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A Friday morning update for the dear readers…

= The Penguins are on their way to Newark, N.J. They play a Saturday matinee (1 p.m.) against the New Jersey Devils.
A massive winter storm is expected to dump over a foot of snow in the greater New York area, so the Penguins left for Newark on Friday morning instead of practicing in Pittsburgh and flying Friday afternoon.
The real concern might be whether both the Penguins and Devils can get back to Pittsburgh for a Sunday night game at Consol Energy Center. Neither club owns its charter plane. The aircrafts are used by other clients when not designated for NHL team. So, there is a chance, pending the storm impact, that that charter planes for both clubs could not be available for the return to Pittsburgh on Saturday afternoon.
This, of course, is a remote possibility, but it is a possibility. As of Friday morning there are no plans for alterations to either of the Penguins’ weekend games against the Devils.

= Stephen Whyno of the Washington Times has a transcript of Capitals RW Alex Ovechkin’s terse comments following that club’s 5-2 loss to the Penguins on Thursday. Some interesting stuff here:
http://www.washingtontimes.com/blog/capitals-watch/2013/feb/7/transcript-alex-ovechkin-disgusted-after-caps-loss/

= Complete coverage of Thursday in Penguins Land from #TribHKY:
Game story that looks at Penguins physicality: http://triblive.com/sports/penguins/3429287-74/penguins-capitals-crosby#axzz2KKKYpKGy
Notes on a rivalry that has lost some sizzle: http://triblive.com/sports/penguins/3429288-74/penguins-capitals-washington#axzz2KKKYpKGy
Josh Yohe with a look at a big few days for Pittsburgh hockey: http://triblive.com/sports/penguins/3443175-74/reese-penguins-saad#axzz2KKKYpKGy
Dejan Kovacevic’s first “notes” column – now a weekly staple – has some NHL stuff, too: http://triblive.com/sports/dejankovacevic/dejancolumns/3429271-74/sblt-league-goal#axzz2KKKYpKGy

= The Penguins offered free concessions and discounted merchandise to fans on dates of their first four home games. A numerical look at what that produced:

• 190,000 plus concession items sold: 52,142 fountain drinks, 33,289 nachos, 26,633 soft pretzels, 22,258 hot dogs, 22,118 chicken sandwiches and 20,380 hamburgers. (Seriously, that’s way too many nachos, yinz!)
• 8,600 jerseys, 18,950 t-shirts and 8,776 hats – all at half-price.
• On good authority, this was not just a crowd of folks buying Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin jerseys. Word is James Neal received some big-time love. Expecting an uptick on the No. 18s at Consol Energy Center on Sunday night.

Cheers,
Rossi

This blog update comes to the dear readers from just outside of Philadelphia and an Amtrak train headed for Washington, D.C., where the Penguins will play the Capitals on Sunday.
Looks like somebody (cough, cough) missed a fine performance by the local club. Josh Yohe has the details on the Penguins’ 5-1 win over The Devil: http://triblive.com/sports/penguins/3379268-74/penguins-goal-brodeur#axzz2JmJj5Mnc

= The TribHKY team has some pretty special stuff coming Sunday, if we dare say so:
Yohe has coverage of Penguins’ second straight win, and first at home. He also will have a notebook off the game.
The #TribHKY Sunday page – we like to think Sundays are a Hockey Day in Pittsburgh – will feature the following:

–A column looking at the last time GM Ray Shero spent an entire season retooling the Penguins. A hint, that season ended well. Is the same thing playing out in this truncated campaign?

–Yohe catches up with Matt Martin of the Islanders, who gets the Q&A treatment in the “PuckSpeak” spot.

–For a sixth straight season the region’s best AHL coverage is part of the Trib’s Sunday section. Jonathan Bombulie, one of the finest hockey scribes in North America (TRUTH), covers the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins for The Citizen’s Voice. He is a must follow on Twitter: @CVBombulie and his weekly AHL (don’t call’em “baby”) Penguins column is this blog author’s favorite Sunday treat.

