Penguins defenseman Ryan Graves works his way back into lineup

Anytime the Pittsburgh Penguins and Colorado Avalanche cross paths, as will be the case Tuesday at PPG Paints Arena, it is appointment viewing on the eastern edge of North America.

Forwards Sidney Crosby of the Penguins and Nathan MacKinnon of the Avalanche are each proud sons of Cole Harbour, a small town in Nova Scotia, and are among the best in the game.

When the two friends and contemporaries tangle, it’s a major happening to those from the small maritime province.

Especially for those who have been teammates with each superstar such as Penguins defenseman Ryan Graves, a one-time member of the Avalanche.

“Huge,” said Graves, who hails from Yarmouth in southern Nova Scotia. “Idolized by everybody. Everyone is hockey-crazy there.

“We’ve had a lot of talents coming out of the Maritimes there. … We’re really proud of that. It’s pretty cool. When you look at the group we have … that can go up against pretty much anywhere in the world, which is pretty cool with a population that small.”

On Saturday, Graves populated the Penguins lineup in a 5-2 home win against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Before that contest, he had been a healthy scratch for eight of the Penguins’ previous nine games.

“There’s not much to say about it,” Graves said of being out of the lineup. “It’s just you want to play. You’re doing everything you can to play. You’re just trying to stay ready for the next time that opportunity arises. It is what it is.

“You can only make the best of it, and that’s what I’m trying to do.”

It’s fair to debate if Graves made the best of his return to the lineup Saturday. Primarily deployed on the third pairing with fellow left-hander Matt Grzelcyk (who worked on the right side), Graves logged 14 minutes, 1 second of ice time on 19 shifts, including 2:05 on the penalty kill. During five-on-five play, Graves was in the black in terms of shot attempts (15 for, 12 against).

“I thought he was solid,” coach Mike Sullivan said after the game. “He played the game that we’re asking him to play. He was hard at our net-front, he was good on the penalty kill. He defended hard using his stick, using his size to lean on people. … He was competing hard out there. He had a solid night.”

If nothing else, he played at a level satisfactory enough to remain on the third pairing during practice Monday in Cranberry.

The Penguins sunk quite a bit into Graves during the 2023 offseason, signing him to a six-year contract with a salary cap hit of $4.5 million (along with a modified no-trade clause). So simply being solid in a sheltered role on the third pairing is well below even the most modest of expectations for someone who was initially thought of as a reliable defensive-oriented companion on a top pairing to an All-Star such as right-hander Kris Letang.

But after a rocky 2023-24 season, Graves seemed to find some stability on the third pairing to open the 2024-25 campaign before his initial healthy scratch this season Nov. 16.

“I felt like that for sure,” Graves said of his reliable play to open the season. “I think I definitely did. I was defending well. My chances (against) were down and things like that. Just try to continue to build on it.”

What exactly can the 6-foot-5, 222-pound defender build on (or remodel, at least)?

“You want to be hard to play against as a big defense-first guy,” Graves said. “You want to have a good stick, you want your gaps to be tight, you want to be good in front of your own net. Box-outs. Things like that. It’s being consistent with that kind of thing. It’s huge for me.”

At the moment, simply being in the lineup appears to be a sizeable accomplishment for Graves. But even with his struggles, Graves hasn’t lost his view of the big picture.

“You have to have perspective on this,” Graves said. “There’s a lot worse ways to make a living. There’s a lot worse situations you can be in. It’s hard not playing, don’t get me wrong. This is a huge portion of your life. But you have to make the best of the situation.

“You are where you are, and you have to be able to grow from it, learn from it. That’s my outlook on it.”

Note: Penguins forward Philip Tomasino remains day-to-day with an undisclosed injury that sidelined him during Saturday’s game. He skated in a non-contact fashion during practice Monday.