With a handful of their teammates in Vancouver for the Olympics, the majority of the Penguins convened 10 days ago after a long break to begin a minicamp of sorts.

They practiced and skated, and skated and practiced.

"I was sort of losing my mind practicing all those days," center Jordan Staal recalled Friday. "You start turning on each other pretty quickly after a while. It was nice to get into a game and start feeling that pressure again to get out and compete."

It shows.

The Olympic break apparently was just what the Penguins needed.

Granted, it's a small sample, but, in their two games since the end of the break, the Penguins have played like the reigning Stanley Cup champions -- which they are.

"I think that we've been the best we've been all year in the last two games," winger Matt Cooke said.

They have been playing like a team possessed with the notion that they should work into June for the third year in a row.

"We know via the last two years how the right way to play is," Cooke said. "It takes a big commitment to play that way. It really does. You had some time off. You had some time to recharge the brain, refresh your memory and realize there were only 20 games left [coming out of the break]. There's not very much time left."

It's down to 18 games, including back-to-back afternoon home games today against Dallas and Sunday against Boston.

Although the two games since the break were close -- a 3-2 win Tuesday at home against Buffalo, and a 5-4, comeback, overtime win Thursday against the Rangers in New York -- the Penguins stacked together some impressive numbers:

• They had eight goals by eight players, including some who had gone cold. Defenseman Alex Goligoski hadn't scored in his past 36 games. Forward Mike Rupp broke an 18-game goal and point drought. Winger Ruslan Fedotenko got a goal for the first time in 17 games.

• They had 83 shots. (Just their luck, they ran into Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist, who made 50 saves.) If you include shots that were blocked or missed high or wide, the Penguins launched the puck toward the net 153 times.

• They dished out 80 hits, blocked 33 shots and had nine takeaways.

• They were 3 of 5 on the power play and won 54 percent of their faceoffs.

Not a bad two nights' work.

The only exception has been goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, who was pulled Thursday in his first start since the break. He didn't have the benefit of the break, however, because he was on the Canadian Olympic squad. On the other hand, he didn't benefit from the Olympics, either, because as the third-stringer he didn't play or get quality practice.

That might be more evidence that the break came at a wonderful time for most Penguins.

"I'd probably say it helped more mentally than physically," Goligoski said. "Everybody was kind of looking forward to a break. We got back and we got off to a good start, playing the way we should be playing. Everyone seems pretty refreshed. It's been going well."

The Penguins also have been controlling play, passing effectively, finishing checks and setting up in the offensive zone for extended amounts of time. Designed faceoff plays have paid off. Slick stickhandling has kept plays alive.

"I think we've come back with a good purpose to our game and how we're playing," coach Dan Bylsma said. "You've seen two pretty good games, but it's something we definitely want to keep building on and keep putting out there night after night."

Cooke pointed out that the Penguins weren't exactly struggling before the break. They had 76 points in those 62 games, were on pace for more than 100 points and in fine position to vie for the Atlantic Division title and home ice in the first round of the playoffs.

"I think the break just allowed us to reset our focus and make the decision again to play the right way," Cooke said. "But it's not a switch you turn on. We realize that. You have to make the right plays and make the right decisions."

Penguins Plus, a blog by Dave Molinari and Shelly Anderson, is featured exclusively on PG+, a members-only web site from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Our introduction to PG+ gives you all the details.