–Another Trib correspondent, Chris Adamski, brings the college hockey heat with his weekly report. Pittsburgh’s most tireless reporter – dude covers everything – also does fine Penguins-specific stuff for NHL.com, and should be followed on Twitter: @BuzzsawPGH.

= AND NOW FOR SOMETHING WE CALL A TEASE…
Along with photographer Chaz “Uncle Charlie is Too Cool for Twitter” Palla, I spent Wednesday night inside the NHL’s Player Safety Video Room in New York. It was quite an experience, and one not documented by any publication … until Sunday, when TribHKY brings an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the work done daily by NHL Sr. VP of Player Safety and Hockey Operations Brendan Shanahan and his staff.
An excerpt from the package that will start on the front page of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review:

Echevarrieta and Shanahan are attempting to perfect the Player Safety process for reviewing a hit like Frolik’s. For now, it is a work in progress.
It was efficient Wednesday night.
A coordinator clips the hit, a sequence that takes about 15 minutes. Shanahan receives an email with a subject line similar to this one from Wednesday: RE: Frolik board minor on Granlund.
The email includes details to convey a sense of urgency for deciding on a possible hearing. The email Wednesday noted the Blackhawks’ next game was at 10 p.m. Friday at Vancouver.
The email also contained a link that directed to various angles of the hit from NBC Sports Network cameras, including ones never viewed by the public.
Finally, the email noted Frolik’s past history. He had received a warning for hits on Boston’s Rich Peverley and Chris Kelly in the Blackhawks’ game against the Bruins on Oct. 15, 2011

Check online at midnight for the full stories. But you will want to BUY A PAPER, because Palla’s photographs are outstanding and Trib designer Melanie Wass did a super-sharp job making it all look pretty n’at.

Cheers,
Rossi

Good evening, dear readers.
Not a lot more to say about the Penguins’ 3-0 win at the New York Rangers on Thursday night.
The local club has won six in a row against the Rangers, and is on a 9-2-0 run at Madison Square Garden.
The local club is also 4-1-0 on the road during this truncated NHL season. Those wins came against playoff teams from last season.
What a baffling start for the Penguins, who are 4-0 against playoff teams and 0-3 against clubs that missed. That is a trend.
D Brooks Orpik summed up this victory best:
“I don’t think we gave up an odd-man rush until the mini 3-on-2 we gave up with two minutes to go.”
The Devil – You Know What To Expect – is next, Saturday at Consol Energy Center. A big game, as early on, New Jersey, is still, well, New Jersey.
= Do not discredit this victory.
The Rangers were looking like a club beginning a roll.
Instead, they found nothing against the Penguins.
Rangers D Marc Staal talked of the Penguins as though the were The Devil.
“They sit in that neutral zone and they just kind of wait and hang out. … We couldn’t really find any speed through the offensive zone or on the rushes.”
Uh, yeah – clip that one and save it for a later date.
Makes a certain blog author glad he focused on the defense in his GAME STORY: http://triblive.com/sports/nhl/3379155-74/penguins-rangers-boychuk#axzz2JcDEQKxt

= LW Zach Boychuk is a Penguin.
He might play with C Evgeni Malkin and RW James Neal, HC Dan Bylsma said Thursday.
Hey, anything is worth a shot, right?
The NOTEBOOK examines that waiver claim, and a curious comment about LW Eric Tangradi from GM Ray Shero: http://triblive.com/sports/nhl/3379155-74/penguins-rangers-boychuk#axzz2JcDEQKxt

= Josh Yohe will have the club Friday, as somebody is sticking around The City.
Why stay away from Pittsburgh, the dear readers may ask?
Uh, it’s The City!
Actually, there is a reason, and you can read all about it in the Sunday Trib.
Follow Josh via Twitter: @JoshYohe_Trib for all your Penguins coverage through Saturday.
Catch up with everybody on Sunday from Washington, D.C.
(Somebody doesn’t have to watch the Super Bowl. That said somebody wore the winner’s colors during his Root Sports Pittsburgh Penguins Pregame Show on Thursday.)

