After stopping in town last month for a quick practice at PPG Plaza, the performers of “Crystal” are ready to bring Cirque du Soleil’s on-ice show to the Penguins’ rink.
They’re no longer who they were, individually and collectively. But there’s still work to be done if they want to become the team they intended to be all along.
Hindsight suggests they could have played him sooner. But there was no reason to perceive Rudolph as anything other than a last resort until he finally proved otherwise.
They’ve earned the criticism they’ve been receiving since Arizona and New England. But when it comes from within it has to be either answered or acknowledged.
The difference in their offense without former coordinator Matt Canada was more subtle than spectacular, initially. But for a change, there’s hope on the horizon.