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Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCredit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
The Pittsburgh Penguins dipped into the pre-trade deadline pool to make a move earlier this week. Their newcomer, defenseman Sam Girard<\/a>, got in all of one game with his new team before adversity struck.<\/p>\n Girard did not practice with the Penguins Friday at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex, and the Penguins revealed he is being evaluated for a lower-body injury. Girardi is traveling with the team to New York, where the team faces the Rangers on Saturday afternoon, according to coach Dan Muse.<\/p>\n Muse did not have anything further on Girard, who lined up on the left side with veteran defenseman Kris Letang for Thursday\u2019s 4-1 win <\/a>over the New Jersey Devils.<\/p>\n Girard played 17:53 in his Penguins debut, with one shot and four blocked shots against the Devils.<\/p>\n Miller, Trocheck in \u2018a huge role\u2019<\/p>\n There was backlash, from media types and on social media, when New York Rangers forwards Vincent Trocheck and J.T. Miller were included on the Team USA Olympic team. The two \u2014 who have Western Pennsylvania roots and who face the Penguins Saturday in a game at Madison Square Garden \u2014 acquitted themselves nicely in Milan as part of the gold-medal team.<\/p>\n \u201cI think they played a huge role there for that team,\u201d said Muse, a former Rangers assistant. \u201cThey come in there, (Trocheck), faceoffs, that\u2019s always been a specialty of his. He had some points as well. Both guys were big parts of the penalty kill for the U.S. team, and they go perfect. I can\u2019t remember in a major tournament, a penalty kill group that\u2019s gone perfect before.<\/p>\n \u201cThose were two guys I had an opportunity to work with in the past. Excited for them to be a part of that win.\u201d<\/p>\n Trocheck had three assists in six games. Miller had no points.<\/p>\n Practice notes<\/p>\n Defenseman Jack St. Ivany, recovering from left hand surgery, continues to work out on the ice. He skated before the group on Friday.<\/p>\n The forward configurations remained the same in practice. Girardi\u2019s absence meant changes to defense pairings, with Ryan Shea moving up to the second pair, and forward Kevin Hayes filling in. It looked like this:<\/p>\n Egor Chinakhov-Tommy Novak-Evgeni Malkin<\/p>\n Avery Hayes-Rickard Rakell-Bryan Rust<\/p>\n Anthony Mantha-Ben Kindel-Justin Brazeau<\/p>\n Connor Dewar-Blake Lizotte-Noel Acciari<\/p>\n Parker Wotherspoon-Erik Karlsson<\/p>\n Ryan Shea-Kris Letang<\/p>\n Ryan Graves-Ilya Solovyov<\/p>\n (Kevin Hayes)-Connor Clifton<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTags: Dan Muse<\/a> Pittsburgh Penguins<\/a> Sam Girardi<\/a> Shelly Anderson<\/a> <\/p>\n