Good morning, dear readers. You all made it to Wednesday, right?
The panic button was pushed early by some of you after the Penguins’ 4-1 home loss to the Islanders Tuesday.
Yikes.
A recap of social-media postings and emails:

–Marc-Andre Fleury stinks.
–Coach Dan Bylsma stinks.
–Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin don’t stink, but they aren’t good anymore.
–Players don’t care.
–The power play is embarrassing.
–THIS CANNOT BE HAPPENING.

Actually, it can, and is, and not much of what was opined in the immediate minutes after the latest loss is true.

–Blaming the loss on Fleury is, as is usually the case, uninformed. He was not pulled because of poor play. He was pulled because Dan Bylsma had to try something.
Now, fair is the premise that Fleury should have prevented the opening goal. Maybe the third.
Those saves would not have mattered against the Islanders.
The Penguins played poorly.
All of the Penguins, as Brooks Orpik correctly noted.

–Bylsma has not forgotten how to coach, either.
He knows the biggest problem his club faces is one that cannot be easily fixed. It is a problem of timing, the kind the Penguins did not develop in a training camp that was short and absent exhibition games.
Indeed, every NHL club faces this problem.
Few clubs, though, are built to blend skill and aggressiveness such as the Penguins. Few needed a camp more because so much of Bylsma’s system requires timing – and the timing is off, from stars such as Crosby, who to be fair is basically skating off the rust of two lost years, to role players such as Chris Kunitz, Matt Cooke and Craig Adams.
Consider two seasons back, when Jordan Staal missed 41 games while recovering from injuries. He later reasoned that his game never felt right that campaign and it was because he really missed what training camp would have provided:
Nearly three weeks of leg-punishing hard practices, and practice games to work on his flow.
Crosby is a lot like Staal that way. Kunitz and Cooke are really like Staal that way.

–Malkin and Crosby will be OK.
Really.
They have to be.
Otherwise, nothing else for the Penguins matters.
Neither superstar has strung together two typical (by their lofty standards) games.
Neither is historically a fast starter, as fellow Penguins beat scribe Josh Yohe points out in our video recap: http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid19384256001?bckey=AQ~~,AAAAAHBuCSQ~,m5He7DD2iNxbyz6ucUpaHH1bI1w9eCNa&bclid=2741216001&bctid=2127840303001

(GREAT story here by Josh on the topic of USA Hockey and Pittsburgh Hockey: http://triblive.com/sports/penguins/3385780-74/hockey-pittsburgh-penguins#axzz2JNKNP3mA)

–The players care.
They really care.
No, really: http://triblive.com/sports/penguins/3378900-74/penguins-islanders-period#axzz2JNKNP3mA
They might care too much.
The poor decisions they are making with the puck are far more because of trying to do too much than a lazy approach.
Also, given the noise fans at Consol Energy Center aren’t making, it would be unwise of the paying customers to throw stones inside the stadium with a glass atrium.

–The power play is embarrassing.
Columnist Joe Starkey will address that Thursday; at least that is the guess of this blog author.
It is the same old problem: Too many cooks in the kitchen.
There was a time when even the most talented of those cooks listened to an executive chef. Takes a special kind of chef to command that respect.
Do chefs like that even exist anymore?
Answer here: http://triblive.com/sports/penguins/3336350-74/gonchar-penguins-malkin#axzz2JNKNP3mA

–This is happening.
Still, the Penguins have 6 of 12 possible points while not playing their best, or anywhere close.
Life could be worse: http://flyers.nhl.com/?navid=nav-teamnav-phi
Those opening weekend wins at the Flyers and Rangers are bigger now than then for the Penguins. Those four points provided them some cushion.

–And, finally, there was another club on the ice Tuesday.
A club that is proving quite troublesome for the Penguins dating to late last season.
Arthur Staple of Newsday covers that club quite well: http://www.newsday.com/sports/hockey/islanders/evgeni-nabokov-outstanding-as-islanders-dominate-penguins-1.4532202

Kind of scary when this space is devoted to reason, don’t you think?
Take a breath, all. The sun did rise.

