The Penguins will likely keep Ben Kindel out of the lineup tomorrow night against Utah, but the 19-year-old forward was back at practice yesterday after his medical emergency last week on a team flight from Salt Lake City. Kindel was a full participant centering the second line while playing on the second power play unit.
Coach Dan Muse was happy to see the young star back on his skates, but as far as playing tomorrow night, “status unchanged.”
Kindel thanked the Penguins’ medical staff and the flight crew that got him back to Salt Lake City, and said he’s put the incident behind him.
Sidney Crosby was also relieved to see Kindel at practice, and the Pens’ captain was already looking forward to tomorrow night against the Mammoth. He and Rickard Rakell spent some extra time on the ice yesterday working on their puck handling together. He says there aren’t many breaks in a season where they get to do that.
Forward Elmer Soderblom missed practice with an undisclosed injury and is listed as day-to-day. Defenseman Sam Girard skated as a full participant but wore a white non-contact jersey. Forwards Egor Chinakhov and Evgeni Malkin practiced for a second straight session.
