Shelly Anderson reports that Brad Thiessen will make his first-ever NHL start Sunday afternoon as the Penguins take on the Columbus Blue Jackets. Thiessen is in his second brief stint with the team in the past couple weeks, this time because backup goalie Brent Johnson is injured. (There is nothing wrong with starter Marc-Andre Fleury — the Penguins simply want to give him a day off.)

As NHL debuts go, a game against the Blue Jackets is a pretty soft one. Seth Rorabaugh jokes:

Thiessen getting the start. He’s used to AHL level competition.

Burn! Anyway, Thiessen has spent most of the season splitting goaltending duties with Scott Munroe at Wilkes-Barre / Scranton. Thiessen has played 37 games and has a goals against average of 2.88, with a save percentage of .885.

For more on the Penguins, be sure to check out PensBurgh. For more on the Blue Jackets, there’s The Cannon.