Recent Posts
One Honor During Jaromir Jagr’s Visit Has a Nice Ring to it
Perhaps the afterglow of Jaromir Jagr’s visit to Pittsburgh and the related celebrations and activities has diminished a little, but there is something other than the No. 68 banner in the PPG Paints Arena rafters that remains as a reminder. And, while the timing certainly worked, truth be told there is reason to believe it […]
Jagr Gets Real; Retirement, Regrets, & ‘If You’re Satisfied, You’re Done’
PITTSBURGH — Sunday afternoon, Jaromir Jagr will watch his No. 68 raised to the rafters at PPG Paints Arena, just the third number retired in the 56-year history of the Pittsburgh Penguins. His jersey will hang beside idol and teammate Mario Lemieux as the Penguins and Jagr bring a long relationship that has been all […]
Penguins Six-Pack: Nedeljkovic’s Mess; Power-Play Positives?
Give the Pittsburgh Penguins this: They didn’t quit. Of course, they didn’t win, either. They did, however, manage to score twice in a 56-second span with less than eight minutes remaining in regulation to take the New York Islanders to overtime at PPG Paints Arena Tuesday night. That was enough to earn them one point […]
Penguins Wrap: Malkin’s Big Admission; Honoring Jagr’s Greatness
The Pittsburgh Penguins are celebrating their past this weekend, honoring Jaromir Jagr for his many achievements during 11 seasons with the franchise. Good idea, because there’s not much to celebrate about their present. They snapped a three-game losing streak with a 4-1 victory in Chicago Thursday, but remain well behind the Eastern Conference playoff field […]
Trade Deadline Report: Teams Have Called About Jarry, Blomqvist
On Saturday night, Hockey Night in Canada panelist Elliotte Friedman reported that other teams believed the Pittsburgh Penguins could deal a goalie before the March 8 NHL trade deadline. The natural assumption was the potentially available goalie was pending unrestricted free agent Nedeljkovic. However, on his Monday edition of the 32 Thoughts podcast, Friedman expounded […]
Penguins Mock Trades: Finding Good Fits For Jake Guentzel
The strong possibility, if not stark reality, that the Pittsburgh Penguins will indeed strip away assets in order to rebuild or retool at the NHL trade deadline became inescapable this week. Sure, some have clamored for it, but the team was pushing hard for a playoff spot, and future-leaning Penguins trades were not happening during […]
How Penguins Survive without Guentzel; Kids ‘Drag (Malkin) Into Fight’ (+)
SEATTLE — The Pittsburgh Penguins are 4-1-1 since Jake Guentzel was placed on long-term injured reserve. Guentzel has another 10 days of his mandated 24-day LTIR absence and now has company because Bryan Rust is also out week-to-week, also with that most mysterious of hockey terms, an upper-body injury. Because of injuries somewhere between the […]
Penguins Room: Crosby Pushes Back, but the Coach at a Loss
The captain and the head coach spoke Wednesday after yet another soulless loss. The Pittsburgh Penguins have lost three in a row and have varied from dispirited to lethargic with periods of manic comeback attempts that were not enough. The Florida Panthers were the latest to turn the knife, handily beating the 5-2 at PPG […]
Dan’s Daily: Markstrom, Pettersson Bombshells; Penguins Get Calls
CALGARY — The phone is ringing for Pittsburgh Penguins president of hockey operation/GM Kyle Dubas. More reports are emerging that Reilly Smith is drawing broad interest on the NHL trade market ahead of the March 8 deadline. PHN talked to Smith about those rumors. Smith also had a definitive response to the pervasive talk that […]
Kingerski: Now We’ll Find Out if this Penguins Team Worth Saving
VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Is the Pittsburgh Penguins’ heart worth saving? Their march toward a playoff berth has more often resembled the legs of a staggered boxer. All season, it has been less of a march forward and more like two steps forward, a couple sideways, and a couple back. losses have come at key […]
Dan’s Daily: Squashing Trade Rumors; Penguins Path Forward
SEATTLE — The Pittsburgh Penguins path forward will require a lot more of the intensity they brought to the fight against the Vancouver Canucks Tuesday. There is also one guy, who colleague Dave Molinari circled that could pile up the points for the Penguins, who have reasons for optimism. Elsewhere in the Daily, multiple players […]
Penguins Grades: ‘Resilient’ Win, 3 Players Who Rose to Challenge
VANCOUVER, British Columbia — The handmade cardboard sign was taped above the Pittsburgh Penguins locker room door. It said only two words, “All In.” The Penguins earned a hard-fought win and one that shines a bright, positive light on the team, who beat the NHL-leading Vancouver Canucks 4-3 in overtime at Rogers Arena. If there’s […]
(UPDATED) Penguins Practice: Harkins Concussed; Letang ‘Nicked Up’
CRANBERRY — Blue-collar winger Jansen Harkins has been diagnosed with a concussion, the apparent result of a hit from Winnipeg center Adam Lowry during the Pittsburgh Penguins’ 2-1 loss to the Jets Saturday. Harkins did not participate in practice Monday at UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex and has been placed on injured reserve. Center Evgeni Malkin […]
(Updated) Hellberg Called Up, Nedeljkovic to Start vs. Islanders
Magnus Hellberg was called up Sunday a few hours before the Pittsburgh Penguins lost to the LA Kings, 2-1, at PPG Paints Arena, but that’s not the end of the story. Mike Sullivan said Hellberg was recalled because one of the goalies was feeling under the weather, and the Penguins wanted to make sure they […]
Deadline Fallout: Penguins Internal Anger; Trades Not Made
BOSTON — The NHL trade deadline provided one of the more surprising twists after Pittsburgh Penguins president Kyle Dubas traded away Jake Guentzel later Thursday evening to the Carolina Hurricanes for three lower-ranked prospects and Michael Bunting. While Dubas made a strong case for the trio of prospects at his press conference Friday after the […]
Penguins: We’re Looking for Points, Not Scapegoats
CRANBERRY — There are numerous reasons the Pittsburgh Penguins are having such a disappointing season. Their power play has produced more punch lines than goals. Some key veterans — guys like Evgeni Malkin and Karlsson, Rickard Rakell and Ryan Graves — have not performed at the level the Penguins expected. And need. Most of their […]