Penguins get face-off practice assist from Matt Cullen

Matt Cullen was back at practice Wednesday with the Pittsburgh Penguins but with no intention of making a comeback at the age of 43.

At the request of coach Mike Sullivan, Cullen conducted face-off practice, a job he occasionally has performed throughout the season.

“It’s an area of the game where we believe we can get better at,” Sullivan said. “Culley was a really good center iceman in all the years that he played and a smart center icemen as far as some of the strategies he deployed over the years against different opponents.

“He has the ability to share his experience with some of our younger centermen or all of our centermen, for that matter.”

Cullen played 21 seasons in the NHL, the last being last season with the Penguins. He retired with a 53.3% success rate on face-offs.

The Penguins are 20th in the NHL with a 49.2 percentage. Sidney Crosby leads the team at 55%, even though he has missed 14 of 31 games.

Sullivan said Cullen helps on and off the ice when he visits from his home in Minnesota.

“Watching video with (players),” Sullivan said, “and trying to give them different strategies and some ideas and things to think about and how we can get better in that aspect of the game.”

What if …

Near the end of his chat with reporters, Sullivan was given a hypothetical situation to consider. He was asked to choose between assistant coach Mark Recchi, Penguins TV and radio analysts Bob Errey and Phil Bourque or himself if he desperately needed a body to help his injury-riddled team.

All men are in their 50s and played at least 11 years in the NHL (Recchi lasted 22 years), but Sullivan — the youngest of the group at 51 — said in a self-deprecating manner, “I could eliminate one right away.”

But he did come up with an answer.

“That’s a tough call,” he said. “I would probably have to go with Recchs because he gets more reps out there in some of our practices. If you guys have noticed, he’s been pretty good. He’s a smart player. All three of those guys are smart players.”

When Sullivan was asked if co-owner Mario Lemieux, 54, would be someone to consider, Sullivan said, “I’d be crazy not to.”

Not bad

Kris Letang said he likes what he has seen from rookie defenseman John Marino, whose plus-11 rating is tied for second on the team with Jared McCann and Bryan Rust.

“I like a lot of things,” Letang said. “The fact that he moves his feet a lot. He’s involved in both sides of the puck. He brings a physical aspect of the game. He’s showing that he has a lot of confidence in his assets and his game.”

Letang said Marino also is showing admirable composure for a 22-year-old.

“That’s what he’s shown all year, and that’s why he’s in a position that he can play those big minutes and play against a tough opponent,” Letang said. “He’s been good for us.”

Line shifts

Sullivan made slight adjustments to his forward lines at practice after the 4-1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday night.

He flipped Dominik Simon from right wing on the second line to left wing on the fourth line, replacing him with Zach Aston-Reese.

Also, fourth-line center and right winger Teddy Blueger and Brandon Tanev were promoted to the third line, and Sam Lafferty and Stefan Noesen were dropped down.

Beware the forecheck

The Penguins (17-10-4) meet the Columbus Blue Jackets (12-14-4) for the third time this season Thursday at PPG Paints Arena. Sullivan said his team needs to be ready for the Blue Jackets’ strength: forechecking.

“They tend to dump the puck a lot,” he said. “The strength of their game is in their forecheck. They come at you with a heavy forecheck and lots of pressure.

“We are going to have to be ready for it.”

The Penguins are 1-1 against the Blue Jackets, winning, 7-2, at home and losing, 5-2, in Columbus.