Tag: Pittsburgh Penguins

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Evgeni Malkin admits the uncomfortable truth for Penguins

Bleacher Report

In a game that they absolutely had to have, the Pittsburgh Penguins instead found themselves trailing and eventually losing to the tanking Chicago Blackhawks. The 6-2 setback dealt a serious blow to their already faint postseason hopes, meaning that their fate will be sealed with the results of Thursday evening’s season finale against the lowly Columbus Blue Jackets.

The fans in attendance last night at PPG Paints Arena voiced their displeasure as the seconds ticked off the clock, and even more “Fire Hextall” chants were heard from those who hadn’t departed early to get a head start on the traffic. 

And afterward, it was Penguins longtime forward Evgeni Malkin who had to admit the uncomfortable truth for his team, which features many players on the wrong side of the age of 30.

“I think we tried so hard. We tried everything. I try to play hard every game, you know,” Malkin said. “But the league is young. They play so hard. It’s a new generation. It’s coming.” 

“We try to play hard, but it’s probably like, I don’t know, it’s like …”

There was a time where the Penguins were the face of the “new” National Hockey League that emerged after the lockout that wiped out the entire 2004-05 season with young Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin leading the way. But as always, Father Time is undefeated. 

Regardless of what happens on Thursday night, it’s becoming more and more evident that the fantastic run that Pittsburgh has been on the past 16 years is coming to an end. This summer will bring interesting decisions from maligned GM Ron Hextall, who continues to feel the wrath of the frustrated fan base. 

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Sidney Crosby hits 1500 career points on Saturday.

The Pittsburgh Penguins were in a fight for their playoff hopes on Saturday against the Detroit Red Wings, and with the season on the line the organization’s most important player took center stage.

It was a milestone afternoon for Sidney Crosby, the captain of the Pittsburgh Penguins, as he put on his captain cape and willed the Penguins to victory over the Red Wings with 4 shots on goal, 2 goals and an assist for a total of 3 points on the day for the Penguins.

Not only was it a big game performance from Crosby, but it was one that would also bring him into a truly elite group of players in National Hockey League history. Thanks to his big day, Crosby reached the 1500 point plateau, becoming only the 15th player in the history of the league to do and furthermore becoming the sixth faster player in league history to reach the impressive milestone.

Here’s the goal that earned Crosby the 1500th point of his NHL career:

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Ex-Penguins wanted to strip Sidney Crosby of captaincy!

Sporting News

He’s been the face of the National Hockey League since he was drafted with the 1st overall pick in the 2005 NHL Draft by the Pittsburgh Penguins, and by the time that it is all said and done, he will go down as one of the all time great figures in hockey history. 

Since being bestowed with the team captaincy prior to his sophomore season at the tender age of 19, Crosby has led his team to three Stanley Cup championships while also accumulating countless personal accolades. Simply put, he’s been the leader of the Penguins for over a decade and a half.

But what were the chances of his having the captaincy taken away from him? According to a shocking story that first came out last summer, it appears as though that some of his now-former teammates were hoping to make that happen. But it was Crosby’s longest tenured teammate who allegedly put the kibosh on any such discussion of anyone other than No. 87 wearing the captain’s “C” on his jersey. 

Per Josh Yohe of The Athletic: 

“It was 2011. Crosby was still out with the concussion and had been out for the better part of a year. There was a now infamous meeting in the Penguins’ locker room. On one side stood Brooks Orpik, Jordan Staal, Craig Adams and Matt Cooke. Those four were exploring the possibility of naming someone else team captain until Crosby came back. On the other side of the debate were Marc-Andre Fleury, Malkin, Pascal Dupuis and Arron Asham. A rather heated discussion broke out. At the end, Malkin made his point clear: ‘Guys. Sid is the f****** captain.’ Then he left the room. And the conversation was over.”

It would have been a beyond bizarre thing to see someone other than Crosby with the captaincy for the Penguins, and even more surprising that it was allegedly a group of teammates who wanted to see that happen.

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Penguins announce emergency roster move!

NHL.com

The Pittsburgh Penguins are fighting for their postseason lives, and will need to pick up as many points as possible in the standings if they’re to punch their ticket to the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the 17th consecutive year. Of course, they’ll also need to be aided by the teams that they’re chasing for one of the two final Wild Card spots in the Eastern Conference to do a bit of losing. 

