from Jonathan Bombulie of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review,

Let's say the Penguins decide Sheahan is the type of center they want on a skilled third line. It's a reasonable position to take.

Sheahan is averaging 1.59 points per 60 minutes of five-on-five ice time since joining the Penguins. That's not bad. It's better than Sidney Crosby (1.41), Bryan Rust (1.47) and Conor Sheary (1.45), for example, have averaged this season.

“Riley sees the ice pretty well,” Sullivan said. “He has good skills. He has good passing skills, and we can play him with skilled players. When we do play him with skilled players, we like his conscientious, 200-foot game. It's important to us to create the balance that we're looking for throughout our lineup.”

If Sheahan is anchored on the third line with Kessel, the Penguins could pursue a low-cost fourth-line center option like Edmonton's Mark Letestu or Minnesota's Matt Cullen or maybe just stick with Carter Rowney in the role and pursue roster upgrades elsewhere.

Now let's say the Penguins decide Sheahan doesn't have the offensive chops to play above the fourth line. There is evidence to back up that position, too.

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