Ex-Penguins forward Patric Hornqvist welcomed back to Pittsburgh

Patric Hornqvist was back in a familiar spot Thursday.

Near the crease of one of the net in PPG Paints Arena.

Thursday’s contest between the Florida Panthers and Pittsburgh Penguins was the first in Pittsburgh since Hornqvist was traded to the Panthers in exchange for defenseman Mike Matheson and forward Colton Sceviour in September 2020.

During the first television stoppage, Hornqvist’s return was recognized with a customary video presentation the Penguins typically offer to recognize ex-players, particularly those who helped the franchise win the Stanley Cup, upon their first return to Pittsburgh as an opponent.

Hornqvist was one of the more vital members of the Penguins’ two most recent championship squads in 2016 and ’17. In fact, the rambunctious power forward, who has vexed just about every opposing goaltender he stepped on the ice with, scored the Stanley Cup-clinching goal in Game 6 of the 2017 final.

“It feels great to be back,” Hornqvist said following his current team’s morning skate. “I had a lot of great hockey in this city, and the city really took care of me. We won two (Stanley Cup championships). There’s a lot of emotion, obviously.”

Hornqvist’s emotions don’t just lie with the Penguins. He expressed affection for the region, as well.

“Those are obviously the two big ones when you win the (Stanley) Cup, back to back,” Hornqvist said. “No one said we could do it in the (salary) cap era.

“Overall, people really took care of me here. I love the city. My kids grew up and one was born here. So we’ve got a lot of good memories from the city, too.”

As for his current locale, Hornqvist is fond of living and working in South Florida. But his individual season has not been all that satisfactory, at least to him.

Primarily deployed on the fourth line as of late, Hornqvist has scored six points (one goal, five assists) this season.

“My season so far hasn’t been the best,” Hornqvist said. “I know I can play better. As a team, we’ve been playing great. I have to find a way to be better every single night.”

Pettersson, Ruhwedel return to lineup

Penguins defensemen Marcus Pettersson and Chad Ruhwedel returned to the lineup Thursday after being activated from the NHL’s list for covid-19 protocol Thursday.

To make room for them, defensemen Taylor Fedun and Juuso Riikola were assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League (AHL).

The team initially announced Pettersson and Ruhwedel were placed into isolation for the virus Oct. 31. As a result, they each missed three games.

Before Thursday, Pettersson had appeared in eight games this season and scored four points (one goal, three assists), and Ruhwedel had no points in eight games.

Fedun was initially recalled Nov. 4 but has not appeared in an NHL game this season. Serving as Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s captain, Fedun has played in eight AHL games and has three assists.

Recalled Oct. 23, Riikola dressed in each of the NHL Penguins’ past four games and recorded one assist. In three AHL games this season, Riikola has two assists.

With Pettersson and Ruhwedel back in the lineup, defenseman P.O Joseph was a healthy scratch along with forwards Sam Lafferty and Dominik Simon.

Forward Sidney Crosby, Brian Dumoulin and coach Mike Sullivan remain in the league’s protocol for covid-19.

In total, the Penguins have had eight players miss games this season after testing positive for the virus.