Penguins/NHL category, Page 283
Penguins focus on details of neutral-zone faceoffs
DALLAS — Faceoffs are an integral part of hockey. It pretty much is how any and all play begins. But it usually is limited to three participants: two centers and a linesman. Yet, during a practice in the American Airlines Center on Friday, Mike Sullivan demanded more involvement. Actually, he...
Nick Bjugstad, Bryan Rust are game-time decisions for the Penguins
DALLAS – PIttsburgh Penguins forwards Nick Bjugstad and Bryan Rust will each be a game-time decision for Saturday’s contest against the Dallas Stars at American Airlines Center. Rust has yet to play this regular season after suffering a suspected left hand injury in the final game of the preseason against...
Penguins forward Alex Galchenyuk inches closer to returnVideo
DALLAS — Getting bit by the injury bug is nothing new for Pittsburgh Penguins forward Alex Galchenyuk. Through his eight-year career with the Montreal Canadiens, Arizona Coyotes and the Penguins, he has missed 69 games because of maladies ranging from a broken hand to sore knees to even the flu....
Penguins deal Erik Gudbranson to Ducks for Andreas Martinsen, pick
Pittsburgh Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford is quite familiar with Bob Murray, his counterpart with the Anaheim Ducks. After all, they collaborated on five trades during Rutherford’s first five seasons with the Penguins. On Thursday, the long-time contemporaries caught up in the press level of American Airlines Arena and watched...
Nick Bjugstad, Bryan Rust practice with the PenguinsVideo
DALLAS – Injured Penguins forwards Nick Bjugstad and Bryan Rust will be “game-time” decisions for Saturday’s meeting with the Dallas Stars, according to coach Mike Sullivan. Both players have been traveling with the team during its three-game road trip and participated in practice at the American Airlines Center on Friday....
Tim Benz, Seth Rorabaugh on Penguins slump, injuries, Stars rematch, Lightning loss
It’s the final “Breakfast With Benz” podcast of the week. I’m joined by TribLIVE Penguins beat writer Seth Rorabaugh. He’s on the road, covering the team in Dallas. The Penguins play the third leg of their road trip against the Stars on Saturday night. After a five-game winning streak, Mike...
Tim Benz: Travis Williams needs more than Penguins pixie dust to fix Pirates
“Welcome back, Travis! Now how long before you fix everything? It’s been 40 years since the Pirates’ last World Series. I’m starting to get a little antsy.” Of course, I’m exaggerating about how some Pittsburgh sports fans are reacting to the hire of Travis Williams as the new team president...
Penguins defenseman Marcus Pettersson’s ability to find shooting lanes has evolved
TAMPA, Fla. — When the Penguins traded talented shooting winger Daniel Sprong to the Anaheim Ducks for sturdy defenseman Marcus Pettersson in December, it was clear what was being exchanged. Offense for defense. And to this point of the 2019-20 season, that notion has held firm. Sprong is one of...
U mad, bro? No Steelers game? No less anger. Most of it about Gerrit Cole.
No Steelers game, no anger in “U mad, bro?” this week, right? Not so fast. There are plenty of other things to get upset about. And this week, most of them apparently have to do with the Pirates. Specifically, an ex-Pirate name Gerrit Cole. Oh, and an ex-Penguin named Marc-Andre...
Empty Thoughts: Lightning 3, Penguins 2
Observations from the Penguins’ 3-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning. TAMPA, Fla. — There really isn’t a ton of intrigue to the Penguins’ goaltending situation. It’s pretty simple to figure out. Matt Murray is the starter. Tristan Jarry is the backup. Casey DeSmith is in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton because he makes...
Lightning strike late, send Penguins to 3rd straight lossVideo
TAMPA, Fla. — For all their problems with injuries or a roster imbalance between forwards and defensemen, one of the few maladies the Penguins have not had to confront in the early stages of the 2019-20 campaign has been penalties. Entering Wednesday, they had had averaged 6.8 penalty minutes per...
Puck retrievals bring stability to Penguins’ power play
TAMPA, Fla. — The Penguins had one of the NHL’s best power plays last season with a conversion rate of 24.6%. And why wouldn’t they? With a handful of scoring champions and All-Stars at their disposal, the Penguins’ power-play was a clear and present danger to every NHL goaltender. Even...
