Penguins/NHL category, Page 248
If NHL resumes play, 2 weeks needed for minicamp, Penguins’ Mike Sullivan saysVideo
Mike Sullivan knows the answer isn’t an easy one, but the Pittsburgh Penguins coach insisted the NHL has “great leadership” that he’s willing to entrust to make the correct decision. But in Sullivan’s opinion, the league’s players would need “somewhere in the timeframe of two weeks” to ramp back up...
Mike Sullivan: Win at N.J. showed Penguins were emerging from funk, have momentumVideo
There is no good timing, of course, for a pandemic or for the paralyzation of the economy facing the nation. But to coach Mike Sullivan, the pause of the NHL season came at a particularly bad time for his Pittsburgh Penguins. Twenty-four hours before the league’s final games before the...
NHL player vote: Penguins’ Sidney Crosby ‘most complete player,’ but not best forward
The NHL’s players apparently do not consider Sidney Crosby to be the league’s best forward — but they do view him as the game’s most complete player. And if the stakes are highest, they’re still sticking with Sid. The NHL Players Association on Tuesday released the results of their annual...
Tim Benz: Jim Rutherford is right about champions having ‘integrity’ in shortened seasons
Tom Glavine. Patrick Kane. Doug Williams. Tim Duncan. “Who are four men who have never been in my kitchen, Alex?” Yes, Cliff Clavin. Technically, that is correct. But I’m going to need you to be more specific. “Who are four MVPs of their respective sports championship round?” Also true. But...
Wheeling Nailers won’t renew coach’s contract
The Wheeling Nailers have decided to part ways with coach Mike Bavis. The Penguins’ ECHL affiliate announced Monday it will not renew the contract of Bavis, who coached the team for the past two seasons. The Nailers went 55-61-15 under Bavis. They missed the playoffs last season and were in...
Penguins moments part of fan-voted tournament as best of NHL seasonVideo
The combination of a new sort of March Madness and the current trend of re-living past sporting events has resulted in an online “tournament” of the best games of the NHL season. The league’s social media platforms are encouraging fans to vote on 64 “moments” from its 2019-20 games —...
NHL has thorny issue gauging teams’ regular-season worth
There’s a dirty little secret that the handlers who carry the Stanley Cup around every summer don’t necessarily want hockey fans to know. Most years, the best hockey team in the world doesn’t take the famous 35-pound silver trophy home. The NHL started handing out the Presidents Trophy to the...
Jim Rutherford thinks long layoff would help Penguins. Would it?
When Sidney Crosby was asked during an NHL-run video call which teammate he would want to be stuck in quarantine with, he was quick with an answer. “Kris Letang,” Crosby said during the Zoom call open to media. “He’s in the know. He’d get all the info. I’d have a...
Penguins green jersey auction nets $20,000 for coronavirus aid charities
The Penguins were scheduled to wear green St. Patrick’s Day jerseys in warmups before a March 15 home game against the New York Islanders. While the game wasn’t played due to the coronavirus pandemic, some good came out of it anyway. The Pittsburgh Penguins foundation raised $20,000 from the auction...
How Penguins captain Sidney Crosby is passing the timeVideo
At a time of year when he typically would be laser-focused on the Pittsburgh Penguins’ push to the playoffs and quest to win the Stanley Cup for a fourth time with him as captain, the hockey-obsessed Sidney Crosby instead has found himself immersed in … Formula 1 racing? To pass...
Penguins’ Sidney Crosby would be OK with NHL jumping right into playoffsVideo
Easy for him to say, with his team holding a coveted Eastern Conference playoff spot. But Sidney Crosby would be OK if, when the NHL season resumes, the league goes directly into the postseason. “You try to get in as many games you can,” the Pittsburgh Penguins captain said during...
Tim Benz: NHL ‘consolation bracket’ for No. 1 pick? That’s just trying way too hard
Whenever — if ever — the NHL reboots its 2019-20 season out of the coronavirus shutdown, it appears league owners have three targets. 1. Award a Stanley Cup after a representative version of a playoff 2. Play as many remaining scheduled home dates as possible 3. Don’t truncate the 82-game...
NHL postpones its draft and related events
The NHL announced Wednesday the postponement of its upcoming draft and related events, adding another sports event casualty to the worldwide coronavirus pandemic. The 2020 draft was scheduled for June 26-27 in Montreal. But with league play suspended indefinitely, at this point it is near-certain the playoffs still will be...
