Noel Acciari's absence creates holes for Penguins on 4th line, penalty kill, faceoff circle

The absence of Pittsburgh Penguins center Noel Acciari creates a larger hole in the club’s nightly lineup than probably is appreciated by many.

That prospect became reality for the Penguins on Thursday at UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex, when coach Mike Sullivan revealed after practice that Acciari had suffered a concussion Tuesday vs. Winnipeg.

As a result of a violent hit to the head by the Jets’ Brenden Dillon, Acciari will not travel with the Penguins for their upcoming games at Minnesota (on Friday) and Winnipeg (on Saturday).

Brenden Dillon has been suspended for three games for this hit on Noel Acciari.pic.twitter.com/Z7aBfUji3k

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) February 7, 2024

Dillon was suspended three games by the NHL and will miss Saturday’s rematch at Canada Life Centre.

Sullivan did not provide a more specific timetable for how long he expects to be without Acciari.

At face value, an injury to the Penguins’ fourth-line center might not seem like a huge deal, as the 32-year-old only has three goals and an assist in 39 games this season.

However, Acciari, who averages 12 minutes, 49 seconds of ice time, is one of the team’s more impactful players defensively and on special teams.

“He plays a gritty, hard-nosed game that we rely on, especially short-handed (and in) key moments in games, faceoffs — things like that,” defenseman Ryan Graves said. “We’ve missed him a little bit already this season for a few games. We’ll miss him if he misses time. It’s a scary thing to happen.

“That’s a nasty hit. That’s just a bad hit. As a defenseman, I understand what happens in that play. I understand the thought process. But you have to hit (the) body. He’s walking around, (Acciari is) relatively fine, but that could cause life-changing things down the road. That’s the part that’s bigger than hockey that you don’t want to see.”

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To Graves’ point about missing Acciari, consider what happened to the club’s penalty kill from Dec. 2-16 when Acciari was injured for a string of seven games.

During that span, the penalty kill was 19 of 27 (70.3%), well below its season average of 81.4% that ranks 10th in the NHL.

Acciari’s average of 2:13 of short-handed time on ice ranks second among the Penguins’ forwards, trailing only Matt Nieto, who hasn’t played since Nov. 30 with a knee injury that required surgery in early January.

“He’s probably one of our best penalty killers,” said forward and fellow penalty-killer Drew O’Connor. “He blocks a lot of shots, he knows all the details really well and he works hard at it and does a really great job of winning faceoffs, too.

“He does a lot of things that help us on the (penalty kill). It’ll hurt not having him there, but we have guys that can step up and fill in for him. It’ll be up to us to get it done without him while he’s out.”

In addition to his presence on the penalty kill, Acciari has provided value for the Penguins defensively and in the faceoff circle.

His win percentage of 55.1% trails Jeff Carter (63.9%) and Sidney Crosby (59.5%) among the club’s regulars at handling faceoffs.

Acciari’s 269 defensive faceoffs lead the Penguins, per Natural Stat Trick, as do his 158 defensive zone starts five-on-five.

Short-handed, Acciari’s 105 faceoffs — he’s won 57 (54.3%) — lead the team.

When it comes to trying to replace Acciari on the fourth line and the penalty kill, Colin White will be a name to monitor.

The 27-year-old has played in five games with the Penguins and has yet to record a point.

At practice Thursday, White occupied Acciari’s usual spot centering the fourth line while also seeing regular action on the penalty kill.

In the likely event the Penguins tap White with playing an expanded role on the penalty kill, he’ll draw on the experience gained in doing so at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton over the course of 21 games this year.

“When I was in Wilkes, I played on it quite a bit,” White said. “It’s the same (penalty kill), so I’m comfortable playing it. Even if I’m not playing, I’m constantly watching and seeing what guys are doing. … I think I’m prepared no matter what happens.”

Whether White remains at center on the fourth line remains to be seen.

Sullivan experimented with that Thursday, flanking White with Acciari’s usual linemates of Carter and Jansen Harkins, but said things could change.

“I’m not sure we’re going to stay with that, quite honestly,” Sullivan said. “(Carter), obviously, is real comfortable playing in the middle. They’re both comfortable taking faceoffs. (Carter) is really good at taking faceoffs.

“… That’s something that we thought we’d try in practice and see if we liked it. But what we do know is that we have the option to go to either guy to play the center ice position.”