Cheers,
Rossi

Good morning, dear readers.
Some quick hits on this unseasonably warm late-January AM in Pittsburgh:

= D Matt Niskanen will not play Tuesday for the Penguins. Josh Y ohe has the details here: http://triblive.com/sports/penguins/3380918-74/niskanen-tuesday-penguins
If Niskanen only misses one game, or even just two, consider that a big win for the Penguins. Imagine if the Penguins’ top four were to include on a regular basis somebody on the current roster other than him, Kris Letang, Brooks Orpik and Paul Martin.

= The announcement will officially happen after coach Dan Bylsma’s news conference Tuesday morning, but this is some of what to expect: http://triblive.com/sports/penguins/3373633-74/hockey-game-center
Seriously, what a 15 or so months for hockey in Pittsburgh, dating to the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, that All-American Prospects Game will cap.

= Canadiens D P.K. Subban has a new deal, and Penguins fans should pay special attention to when it expires: http://www.montrealgazette.com/sports/hockey/montreal-canadiens/Subban+signs+year+deal+with+Habs/7884941/story.html
OK, so now Subban and Letang are set to have their current deals expire at the same time. Just let that thought kick around in your head for a while.
Not pleasant, huh?
Last summer, GM Ray Shero attempted to work long-term deals with Cs Sidney Crosby AND Jordan Staal, each of whom was set to enter the final year of his contract. Crosby was basically going to get whatever he wanted. Staal was the trickier case, because his full potential had not yet been realized, but he remained a key part of the Penguins’ foundation.
The Penguins offered Staal a 10-year deal worth around $57 million, though the contract did include upfront money, as did the extension Crosby would sign. Staal declined, and rather than risk a so-called Lame Duck Year and likely losing him for nothing the next summer, Shero traded Staal to Carolina, getting in return the No. 7 overall pick, a defensive prospect and C Brandon Sutter –a nice package for a player that Shero knew was no longer part of the future.
This summer, Shero will face a similar situation with C Evgeni Malkin and Letang, both of whom will be entering the final years of their current deals. Malkin, like Crosby, will basically get whatever he wants. (Ownership has mandated the Penguins keep Malkin.)
Letang will be the trickier signing. As of RIGHT NOW, his full potential has not been realized, but he is a key part of the Penguins’ foundation (along Crosby, Malkin, G Marc-Andre Fleury, RW James Neal).
The Penguins cannot offer Letang more than eight years, and their upfront money options will be limited. This is because of the new labor contract restrictions.
Letang, like Staal would have been, is a safe bet to attract a massive bidding war if he ever hits the open market. The Penguins only chance to keep him is this summer, and they are banking that he follows the form (twice) of Crosby and takes less than market value for a long-term commitment.
Staal was not willing to play that game for a third contract with the Penguins. If Letang is equally unwilling this summer, know that the precedent is already set – and it will take a first-round pick, a prospect, and an NHL player to land him. (That prospect would probably need to be a forward, because aside from LW Beau Bennett the Penguins’ best prospects are defensemen.)
A Penguins fan might be wise to start studying the players in Montreal and in the Canadiens’ system.

= And, now, for the insanity that is the #TribHKY Power Poll. Submitted for your disapproval, and based off nothing more than this blog author’s assessment of the NHL landscape before results Monday. Enjoy, but be kind. Family reads this blog, after all.
1 – Blues
2 – Blackhawks
3 – Devils
4 – Sharks
5 – Bruins
6 – Penguins
7 – Senators
8 – Lightning
9 – Ducks
10 – Canadiens
11 – Jets
12 – Islanders
13 – Wild
14 – Stars
15 – Rangers
16 – Avalanche
17 – Red Wings
18 – Canucks
19 – Predators
20 – Oilers
21 – Sabres
22 – Kings
23 – Maple Leafs
24 – Islanders
25 – Oilers
26 – Flyers
27 – Coyotes
28 – Blue Jackets
29 – Capitals
30 – Panthers

Cheers,
Rossi

Some quick hits on a typically dreary January Monday in Pittsburgh:

= The Penguins were to practice, but coach Dan Bylsma’s reward for a tough-earned extra point at Ottawa on Sunday was an unscheduled off-day. Penguins play four times this week, so rest will be welcome – especially from defensemen who played heavy minutes at Ottawa because of an early injury to Matt Niskanen.