And ahead of tonight’s Titanic matchup at PPG Paints Arena against the postseason bound visiting Minnesota Wild, the team has announced an “emergency” roster move. Forward Alex Nylander has been called up from the American Hockey League affiliate Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins. 

While it hasn’t officially been announced, this almost certainly means that the Penguins are dealing with another injury up front, necessitating the call up from the AHL. Nylander has scored a career-high 25 goals along with 25 assists for 50 points in 55 games played with Wilkes-Barre, along with a plus-2 Plus minus rating. 

Tonight’s game against the visiting Wild will get underway starting at 7:00 PM EST. As it currently stands, the Penguins trail both the New York Islanders and Florida Panthers in the Wild Card standings by a single point. 

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Malkin earns 28 penalty minutes and gets ejected on Sunday!

Daniel Lea/CSM/Zuma

Pittsburgh Penguins star forward Evgeni Malkin is on the receiving end of some pretty harsh criticism tonight, and considering the circumstances you can certainly see where his critics are coming from.

Malkin and the Penguins faced off against intrastate rivals the Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday night, and it was an absolutely must win game for the Penguins. The Flyers are already eliminated from playoff contention but the Penguins still have some hope of making it in, something that gave this rivalry game considerably more meaning.

In spite of the must win stakes for the Penguin, Malkin would rack up a staggering 28 minutes of penalties on the night, thanks in large part to his insistence on arguing with the officials on the ice, and would even get himself tossed from the game for the same reason.

Many fans and pundits were quick to slam Malkin for his behavior in such an important game, including Pittsburgh radio host Mark Madden.

It wasn’t just Madden and disgruntled fans who criticized Malkin’s behavior however, Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan publicly admonished his player following the game and apparently did so privately in the locker room as well.

Malkin’s 28 penalty minutes were the most for a player in a single game this season.

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Jim Montgomery comments on the NHL’s favoritism towards Sidney Crosby.

The topic of favoritism is always a hot button issue in the world of sports and on Saturday, Boston Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery may have hit that button.

After his Boston Bruins took a hard fought win over the Pittsburgh Penguin, Montgomery shared his thoughts on some of the officiating that took place during the game. Specifically, Montgomery called out what he calls “Sid Rules,” special treatment shown to the face of the National Hockey League, Penguins captain Sidney Crosby.

Montgomery admitted that the favoritism shown to the NHL’s top star made him hesitant to challenge a goal during the course of the game, although Montgomery didn’t seem to mind too much.

“OK, we thought it was goalie interference because Swayman was hit in the head,” said Montgomery of a failed coach’s challenge during today’s game. “Now, you know how there used to be the Jordan Rules (in the NBA)? I’ve been here (in Pittsburgh) now five times, and something I’m almost sure that’s going to happen – didn’t happen tonight: They’re going to get a 2 on 1 in the first minute, because we’re going to make a mistake; they’re going to get a 5 on 3, and you’re going to be killing a lot of penalties. This is the third time l’ve been here where we challenge – you get it wrong sometimes. I call it the Sid Rules. He’s a great player. He’s a great player. And you know what, the league should take care of their superstars. That’s why I was kind of hesitant about challenging it.”

Montgomery has superstars of his own on the Bruins roster in the form of players like Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak, so a world in which officials give superstars some leniency benefits him in the long run. When asked if he felt his team had gotten the short end of the stick in terms of the officiating on Saturday, Montgomery again indicated that he didn’t have an issue with how things were called.

“No. No, I don’t think we were on the wrong end of anything,” admitted the Bruins head coach. “But I do think the hockey gods rewarded us in the end.”

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Mario Lemieux sends Kris Letang a special message before his 1000th game.

The Pittsburgh Penguins are no doubt fully focused on their fight for a spot in the 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs at the moment, but in spite of that the team will be recognizing a major milestone for one of their players tonight when they take on intrastate rivals the Philadelphia Flyers.

That milestone will of course be Kris Letang’s 1000th game in the National Hockey League and subsequently his 1000th game as a member of the Penguins franchise. Letang was of course drafted in the third round (62nd overall) of the 2005 NHL Entry Draft by the Penguins and has spent his entire career with the franchise up until this point.

Not only will Letang be recognized for his incredible achievement, but the defenseman from Montreal, Quebec also received a very special message ahead of the big game from one of his home province’s greatest icons, NHL legend Mario Lemieux.

“It’s hard to believe you are celebrating your 1,000th game in the National Hockey League. you have solidified yourself as one of the greatest defensemen in Penguins history, as well as the history of the NHL,” wrote Lemieux in a statement on Sunday. “Your strength, determination, and resilience are a testament to your success. it has been a pleasure watching each and every game – especially the three cup runs.

