We\u2019ve got full coverage from PPG Paints Arena after the Pittsburgh Penguins lost in regulation, again, and that playoff spot is not so assured. Now, I find I\u2019ve changed my mind and opened up the door to the likelihood of missing the playoffs. The Penguins need help. We broke down the game, good and bad, and the growing cracks in their game. We also hit the goaltender interference issue hard, and probably in a way that others have not. <\/p>\n
Elsewhere in the Daily, Penguins GM Kyle Dubas used TSN to take Erik Karlsson off this summer\u2019s trade block, or at least attempted to take him off the block. Sportsnet dove into the Norris Trophy race. Reports indicate that the Detroit Red Wings had options at the NHL trade deadline but declined any move that involved their prospects. Lastly, Toronto and Chicago gave the Penguins some help, but as usual, the Philadelphia Flyers were no help at all. <\/p>\n
I\u2019ll confess to feeling bad for the Penguins. They are good guys in that room, and as the hierarchy has changed over the last year or so, they\u2019re more accessible and it\u2019s far more enjoyable to cover them. We speak. We can joke around. And I know you have come along for the ride in a much different way this season; you were dragged kicking and screaming into supporting this roster, but eventually bought in. <\/p>\n
But now, the worst-case scenario is gaining ground.<\/p>\n
Anyway, I\u2019m off to Ottawa this morning. I\u2019ve decided\u2013ALL 82!!! We\u2019re doing it, provided the Penguins are still in playoff contention. The enormously expensive challenge was Tampa, but I found an acceptable deal and cashed in some airline miles, and we\u2019ll be there. 82, baby.<\/p>\n
Pittsburgh Penguins<\/p>\n
Pittsburgh Hockey Now: They lost. You won\u2019t read it, but the factoids, the NHL\u2019s statement, and the details to know are in the Penguins recap<\/a>.<\/p>\n So, let\u2019s get into this. I\u2019m not sure I\u2019ve written a report card with quite this much different content. We\u2019ll start with what the Penguins were doing really well in the first period. Then goaltending issues popped up. And, oh my, another goaltender interference call that defied any logic or explanation. In fact, even the NHL\u2019s explanation was stunningly \u2026 wrong. Dan Muse\u2019s reaction postgame was something because he\u2019s just out of words. The report card has all the Penguins analysis<\/a>.<\/p>\n And Evgeni Malkin is injured. Out day to day. <\/p>\n The playoff picture is now a dead sprint to the end, and most teams have played 71 games, so there are no more big swings with games in hand, but the Penguins\u2019 schedule is brutal. <\/p>\n The Penguins have slipped to third place with 86 points, one behind the Columbus Blue Jackets. Boston is the top wild card with 86 points. Ottawa is the second wild card with 85 points. The first team out of the playoffs, the New York Islanders, has 85 points with 72 games played. Detroit is lurking at 84 points. <\/p>\n Four teams make it. Two go home. <\/p>\n NHL Rumors, News, & National Hockey Now<\/p>\n TSN: The wording of the story leaves me wanting more clarity. A lot more. However, one thing was clear: Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas told Pierre LeBrun that the Penguins don\u2019t plan to trade Erik Karlsson this summer<\/a>.<\/p>\n So, Dubas will try to re-sign him? So they\u2019ll hold him until the 2027 trade deadline? Let him walk away? I have some questions.<\/p>\n Daily Faceoff: Anthony DiMarco, who has risen from Philly blogger to actual national reporter with a good rep, says the Detroit Red Wings shutdown all trade talk involving their prospects<\/a>. Nyet. Off limits.<\/p>\n Sportsnet: The Canadian rights holder has been informally polling players and scanning other media reports (Guess they missed Shelly\u2019s story about Sidney Crosby\u2019s reaction) for player reaction to the uneven suspensions handed out<\/a>.<\/p>\n Detroit Hockey Now: With a win, the Red Wings would be equal to the Penguins with 86 points, but they let the Ottawa Senators snag the second wild card. Ottawa win. Red Wings loss and fallout<\/a>.<\/p>\n Boston Hockey Now: Not all the news involving Toronto was bad for the Penguins. The Toronto Maple Leafs helped the cause and beat the Boston Bruins<\/a>.<\/p>\n Chicago Hockey Now: And the best news of the evening, the game that kept the Penguins in a playoff seed, the New York Islanders\u2019 supercharged late rally wasn\u2019t enough, and they lost to the Chicago Blackhawks<\/a>.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTags: erik karlsson<\/a> nhl rumors<\/a> Penguins Analysis<\/a> Penguins Trade<\/a> Pittsburgh Penguins<\/a> <\/p>\n Categorized:Links<\/a> NHL Trade Rumors<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"We\u2019ve got full coverage from PPG Paints Arena after the Pittsburgh Penguins lost in regulation, again, and that…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":681175,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[42],"tags":[42526,293,20260,161442,1333,1334,62,67,132,68],"class_list":["post-681174","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nhl","tag-erik-karlsson","tag-nhl","tag-nhl-rumors","tag-penguins-analysis","tag-penguins-trade","tag-pittsburgh-penguins","tag-sports","tag-united-states","tag-unitedstates","tag-us"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116290903528394715","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/681174","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=681174"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/681174\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/681175"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=681174"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=681174"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=681174"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}