= Niskanen is being re-evaluated by club personnel after his hard slide into the boards at Ottawa. There was no update on his status as of noon Monday.

= While hosting “Penguins Live” on 105.9 HD-2 Monday morning, the topic of “Penguins Most Consistent Player Through Five Games” came up on Twitter. The winners were RW James Neal and D Paul Martin, but a few folks suggested D Brooks Orpik, and that would be my pick.

This, of course, is to say nothing of the superb performances from Neal (four goals) and Martin (less his production by the return of his smooth mix of aggressive-patient play, highlighted by that silky skating).

Orpik has been outstanding; though let’s agree to trust the old Eye Test rather than stats, which tend to be all over the place unless they relate to scoring.

Physicality? Yep. Sharp decision-making? Indeed. A calming presence for Martin? Absolutely. Solid own-zone positioning? Sure. Leadership? Always.

This Orpik is a lot like the player who was not bothered by abdominal issues each of the last two seasons. He is too proud to ever use those injuries as an excuse, but Orpik was never fully himself the last two years.

He is back to being an imposing force for the Penguins, and the result may be his best stretch of hockey since the Stanley Cup run of 2009.

= Another topic on the radio was a perceived spat between C Evgeni Malkin and Neal, one caught by Root Sports Pittsburgh cameras during the Ottawa game.

Probably unfair to comment, given I was not there and have not talked to either player as of this blog.

That said; know a couple of things about Malkin and Neal:

* Both players have said that a secret to their success it neither guys holds back, verbally, on the ice. Also, it is something Neal has discussed with the roving players that have worked in on the left-wing slot – basically, Malkin is direct and to-the-point when it comes to on-ice chatter.  LW Eric Tangradi confirmed during training camp that Neal warned him Malkin wouldn’t be shy about pointing out perceived problems. Being able to handle Malkin, who is as demanding of himself as any player I’ve covered, is part of the territory that comes with occupying space with him on the ice. Neal is not a shy player when it comes to speaking his mind either. Hence, he and Malkin can be engaged in a normal conversation, but one that may appear animated. It probably was less animated and more just two guys making sure they were on the same page. I’ve seen that before from Malkin and Neal. Many times.

* Malkin is not pleased with his own play right now. He has confessed feeling a huge responsibility to produce on almost every shift early during this season because he, unlike teammates, is not playing off the rust. That does not excuse his poor decisions with the puck, but it does explain his push to try doing more than necessary – a hallmark of his past struggles. If there are signs, visibly, that Malkin is anguished, you can be sure it is because he is disgusted with himself. I’ve covered the guy for seven years and know him fairly well (by reporter-player standards), and I can say with confidence he is not happy with his own play right now – and he believes he is not doing enough to help the Penguins win. That has always been the only concern he has expressed, publicly or in private. He feels like he has to be “on” to help the Penguins win right now. His anguish stems from that, and should be viewed with that perspective in mind.

–D Simon Despres has not dressed for two straight games, and the Penguins have let inquiring clubs know he is available for the right price. The Penguins are targeting a young winger, much like Neal, who can be part of the long-term future. They want a player whose rights they control and one who can grow into a prime role in Pittsburgh. It will take that type of player to get Despres.

There are players who have been linked to the Penguins in exchange for Despres, but none of those players meet the requirements the Penguins believe are necessary to move their first-round pick from the 2009 NHL entry draft.

Cheers,

Rossi

Greetings, dear readers.

A quick update on this soon-to-be snow capped Friday.