Penguins to start Tristan Jarry against Lightning
TAMPA, Fla. – Backup goaltender Tristan Jarry will start for the Penguins as they face the Tampa Bay Lightning on Wednesday at Amalie Arena. Jarry has appeared in two games this season and has a 1-1-0 record along with a 1.51 goals against average and .941 save percentage. Each of...
Penguins CEO gives ringing endorsement for Pirates hiring Travis Williams as president
The Pittsburgh Pirates already received one ringing endorsement for their decision to hire Travis Williams to replace Frank Coonelly as team president. That it’s from the Penguins should come as no surprise. “We owe a lot of the success we’ve had over the last 10 years or so to Travis,”...
Empty Thoughts: Panthers 4, Penguins 2
Observations from the Penguins’ 4-2 loss to the Panthers. SUNRISE, Fla. — Accountability is a word that gets tossed around a lot by coaches or players when looking for a cliche to lean on. It’s a kind of empty phrase they can lean on when looking for an easy way...
Penguins edged by Panthers in opener of 3-game road trip
SUNRISE, Fla. – The Penguins’ 4-2 loss to the Florida Panthers on Tuesday at BB&T Center didn’t resemble their play for most of the past week. For one, they lost. Last week, they surged to a tidy five-game winning streak despite a hamstrung lineup depleted by injuries. But this game...
Jared McCann expected to return for the Penguins
SUNRISE, Fla. – Penguins forward Jared McCann is expected to be in the lineup for Tuesday’s game against the Florida Panthers at the BB&T Center according to coach Mike Sullivan. McCann missed Saturday’s 3-0 home loss to the Vegas Golden Knights due to an undisclosed ailment. Sullivan said the injury...
Upper St. Clair’s Vincent Trocheck continues to make an impact with Panthers
SUNRISE, Fla. — Panthers defenseman Keith Yandle wasn’t quite sure of the proper vocabulary. “What do you call someone from Pittsburgh? Pittsburghian?” Pittsburgher will suffice. Or, if you want to be a blend of colloquial and mean, yinzer. “Never heard that one before.” Regional dialects aside, the Massachusetts-born Yandle and...
Tim Benz: Gut reactions to following Gerrit Cole as opposed to Marc-Andre FleuryVideo
When the World Series starts Tuesday night, former Pittsburgh Pirate Gerrit Cole will take the mound for the Houston Astros against the Washington Nationals in Game 1. Cole’s dominant run through the postseason hasn’t exactly been embraced in the same way that one-time Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury’s was when he...
After playing 7 of first 9 at home, Penguins embrace heading out on road
After playing seven of their first nine games at PPG Paints Arena, the Pittsburgh Penguins left Monday for a three-game road trip. Games at Florida (on Tuesday), Tampa Bay (on Wednesday) and Dallas (on Saturday) mark their only three-game road stretch of the season until the week before Christmas. There...
Penguins’ Mike Sullivan ‘hams’ his way through questioning the usefulness of morning skatesVideo
Pittsburgh Penguins coach Mike Sullivan isn’t alone among modern NHL personnel in questioning the usefulness of the gameday morning skate. But he’s one of the few who called it “the most overrated practice in hockey.” And he’s most certainly the only coach, player or executive who compared morning skates to...
With returns of several injured forwards nearing, Penguins insist they’ll stick to adopted styleVideo
Two of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ top nine forwards are close to returning to action after extended absences because of injury. Two others in that category inched closer to returns of their own. It’s a welcomed development for a team whose forward lineup has been depleted over the first three weeks...
Tim Benz, Brian Metzer discuss Penguins’ goalies, Marc-Andre Fleury’s play
No Madden Monday this week, as Mark Madden is off for a few days. So consider this a “Metzer Monday.” Brian Metzer of the Penguins Radio Network joins me for his weekly hockey chat a day earlier than normal. And why not? It was a busy weekend of Pittsburgh Penguins...
Moving defensemen to forward isn’t anything new for the Penguins
As a native of Finland in his second season playing in North America, English is a second language for Juuso Riikola. When answering questions from reporters, he tends not to be verbose and is straight to the point. Riikola, whose English is infinitely superior to the average Pittsburgh reporter’s Finnish,...
Empty Thoughts: Golden Knights 3, Penguins 0
Observations from the Penguins’ 3-0 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights. First things first, Mike Sullivan declined to offer updates on defenseman Brian Dumoulin and forward Jared McCann. Dumoulin participated in warmups but was a late scratch. And McCann, who missed Wednesday’s home game against the Colorado Avalanche due to...
