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Friday was the first day of Pittsburgh Penguins training camp, and as to be expected it was an exciting one to see all the guys back together for the first time.
Sprong - Crosby - Guentzel
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) September 14, 2018
Aston-Reese - Malkin - Kessel
"Perhaps the biggest news of the day was the makeup of the line combinations." More takeaways from Day 1: https://t.co/gFqMcx4Xn9 pic.twitter.com/ch2wv2P3JS
Don’t confuse first day training camp lines with opening night first game lines, but it’s certainly telling that the Penguins are starting things off by giving their most promising youngsters in Daniel Sprong and Zach Aston-Reese the opportunity to open camp with a bang and with proven veterans. Now attention turns to the staying power and future interests the team will have moving forward.
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One seemingly minor low point would be a guy who WASN’T out there with his teammates. And that would be center Riley Sheahan.
Coach Mike Sullivan said Sheahan “has been dealing with a nagging lower-body injury”. No timeline on his future was mentioned, but luckily it sounds like while it may not be too long, a nagging injury could be a camp story. Sheahan, for what it’s worth, was all smiles on Thursday during the media day, as captured by the club’s official instagram account.
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Another notable absence was Derick Brassard who was “ill”. Maybe for his former friends in Ottawa after the big trade?
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One interesting comment was from Patric Hornqvist
Asked Patric Hornqvist whether he gained weight this summer. Definitely looks more chiseled: "An extra month of training, hopefully you get a little more muscle. But the weight stayed the same. Hopefully some fat went into muscle."
— Jason Mackey (@JMackeyPG) September 14, 2018
Yeah, because this guy has a lot of fat to turn into muscle.
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Have fun if you’re headed out to camp today! Put in some comments and reports if you’re following along.