First, neither this blog author or Josh Yohe is with the club this weekend. Columnist Dejan Kovacevic – he of immense love for Winnipeg, and a whole lotta like for Ottawa – has given us a welcome breather. (Thanks, Dejan.) So check out his stuff and follow him on Twitter: @Dejan_Kovacevic

And now for some bits n’at:

= Hearing a lot of rumblings about the Penguins looking for a winger. Nothing close yet, but know that D Simon Despres can be had for the right price. Question becomes is that price a veteran winger with a short-term future or if the scouting staff has identified the next James Neal and now GM Ray Shero is set on trying to bring said player to Pittsburgh.

Keep in mind:

Shero has twice (Ryan Whitney, 2009; Alex Goligoski, 2011) traded young defensemen for long-term fit wingers (Chris Kunitz, Neal). Each time he has made that move before the trade deadline, and in February.

= The club is at Winnipeg tonight, and it will mark only the fourth game in Canada for C Sidney Crosby since he scored the Olympics winner in 2010. Kind of shocking to think about, no?

A great piece by our great friend Chris Johnston of Sportsnet on the new old normal for Crosby: http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/2013/01/25/sidney_crosby_and_the_new_normal_pittsburgh_penguins/

= Dejan really does love Winnipeg, and though we kid him about it, there is a personal connection: http://blog.triblive.com/dejan-kovacevic/2013/01/25/friday-wakeup-call-my-winnipeg/

= I will be doing the Root Sports Pittsburgh pregame show Friday and Sunday. There is game college students might want to start playing every time I tip my glasses, not that we encourage such games around these parts.

Cheers,

Rossi

“We knew right away this morning when we looked at their lineup that they have a lot of speed. They want to play fast. We can’t play that kind of game against them. Our game is north/south. We need to get in their zone and grind them down. We tried to play the same game as them and got burned.”
—  D Kris Letang, Penguins

Some nuggets from the Penguins’ 5-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday night:

♦ The Penguins scored the first goal for the third straight game.

♦ The Penguins have killed all 13 opponents’ 13 power plays that were 5-on-4. The three power-play goals they have allowed have been 5-on-3 power plays.

♦ With his goal, C Evgeni Malkin has scored a point in every game. Malkin has now recorded 10 goals and 39 points in 21 games against Toronto.

♦ Maple Leafs LW Nikolai Kulemin recorded 3 assists. Kulemin is a close friend to Malkin. They are both from Magnitogorsk, Russia, and both played for Metallurg of the KHL during the NHL lockout.

♦ The Penguins have lost 2 of 3 openers at Consol Energy Center.

♦ The announced crowd, 18,641, is the largest to watch a game at the CEC, which opened in August 2010.

♦ PensGear stores at the CEC and SouthSide Works sold about $500,000 worth of merchandise, which was discounted by 50 percent. The big sellers were items featuring RW James Neal and C Brandon Sutter.

♦ The Penguins were penalized three times for boarding, and also received a slashing penalty. C Sidney Crosby received an unsportsmanlike conduct late in the third period, and Malkin received a match-ending game misconduct.

♦ Majority co-owner Ron Burkle is reportedly interested in buying the Sacramento Kings of the NBA. However, this would not impact his ownership stake with the Penguins, team officials said. Burkle, who now resides in London, owns a home near Beverly Hills. Penguins majority co-owner Mario Lemieux said Burkle has been following the Kings situation “for two years,” and joked that if Burkle did purchase the NBA team perhaps he would get a small share.

Happy home opener, dear readers.

The time is 10:16 a.m. on this frigid Pittsburgh morning, and several Penguins players have now joined RWs Pascal Dupuis and Tyler Kennedy on the ice.

The Maples Leafs are in town for the first NHL game at Consol Energy Center since April, and the Penguins are looking to win a third straight game to open this truncated season.

The local club was off Tuesday. After some group drills, the Wednesday AM skate seems to be picking up its pace. Power-play drills right now.

