ST. LOUIS — After signing a two-year entry-level contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday, Jake Livanavage was a healthy scratch Saturday during a 6-3 home loss to the Washington Capitals.
And for good reason. After concluding his NCAA career following his junior year at North Dakota, Livanavage trekked to Pittsburgh and wasn’t exactly to in good position to jump right into the fury of an NHL contest.
But he did get a good seat in the press box.
Next to Sidney Crosby.
With the Penguins largely resting their top players after having their postseason positioning locked in, Crosby was scratched as well and had an audience with the 21-year-old Livanavage, a native of Gilbert, Ariz., who grew up a fan of Crosby from the time he was a single-digit-year-old.
“To be honest, it was pretty intimidating,” Livanavage said. “But first day here was unbelievable. To get that welcome and to be able to sit with him was just an honor and something that I’ll remember for the rest of my life.”
Another life milestone is slated to happen Tuesday as Livanavage is scheduled to make his NHL debut in the Penguins’ regular-season finale against the St. Louis Blues at Enterprise Center.
During a morning skate, Livanavage skated on a pairing with reserve defenseman Jack St. Ivany. Following the skate, coach Dan Muse said Livanavage is slated to be in the lineup.
With the Penguins dressing a lineup that is similar to what they might deploy for a preseason game, Tuesday’s game appears to be an optimal opportunity to take the training wheels off Livanavage.
“The biggest thing for Jake is just go play,” Muse said. “We were able to give him some information on some things from our playing style that might be a little bit different from what he’s used to at North Dakota. At the same time, you don’t want to do too much. When that puck drops, you’ve got to play, you’ve got to use your instincts. … Enjoy the moment, enjoy the day. It’s a special day for him and his family.”
Undrafted, Livanavage spent three seasons at North Dakota. As a junior, he appeared in 39 games and posted 25 points (five goals, 20 assists). His season at the NCAA level came to a conclusion Thursday when North Dakota was eliminated in the semifinal round of the NCAA tournament (a.k.a., The Frozen Four), losing to Wisconsin, 2-1.
By Friday, he signed his contract. The opportunity to go to the NHL right away and not the American Hockey League was attractive to Livanavage.
“They showed belief as a player,” Livanavage said. “Being part of this organization is a dream come true and something that I’ll never take for granted. It’s been awesome so far.
“Just super grateful to be here and be a part of this organization.”
Novak to play in all 82
Forward Tommy Novak is slated to open Tuesday’s contest at the Penguins’ second line center. With that, he will be the only member of the team who has appeared in all 82 games in the regular season.
That is no small accomplishment for a player who missed the final 17 games of last season because of a stress fracture in his left leg.
His previous career high for games in a season was 71 in 2023-24 with the Nashville Predators.
“I’m grateful that nothing (injury-related) happened,” Novak said. “A lot of weird things can happen with injuries in hockey. Just grateful to play a whole season.”
Novak also has the team’s longest active consecutive games played streak.
“It’s mostly luck,” Novak said. “Things can happen no matter what you do. Just luck. Trying to prepare myself as best I can. It mostly comes down to nothing bad happening to me this year. Hopefully, it keeps going like that.”
Harvey-Pinard recalled
With a number of the team’s top players expected to be scratched, the Penguins recalled forward Rafael Harvey-Pinard.
During the morning skate, he operated on the left wing of the fourth line.
A left-handed shot, Harvey-Pinard (5-foot-9, 179 pounds) is Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s third-leading scorer with 36 points (19 goals, 17 assists) in 64 games. He has split time on both wings this season.
Harvey-Pinard’s most recent NHL game came last season as a member of the Montreal Canadiens.
“He’s a worker,” Muse said. “We saw it there in training camp. You’ve seen it in his game in the NHL that he’s had over the course of his career. You’ve seen it in the way he’s been playing (with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton) all year. He’s a guy who leads with his work. Just a tenacious player. Never quits on a play and he’s got a good skill set to follow that up.”