PITTSBURGH -- Minnesota coach Bruce Boudreau was more than understated when he assessed the current play of the Pittsburgh Penguins, the reigning Stanley Cup champion and the Wilds opponent Thursday night.Yeah, theyre OK, Boudreau said Wednesday, the last day of a four-day break for Minnesota.Right now, the Penguins (9-2-2) are more than OK -- theyve gained a point in seven straight games (6-0-1) and theyre coming off a 4-3 win Tuesday over the very young and very fast Edmonton Oilers, who couldnt hold an early 3-1 lead.Thats been a trend for the Penguins, whove rallied to win four times recently despite being down by multiple goals.As usual, Penguins captain Sidney Crosby was right in the middle of it, despite being held without a point for the first time this season. Crosbys dangerous speed game allowed the Penguins to catch up to the fast-starting Oilers, and Boudreau knows that could mean trouble for the Wild, even though theyre currently the NHLs top defensive team.Before losing their last two games, 2-1 to Buffalo and 1-0 to Colorado, the Wild won three straight games, all by shutout.Hes the best player in the world, Boudreau said of Crosby. And the best player in the world in any sport (is a challenge) ... the way hes playing right now, hes hard to handle.But they have a lot of other players, he said, mentioning Evgeni Malkin, Phil Kessel and Chris Kunitz. Theres a reason why they won the Cup.Its also a reason why theres been no Stanley Cup letdown for the Penguins. Their Crosby-led arsenal of scorers produced nine goals in the last two games, and they look comfortable regardless of whether Stanley Cup-winning goalie Matt Murray (3-0) or former starter Marc-Andre Fleury (6-2) is in net. Murray started the last two games.He made timely saves for us, and you look around the league, and thats what separates winning from losing, Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said of Murray making a succession of key saves in the third period Tuesday. I thought he was real solid in the third period.And Boudreau didnt even mention forward Conor Sheary, the breakout rookie of a season ago who scored their first and last goals against Edmonton, including the game-winner in the final two minutes.The challenge for Crosby on Thursday might be that theres no immediate head-to-head young star matchup for him. On Tuesday, it was 2015 No. 1 draft pick Connor McDavid, who was more than impressive by setting up three speed-driven goals -- even if it was Crosby who got the win.On Saturday, it will be the Toronto Maple Leafs and 2016 No. 1 pick Auston Matthews, who, like McDavid earlier in the week, is certain to get tossed a ton of questions about that it will be like to oppose Crosby for the first time.You get up for games like that, Crosby said after the Oilers game.The Wild and Penguins havent played for 11 months. The Penguins won both games last season, including a 3-1 road win on Dec. 26 that was their fourth in a row over Minnesota. China Jerseys Custom . However, he did make them miss him a little less. Cundiff, who had the unenviable job of replacing Dawson last season, agreed Thursday to a one-year, $1. China Jerseys . 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The rookie No. 1 overall draft pick participated in team meetings and a light workout Monday, and interim coach John Fassel said Goff is day to day.Fassel said a decision regarding Goffs availability against the 49ers would likely come by Thursday, when the Rams hold their final practice during the short holiday week.Similar circumstances propelled Mannion into his first live action last season. Mannion was 6-of-7 passing for 31 yards in relief of Nick Foles against the Cincinnati Bengals after Case Keenum suffered a concussion in the previous game. The former Oregon State standout believes he has improved immensely since then.With Keenums contract expiring at the end of this season, the Rams could start Mannion in Goffs place, hoping to get him reps and find out whether he is a viable option behind Goff moving forward.It would be good for the team to get a look at Sean and see what he could do if pressed into service by necessity, Fassel said. Case would understand, so well see how that goes.Mannion, a 2015 third-round pick, played well in the preseason this year, completing 39 of 60 passes for 325 yards and three TDs with one interception in three games.From the draft all the way two years ago I feel like Ive made huge strides, Mannion said.dddddddddddd. Without getting a chance to play maybe it doesnt show, but I certainly feel like Ive been getting better and better each day and each week. Im always working on my game.As the inactive third quarterback for the last 13 weeks, Mannion used an early workout on game days to throw more than 100 passes before helping Goff, Keenum and the offense on the sideline during the game. Those efforts cap a weeks worth of preparation that Mannion says he treats as if he will start. Being elevated to the No. 2 role for a week would only reinforce those habits.Like anybody, you want to get an opportunity to play and being the backup puts you closer to being in the game, he said. But all year, I have prepared as though Im the one playing, Im the one starting and the one guy that has to go in and win games, so that doesnt change.The Rams have already made some other moves with an eye toward the future, deciding to exercise caution with defensive end Robert Quinn by placing him on injured reserve last week and signing four players to the practice squad this week.Offensive lineman Rodger Saffold, one of the most senior players on the Rams, understands why the organization might want to see what it has in a youngster like Mannion.We really have nothing to lose at this point, Saffold said. Sean has done great in practice. Hes shown awesome skills. He understands the offense. If thats the ride that they intend on going, they got good reason for it. ' ' '