NEW YORK — When the Penguins took the ice Wednesday for an optional practice at Madison Square Garden, they had a surprising amount of pep in their step after pulling an all-nighter and only one rostered NHL goalie around to stop pucks.
Casey DeSmith was still being evaluated after a lower-body injury knocked him out of Tuesday’s triple-overtime thriller here against the New York Rangers.
Tristan Jarry is still not back on the ice and will be unavailable for Game 2.
And Alex D’Orio, who had been an American Hockey League backup, had not yet been recalled so he could make the quick drive from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
So there was only Louis Domingue, with his omnipresent smile and a remarkable origin story, to defend the starter’s goal during the briefest of practices.
Coach Mike Sullivan did not offer up who would be between the pipes on Thursday as the Penguins looked to take a 2-0 lead in their first-round playoff series. But based on D’Orio’s promotion, there’s a chance it will be Domingue.
Last summer, after he split two meandering seasons between three organizations, Domingue wondered if his NHL career was over. He had lost faith in himself due to his uninspired play. So why should he expect NHL teams to believe in him?
There he was late Tuesday at Madison Square Garden, a little less than a year later, going save for save with likely Vezina Trophy winner Igor Shesterkin.
“[After signing with the Penguins], it was one of my goals to be up here for the playoffs,” he said. “You never know how things are going to unfold. But I wanted to be back in the NHL this year, and I think I put in the effort to get back.”
In three appearances with the Penguins this season, including their playoff opener, Domingue has a pair of wins while allowing only four goals on 100 shots.
“I know Louis is unbelievable,” said Evgeni Malkin, who scored the Game 1 winner. “He’s big, fast. I [wasn’t] nervous. It’s hard to score on Louis in practice.”
While he has not spent much time with the NHL club since he was sent to the AHL before the season, the 30-year-old has also endeared himself to the Penguins with his friendly demeanor, dry sense of humor and interesting personality.
Two postseasons ago, in the Western Conference bubble in Edmonton, Domingue became a social media sensation after he began baking sweets for his Vancouver Canucks teammates and sharing pictures of those tasty treats online.
Domingue, who is from Montreal and comes from a family of foodies, has talked about publishing a cookbook. For now, he is dialed in on a Stanley Cup run.
That doesn’t mean he still doesn’t enjoy a good meal — like the one he had between the first and second overtime periods Tuesday before relieving DeSmith.
After stopping 17 shots to help the Penguins take Game 1 by a 4-3 score, Domingue sheepishly admitted he had eaten an order of spicy pork and broccoli.
Once again, the goalie went viral on social media for something related to cuisine. Kasperi Kapanen was still chuckling about it after Wednesday’s practice.
“Louis pulled a spicy pork, which I don’t think he expected to go in. Which is understandable,” Kapanen said. “But he did a phenomenal job for us.”
Domingue was the latest in the line of unlikely playoff heroes for the Penguins, who in the past got clutch performances from Frank Pietrangelo, Johan Hedberg and Jeff Zatkoff. On Wednesday, he was gearing up to give them another one.
The goalie, who is 6-foot-3 and catches with his right hand, grinned his way through another practice. D’Orio, the organization’s fifth-string goalie entering the season, wasn’t recalled until later in the day. So the Penguins found a shooter tutor.
It was Reid Robertson, a goalie from Division III school Manhattanville College. He got a free practice jersey and a story he’ll likely still be telling in 40 years. Before practice, Domingue tapped his pads and briefly chatted with Robertson.
This has been a fun story for Domingue and the Penguins, too. But there is another big game up for grabs Thursday. If DeSmith isn’t available to retake the net at Madison Square Garden, Sullivan believes Domingue can deliver again.
“He’s a goalie that’s shown an ability to have success at this level,” he said. “He’s had a really good year. He’s played consistently well in Wilkes. The games that he’s gotten into here in Pittsburgh with our team, he’s played very well for us.”