“I wish you many more games, my friend. merci pour les souvenirs!”

“Merci pour les souvenirs” translate to “thanks for the memories” which is pretty fitting given that Lemieux has played a prominent role with the Penguins during Letang’s tenure on the team and has likely witnessed all of his exploits over those many seasons.

A kid from Quebec probably couldn’t have asked for a better endorsement ahead of his 1000th NHL game.

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Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde ejected from game

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Frsutrations boiled over for Detroit Red Wings bench boss Derek Lalonde on Tuesday night against the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins, and thanks to whatever it was that he said against the on-ice referee, he was removed from the game and assessed his first career ejection.

The game misconduct game not long after Penguins forward Jeff Carter was ruled to have legally scored a goal, and it withstood a challenge from Detroit for goaltender interference: 

Red Wings assistant coach Bob Boughner would take over as acting head coach for the remainder of the game, an eventual 7-4 Red Wings victory. 

Lalonde becomes the 2nd NHL bench boss to get the gate during a game this season, following San Jose Sharks head coach David Quinn earlier in the year. 

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Derek Lalonde sounds off on his ejection

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It was a first last night for Detroit Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde, who was given a game misconduct and tossed from their game at Little Caesars Arena against the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins. 

Lalonde was irate after it was ruled by the on-ice officials that Jeff Carter legally scored a goal, despite forward Jason Zucker pushing goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic’s pad across the red goal line along with the puck. After an expletive-filled outburst, cameras caught Lalonde calmly walking back to the dressing room; it was soon announced that he’d been assessed a misconduct, the first of his coaching career. Assistant coach Bob Boughner would take over for the remainder of the night. 

Following practice this morning, Lalonde explained his side of things while keeping it classy. 

“It was the accumulation of my reaction on the initial calls, which was a little much, and then our conversation at the timeout, which was three minutes later. It was very calm but I just think he (the official) had enough of a combination of both,” Lalonde said. “I was a little shocked. I don’t know if it was warranted but he has every right to do that. He’s trying to manage a game.” 

“It was very calm. I asked him one question and said I felt it was under the pad. He said it wasn’t. I had my comment and he probably didn’t like it and didn’t say a word and calmly skated out and gave the sign. I assumed it was an ejection. It was not a heated exchange. As far as the call, I would make that challenge 100 out of 100 times. I’m very comfortable with it.”

While drawing a comparison to baseball managers getting ejected, Lalonde said that he doesn’t want to be known for losing his temper. 

“It’s a little unfortunate,” Lalonde said. “It’s just not the culture of our sport. Other leagues, getting ejected, being demonstrative on the sidelines or on the bench, it’s applauded sometimes. Our culture is calm demeanor. Obviously, I don’t want to put myself in those situations.”

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Report: Pair of Eastern teams could target John Gibson

Sportsnet

The Anaheim Ducks have had a miserable campaign, though one of the only positive aspects about the regular season that is winding down to a close is that they’ll be right in the thick of things in the NHL Draft Lottery with the chance to draft phenom forward Connor Bedard.

One of the other positive aspects on this miserable Ducks squad is goaltender John Gibson, who has done everything possible to be a consummate professional despite having nearly no help in front of him. And despite having four years remaining on his current deal with an average annual value of $6.4 million, could the only NHL team that he’s suited up for have plans to move on from him? 

It wasn’t long ago that Pierre LeBrun floated the idea that future playoff bound teams looking for an upgrade between the pipes could make an offer for Gibson, who would almost certainly thrive on a team with more talent in front of him. And that idea was furthered by Dan Rosen of NHL.com, who suggested two potential possibilities that included a possible homecoming for the Pittsburgh native. 

Take a look at his response: 

“The Penguins could use him. Tristan Jarry is in the last season of his contract, a pending unrestricted free agent, and he’s been injury prone. If the Penguins miss the playoffs or get in and lose in the first round, it’s possible, if not likely, that they could go in a different direction with their No. 1 goalie. Gibson is from Pittsburgh and having him could keep the Penguins run at being Stanley Cup contenders alive for a few more seasons regardless of what happens this season.”

“The Buffalo Sabres should also be in the mix. Craig Anderson has had a fine season, but he’s 41 years old and the Sabres are built to win starting next season. Gibson fits there. He could do a lot of winning with them.”