A quick look at the #TribHKY Wednesday coverage:

♦  Columnist Dejan Kovacevic has identified hockey’s new Mecca, and special props to those at the home office who found that photo: http://triblive.com/sports/dejankovacevic/dejancolumns/3336198-74/nhl-team-fans#axzz2IoQJrj8s

♦  C Brandon Sutter would prefer just one comparison to former Penguins C Jordan Staal: http://triblive.com/sports/penguins/3290336-74/sutter-penguins-staal#axzz2IoQJrj8s

♦  CEO David Morehouse makes a promise to Penguins fans: http://triblive.com/sports/penguins/3341575-74/penguins-game-lockout#axzz2IoQJrj8s

♦  All your opener information: http://triblive.com/sports/penguins/3336210-74/penguins-fans-opener#axzz2IoQJrj8s

Around the NHL on Tuesday:

n  The Flyers are 0-3-0, and as you might have read, no team that went three straight games without a point made the playoffs in 1995, the last 48-game season. Frank Seravalli of the Philadelphia Daily News has the scoop: http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/flyers/20130123_Flyers_still_0-for-2013.html

♦  The NHL’s first discipline hearing of the season, and the Flyers are involved: http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/2013/01/23/flyers_schenn_hearing_for_hit/

♦  Martin Brodeur has 120 career shutouts, and that is just stupid: http://www.nj.com/devils/index.ssf/2013/01/devils_score_early_and_often_i.html#incart_river

♦  Luke DeCock, columnist for the Raleigh News & Observer, noted that Jordan Staal was basically alone in the Carolina dressing room to answer tough questions last night. The eye of that Hurricane: http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/01/23/2626273/decock-canes-long-wait-delivers.html

♦  Josh Cooper of The Tennessean in Nashville on a fairly nice win for the Predators: http://www.tennessean.com/article/20130122/SPORTS02/301220095/Preds-beat-Wild-first-win?nclick_check=1

♦  The San Jose Sharks opened a can at Edmonton, and David Pollak of the Mercury News has information on Scott Gomez: http://www.mercurynews.com/sharks/ci_22429452/san-jose-sharks-like-what-they-see-scott

♦  Rest of NHL scores are here: http://www.nhl.com/ice/scores.htm#?navid=nav-scr-main

Enjoy the festivities. Remember the Penguins’ pregame celebration starts around 6:50 p.m.

Cheers,

Rossi

Good Sunday morning to you, dear readers.

This old machine has crashed often since Team Trib arrived in New York, so probably best to keep this short and direct.

Marc-Andre Fleury passed Tom Barrasso on the Penguins’ all-time wins list, and this victory also helped him rediscover his mojo. Game Report: http://triblive.com/sports/penguins/3300922-74/fleury-penguins-flyers#axzz2IUbWjrJm

And now, something new this season, the #TribHKY stars:

These are not subjective.

1 – Paul Martin, Penguins

Statement game in a big way for Martin, who was Devilish with his skating and stick-on-puck work.

2 – Tanner Glass

Noticeable every shift, which is not something man fourth liners can say in their first game with a new team.

3 – Evgeni Malkin

That, folks, was a signal that half of a season in Russia did the MVP good.

And, now, some linkage:

= Columnist Dejan Kovacevic asks, “Where did that come from?” — http://triblive.com/sports/dejankovacevic/dejancolumns/3300917-74/penguins-neal-fleury#axzz2IUbWjrJm

= Beat scribe Josh Yohe on a penalty kill reborn: http://triblive.com/sports/penguins/3300923-74/penguins-flyers-penalty#axzz2IUbWjrJm

= Notes n’at, leading off with Martin’s promising start: http://triblive.com/sports/penguins/3300927-74/martin-penguins-flyers#axzz2IUbWjrJm

= The #TribHKY Sunday column on Dan Bylsma’s stroke: http://triblive.com/sports/penguins/3321665-74/despres-bylsma-penguins#axzz2IUbWjrJm

= Jonathan Bombulie’s AHL Penguins report: http://triblive.com/sports/penguins/3308346-74/macintyre-bombulie-jonathan#axzz2IUbWjrJm

Also, reasons to BUY THE PAPER:

Josh’s “PuckSpeak” with Max Talbot of the Flyers … College Hockey stuff … the soon to be anticipated #TribHKY Sunday Showcase.

An AM skate awaits…

Cheers,

Rossi