For countless Americans, Wednesday night will be a reunion, with families gathering on the eve of Thanksgiving.

It will serve the same purpose for one Canadian clan that will make the roughly six-hour trek from East York, Ont., in the Toronto suburbs to Pittsburgh.

The Tanevs will have the opportunity to watch brothers Brandon of the Penguins and Chris of the Vancouver Canucks square off for the ninth time as NHL players when the teams meet at PPG Paints Arena.

Unlike their previous gatherings, this game will take place in the same time zone where the Tanevs live. Brandon Tanev played the first four seasons of his NHL career with the Winnipeg Jets. Any head-to-head matchups with his brother took place in the Central or Pacific time zones.

“It’s nice being close to home and to have that opportunity for my family to come (down), especially when Chris is in town,” Tanev said. “So it’s going to be exciting.

“It’s always fun to have the opportunity to play against him. It’s a special moment for our family.”

In their previous eight games, Brandon has won seven times but has not recorded a point. Chris, meanwhile, has three points (one goal, two assists) in those contests.

Chris, 30, is the older and and more experienced player, spending all 10 seasons of his NHL career with Vancouver. Like Brandon, Chris put in plenty of work to earn a regular spot in the NHL, going undrafted out of Rochester Institute of Technology. Brandon took a similar path out of Providence after not being drafted.

“It’s, obviously, a special moment when he made the NHL and got to play his first game,” Brandon said. “He’s a role model for myself. Seeing him going through that process and making that dream come true for himself made light at the end of the tunnel for me.”

There are some differences. Chris is a puck-moving defenseman with more size at 6-foot-2 and 197 pounds, and the 6-foot, 180-pound Brandon is a forechecking forward.

“I’d probably say he’s a little more quiet,” Brandon said. “I’m more energetic. At the same time, we’re from the same family, so it all comes from the same place.”

There is one trait they clearly share.

“We’re super competitive,” Brandon said. “I have two brothers. A household with three boys, things always get heated. It’s going to be fun to go battle against him. When we were kids, that’s what we always wanted to do was compete and have fun with one another, so it’s going to be fun (Wednesday).”

Lineup tweaks

The Penguins made a few changes to their lines and pairs in practice Tuesday at Cranberry.

Forward Dominik Simon was moved from center on the third line to right wing on the fourth line. He essentially flipped spots with rookie Sam Lafferty.

Defenseman Zach Trotman was bumped from the right side of the third pairing alongside Marcus Pettersson and replaced by Chad Ruhwedel. Trotman worked on a fourth pairing with Juuso Riikola.

As was the case Sunday, coaches worked extensively on faceoffs toward the end of practice with Teddy Blueger, Jared McCann, Evgeni Malkin, Lafferty and Simon. The Penguins won only 33 of 70 faceoffs (47.1%) in Monday’s 3-2 overtime home win against the Calgary Flames.

Familiar face

Former Penguins forward Brandon Sutter participated in practice with the Canucks at PPG Paints Arena. Sutter, who spent three seasons with the Penguins, has not played since Nov. 12 because of a groin injury.

“I think it was the second shift of the game or third shift of the game,” Sutter told reporters. “Just didn’t have any signs of it before the game in warm-ups or nothing like that. Everything was feeling pretty good.

“It was very frustrating, especially obviously missing a lot of time last year. I was feeling really good this year, and the body was feeling well. So it (stunk) to have to sit out for a bit here. But that stuff happens. I just have to keep grinding here.”

A shoulder injury and a sports hernia limited him to 26 games last season.

His status for Wednesday seems doubtful as Sutter said there was no timetable for him to return to the lineup.

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