hagelin - Oskar Sundqvist - Phil Kessel
Tom Kuhnhackl - Matt Cullen - Eric Fehr
If Bonino were believed to be out, the team might have shifted things up to get Malkin in the HBK line. Sundqvist is a defensive center and mostly a spare part at this point, more a placeholder than a replacement at this point. Bonino blocked a shot in his knee area on Friday night's Game 7 but did remain in the game until the end.
Letang is the Pens top defensive minutes player, and though he likes to be on the ice, bumps and bruises add up. Giving him the weekend off allows him to hopefully be fresh and ready to play on Monday.
Let's hope, anyways.