Penguins GM Jim Rutherford sets priorities while running team in age of coronavirus
Pittsburgh Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford has some of the same thoughts many Western Pennsylvanians do as the coronavirus pandemic has kept people holed up in their homes for extended periods of time. Not macaroni and cheese again. Rutherford spoke with reporters on a conference call Wednesday afternoon shortly after...
Penguins’ Jake Guentzel’s ‘rehab going well’; could return after play resumes
When the time frame associated with Jake Guentzel’s recovery first was announced after he underwent shoulder surgery Dec. 31, it didn’t leave much margin for him to return this season. With the season pushed back indefinitely, Guentzel’s potential for an impact on the Pittsburgh Penguins’ chase of the 2020 Stanley...
First Call: A forgotten great game from Penguins covid-19 replay series
The NHL Network and AT&T SportsNet are replaying a slew of old Pittsburgh Penguins games to occupy the hearts and minds of idle Penguins fans frustrated by a lack of hockey due to the coronavirus shutdown. On Wednesday, the NHL Network will air the Penguins’ Stanley Cup clinching games from...
NHL extending isolation period for players and staffVideo
The NHL is extending its recommendation for players and staff to self-isolate and stay away from team facilities during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Deputy commissioner Bill Daly on Tuesday confirmed the NHL asked players and staff extend their self-quarantine 10 days beyond the original March 27 timeline to April 6...
Beaver County Ice Arena wins $100,000 in renovations in Penguins contestVideo
After more than 400 entries from nine counties were narrowed down to three finalists, Beaver County Ice Arena was named the winner of the “Renovate the Rink” by the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday. The Beaver Falls-based facility beat out fellow finalists Belmont Complex in Armstrong and S&T Arena in Indiana...
First Call: ‘Pittsburgh icon quarantine matchmaker’ is greatest coronavirus time-waster ever
It takes a lot to make people smile these days, given the covid-19 shutdown. So credit TribLive’s Chris Benson for coming up with a way to make that happen. He developed this fantastic coronavirus shut-in timewaster. Hit play. Then, whenever you hit pause, that is the one Pittsburgh icon you...
NHL is considering a September Stanley Cup. How will 2021 be impacted?
Picture it. The Stanley Cup. Awarded… …in September??? Yes. That could happen based on a conference call among NHL owners Tuesday. In our weekly hockey podcast, Penguins Radio Network host Brian Metzer and I talk about the logistics of that attempt. And whether or not that is even worthwhile to...
NHL: Length of 2020-21 season won’t be impacted regardless of how late this season goes
The 2020-21 NHL season will not be shortened, even in the event the currently paused season extends deep into the summer, the league said Monday. During an update posted in Q&A format on its official website, the NHL answered a hypothetical question about the effects on next season that a...
Classic Penguins games, content to air on AT&T SportsNet, NHL NetworkVideo
Broadcasters continue to churn out reruns of memorable games and other content as a way of keeping jilted sports fans engaged. AT&T SportsNet is making sure there’s plenty for Pittsburgh Penguins to view. Starting Monday and over the next two weeks, the Penguins rightsholders will broadcast documentaries and other Penguins...
Tim Benz: Importance of sports is being downplayed, but their absence has never been more painful
Here’s a message for the “sports don’t matter at a time like this” crowd. After this weekend, don’t ever say such a thing again. During NCAA basketball conference championship week, at the dawn of the coronavirus epidemic, The Athletic’s Nicole Auerbach tried to sing that song as the ensuing wave...
Tim Benz, Mark Madden discuss Steelers free agent signings, state of sports amid coronavirus pandemic
Just about everything else is shutdown these days. But “Madden Monday” is not. Mark Madden of 105.9 the X and I are here to talk about what sports do exist. That includes the Steelers and NFL free agency. We examine the good things and bad things the Steelers did this...
Penguins had a common appeal to Drew O’Connor, Cam LeeVideo
Drew O’Connor was a long shot to get here. Even he thought so. At a modest 5-foot-9 — by his estimates — after graduation from high school, O’Connor’s prospects for playing Division I hockey were, like him, small. He thought he might have to settle for playing for a Division...
