Can Drew O’Connor replicate production on Penguins’ top line?

As a son of northern New Jersey, Drew O’Connor’s loyalties to the New York Giants are pretty easy to understand.

But blessed with something of a diplomatic conscience, the Pittsburgh Penguins forward has expanded his fealty.

“Giants, NFC,” said the native of Chatham, N.J. “Steelers, AFC. Got one in each conference.”

On Sunday, O’Connor accompanied star teammates Kris Letang and Evgeni Malkin to Acrisure Stadium for the Steelers’ 20-10 win against the Los Angeles Chargers.

Donning the jersey of Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt, O’Connor watched from the sideline as Letang and Malkin stormed out of the home team tunnel with Terrible Towels before the contest to whip up the locals.

“Being that close to them running out on the field is really cool,” O’Connor said. “It’s crazy how excited people got when they announced their names. I was happy to be there. It was really cool. Steelers look good.”

The same could be said about O’Connor this past spring.

After the Penguins dealt away All-Star forward Jake Guentzel at the trade deadline in March, O’Connor settled in as his replacement as left winger on the top line, skating next to center Sidney Crosby and right winger Bryan Rust.

A viable contributor to the team’s furious finish to the 2023-24 regular season, O’Connor scored 10 points (seven goals, three assists) in the final 17 games of the campaign. Only Crosby (10), Rust (nine) and Malkin (eight) scored more goals over that span.

What worked so well with Crosby and Rust?

“For one, they’re unbelievable players,” O’Connor said. “So they make it easy out there a little bit. The main thing for me was just the confidence in myself to play a little bit better offensively and produce. It was just fun hockey to play because we were competing and trying to claw our way into a playoff spot. Those are kind of the moments you want to play for. For me, there was a little bit less in my own head maybe thinking about things and just competing and playing hard and trying to win games. That was a mindset switch that helped me.”

That switch was apparent to his linemates.

“He’s a north-south guy who works really hard,” Rust said. “Players that play like that usually mesh with Sid fairly well. Thinks the game well, too. For a guy who is going real fast a lot of the time, your feet can get ahead of your mind. But I think he’s smart out there. He knows what reads to make. He works incredibly hard. You can tell over the past couple of years (the increased) confidence with his hands and his finishing and playmaking. You saw that in the last six weeks of (2023-24). He’s just going to continue to carry that into this year.”

Nothing is guaranteed as far as that trio being reunited to open the season, but midway through the team’s ongoing training camp, O’Connor has found himself on the left side of that line.

He views his role in that union through a blue-collar lens.

“First and foremost, you want to win puck battles,” O’Connor said. “Get them the puck, create space for them and just be a complementary player. Sid likes a quick giveand-go game. Get the puck on and off your stick quick. Find spots where he can find you and get it back to him. He really likes playing that down-low game below the net and below the goal line and having all three of us together so we can make those quick plays. For me, it’s just trying to support them and hopefully find them some space. Then be ready when you get the puck. Sid’s going to find you in good spots. Be ready to get the puck off your stick. You’re going to get those opportunities so just be ready for them.”

At 6-foot-3 and 200 pounds, the 26-year-old O’Connor is the biggest body on that would-be top line. A raw prospect when he joined the Penguins as an undrafted free agent out of Dartmouth in 2020, he has a much better grasp of how to use his dimensions on an NHL rink.

“It’s something that I’ve gotten better with,” O’Connor said. “It’s something that I’ve had to get better with and utilize that size more to my ability. Getting in the (defenseman’s) way before you get to the puck and not letting him get a stick on it, protecting the puck down low, all those things I think are what can make me help that line a little bit more. That’s one of the biggest things that I’ve tried to work on because I think that can be my biggest strength.”

As strong as O’Connor’s 17-game stretch was to conclude 2023-24, it was only a small segment of an 82-game campaign. It’s fair to wonder how he makes such a performance the standard over a complete season.

“It’s just taking it one game at a time,” O’Connor said. “It’s not like we look at the full season as a whole. Playing with those guys, you just try to bring things that work. I’m sure there’s going to be stretches throughout the season where points aren’t coming as easy, but you hope to minimize those windows as much as you can.

“Just try to deal with the ups and downs throughout the year. Just got to try to continue to produce and get better every day.”