In the second period of the New York Rangers’ 7-3 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Wednesday night, Mike Sullivan moved Will Cuylle up to play with Mika Zibanejad and J.T. Miller, while moving Gabe Perreault down on the third line with Noah Laba and Conor Sheary.
Some may think this was due to Perreault’s play, but that actually wasn’t the case.
With the Lightning having the advantage of last change on their home ice, Jon Cooper decided to throw the Nikita Kucherov-Jake Guentzel-Brayden Point against Zibanejad and Miller.
Sullivan did not want to put Perreault in a difficult situation against premier offensive talent, since only he has a few games of NHL experience under his belt.
“[Lightning coach Jon Cooper] wanted that match with Kucherov, Guentzel and Brayden Point,” Sullivan said. “We just felt like that’s a tall task for a young kid [Gabe Perreault] that hasn’t played a whole lot in the league. If that was going to be the match, we thought it made more sense to have a guy like Will play with JT and Mika in that circumstance. Some of it was just based on the feel of the game, but some of it was just from a matchup strategy standpoint.”
When the Rangers called up Perreault, Sullivan emphasized how important it was to give Perreault a prominent role, which could allow him to thrive and showcase his skills at the highest level.
“Our intention is to try to set him up for success so he can play with strengths,” Sullivan said of Perreault. “I don’t know that it makes a whole lot of sense to call up a player like that and put him in a bottom-six role. I think he’s a guy that potentially could help us if we can get the best version of him, so it’s a great opportunity for him.”
Sullivan has also been cautious with Perreault by not throwing him into uncomfortable situations, while managing his minutes.
The 20-year-old forward is averaging 13:26 minutes over his two games with the Rangers this season.
Whichever line Perreault plays on will likely be matchup dependent moving forward or will fluctuate based on game script.
The Cincinnati Bengals upgraded Joe Flacco to a limited practice, joining Joe Burrow, with both quarterbacks being limited before Sunday.
The 2025 Cincinnati Bengals have had issues with consistency this year. The defense has caused them issues all season, and the offense has had its fair share of problems since Joe Burrow got injured early on in the year and has been out ever since. Jake Browning and Joe Flacco were the two quarterbacks who have split snaps since Burrow’s injury, and Flacco has played well in his place since being traded.
Flacco started the year with the Browns and struggled, but he has since emerged as a solid option with the Bengals. Flacco injured his right shoulder and has been nursing the injury over Cincinnati’s bye week. However, Cincinnati Bengals writer Paul Dehner Jr. for “The Athletic” reported that he returned in a limited fashion in practice after being on the same workload as Joe Burrow after being activated off Injured Reserve.
This season, Flacco has thrown for 2,069 yards (258.6 per game), completing 61.6% of his passes, with 13 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
Since Burrow is back at practice, the clock is ticking on Flacco’s time as the starter. Burrow is going to be eased back into the rotation and not rushed, but it’s still his job the minute he’s ready.
“I don’t know, I think backups probably do it a good amount where they know like, ‘Hey, this guy’s coming back, he’s got a three-week injury or whatever it is,’”
“Like I said, I’m just worried about doing my job, and this week that’s going out and playing against Pittsburgh.”
That thinking is precisely what you want from a 40-year-old veteran quarterback. The Bengals are preparing for a massive divisional game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, and it appears he should be available for that game.