Pittsburgh Penguins / NHL
Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin practice as Penguins prepare for Islanders
The Pittsburgh Penguins were in a good mood during practice Sunday in Cranberry. In fact, you could even say things were comical. And it was pretty clear why. Ryan Shea fell down. As players were warming up for the formal portions of practice with some tight-area skating reps, the third-pairing...
Injured Penguins forwards Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin resume practicing
Injured Pittsburgh Penguins forwards Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin each rejoined their teammates for a practice session in Cranberry on Sunday. Both players participated in a full-contact fashion but remain “day to day” due to undisclosed injuries, which have sidelined them as of late. Their statuses for Monday’s consequential road...
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Minor league report: Penguins beat Rocket, Nailers clinch playoff spotVideo
A pair of goals and an assist by forward Avery Hayes led the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins to a 3-1 win against the Laval Rocket at Mohegan Arena in Wilkes-Barre on Saturday. Forward Aidan McDonough also contributed a goal for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (40-16-6-2). Goaltender Sergei Murashov made 33 saves on 34 shots and...
Penguins struggle without Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin in loss to Stars
At some point in the near future, the Pittsburgh Penguins are going to have to adapt to the blunt reality of life without superstar forwards Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. Especially since each of them is almost 40 years of age. On Saturday, they got a refresher of how difficult...
Penguins recall rookie forward Rutger McGroarty from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton
The Pittsburgh Penguins recalled forward Rutger McGroarty from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League on Saturday. In corresponding transactions, the team assigned forward Avery Hayes and Joona Koppanen to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. McGroarty has split the season between the NHL and AHL levels. With the NHL club, he has appeared in 20...
Penguins forward Sidney Crosby sidelined by injury
Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby will be scratched because of an undisclosed injury for his team’s game against the Dallas Stars at PPG Paints Arena on Saturday. He has been labeled as “day to day.” Coach Dan Muse announced Crosby’s status approximately two hours before the opening faceoff. Crosby was...
Minor league report: Nailers, Taylor Gauthier shut out RailersVideo
Goaltender Taylor Gauthier made 34 saves for the Wheeling Nailers in a 4-0 win against the Worcester Railers at WesBanco Arena in Wheeling, W.Va., on Friday. The result was Gauthier’s third shutout of the season and boosted his record to 17-7-5. Forward Connor Lockhart had a goal and three assists...
Tim Benz: Penguins need a few more exclamation point wins before putting a period at the end of their playoff drought
A common writing tip is to avoid using the exclamation point too much. You know, save it for truly exclamatory moments. If you use it all the time, how can anyone tell which statements are really standing out? That goes for any type of writing: news, sports, advertising, books, fiction,...
Beyond the Bylines: Pirates’ Opening Day dud, Penguins thriller, Aaron Rodgers intrigue, Bill Murray moviesVideo
In this week’s “Beyond the Bylines,” Tim Benz and Joe Starkey debate the Pittsburgh Pirates’ season-opening loss to the Mets. They also dive into the Sweet 16, the Penguins’ crucial victory in Ottawa, and they kick around the theory that Aaron Rodgers’ latest contract delay may be about money. Tim...
Penguins rookie forward Ville Koivunen navigates ‘a lot of ups and downs’Video
Ville Koivunen put in the hours last weekend. And the miles. First, on Saturday, the Penguins rookie forward drove five-plus hours and more than 300 miles from Pittsburgh to Toronto — he was transported, via car service, to be precise — after being a healthy scratch for a 5-4 home...
Cup of Joe: Ben Kindel keeps proving he’s one of the greatest 1st-round picks in Penguins history
Cup of Joe: Starkey on sports in 400 words or less This Cup of Joe was headed one of two ways, after a wild Thursday in local sports: It was either going to focus on Oneil Cruz going full Kaleb Johnson in center field or praise Ben Kindel for his...
Penguins beat Senators in shootout despite early exit by Sidney Crosby
On Thursday, the Pittsburgh Penguins claimed a rollicking 4-3 shootout win against the Ottawa Senators at Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, Ontario that was vital to their hopes of reaching the postseason. But they lost arguably their most vital component to that endeavor as forward Sidney Crosby left the contest...
Penguins recall forwards Avery Hayes, Joona Koppanen
The Pittsburgh Penguins recalled forwards Avery Hayes and Joona Koppanen from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League (AHL) on Thursday morning, a handful of hours before a road contest against the Ottawa Senators. In 11 NHL games this season, Hayes has scored two goals while averaging 10:37 of ice time...
Penguins forward Justin Brazeau is getting opportunities. Will more goals follow?Video
If Justin Brazeau could trademark a type of goal, he offered a perfect example of his work Tuesday. During the second period of a 6-2 home loss to the Colorado Avalanche, Brazeau directed the puck into the net in a spectacularly messy display of vivid chaos. Off a wrister by...
Penguins notebook: Forward Connor Dewar comfortable playing center
With Blake Lizotte sidelined for the past five games because of an undisclosed injury, the Pittsburgh Penguins have slid Connor Dewar from left wing to the center station on the fourth line over that span. The assignment isn’t foreign to Dewar, who is listed as a center on official league...
Penguins forward Anthony Mantha sidelined by injury
Pittsburgh Penguins forward Anthony Mantha was withheld from a practice session in Cranberry on Wednesday due to an undisclosed injury. He has been labeled as “day to day” and will travel with the team for a road game against the Ottawa Senators on Thursday. The specific nature of his ailment...
Cup of Joe: Every game is Penguins’ biggest of the year now — starting in Ottawa
Cup of Joe: Starkey on sports in 400 words or less It gets real now. The Pittsburgh Penguins have survived all manner of adversity this season, including the prolonged absences of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin and a ridiculously brutal March schedule. That schedule — one of the toughest stretches...
‘It’s just too loud’: Penguins need to turn down the volume in their own endVideo
Pittsburgh Penguins coach Dan Muse wants to turn down the volume during Penguins games. Not the goal horn. Not the PA microphone. Not even the constant banging of Iceburgh’s “Let’s Go Pens” drum. Muse isn’t bothered by any of those things. It’s the constant buzzing of opposing players around the...
