Penguins/NHL category, Page 28
Penguins’ Sidney Crosby voted most complete, smartest overall player in NHLPA player poll
The annual NHL Players’ Association (NHLPA) poll was released Tuesday morning, and Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby was once again shown to be held in high regard by his peers. Featuring participation of 663 players, Crosby, for the sixth straight season, earned the most votes for most complete player (33.81%),...
Tim Benz: Forget slow starts. Slow recognition of larger problems is Penguins’ real offseason concern
In the aftermath of a 4-1 loss to the Boston Bruins on Sunday, Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan sounded like a guy who was at the end of his rope. Sullivan was asked about the team’s slow start in that game. “Slow start? It was a slow game. Period,”...
First Call: Details of Aaron Rodgers pitching himself to Vikings; Shedeur Sanders working out for Giants
Tuesday’s “First Call” has an interesting angle to Aaron Rodgers’ attempt at latching on with the Minnesota Vikings. A new team may be in the running for Rodgers’ services in 2025. We know Rodgers is losing something of importance before next year, regardless of where he winds up. And Shedeur...
Penguins recall defenseman Filip Kral from Wilkes-Barre/ScrantonVideo
The Pittsburgh Penguins recalled defenseman Filip Kral from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League (AHL) on Monday. No announcement was made by the team but the transaction was reflected on the NHL’s media website as well as the AHL’s website. Kral, 25, has appeared in 59 games this season with...
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins goaltender Filip Larsson finds way to stand outVideo
The conversation got off on the wrong foot immediately. “Sergei, what has it been like getting used to North America?” a reporter asked. “I’m Filip,” answered Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins goaltender Filip Larsson. Largely overshadowed by fellow goaltender Sergei Murashov, Larsson was gracious with the confused Pittsburgh reporter who dashed into the...
Minor league report: Penguins sink IslandersVideo
A goal and an assist by forward Zach Gallant led the the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in a 5-2 win against the Bridgeport Islanders at Total Mortgage Arena in Bridgeport, Conn. on Sunday. Forward Sam Poulin recorded two assists for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (39-22-7-1, 86 points) while forwards Atley Calvert, Avery Hayes, Gabe Klassen...
Penguins go quietly against Bruins in 2nd-to-last game of season
Pittsburgh Penguins forward Philip Tomasino was back in the lineup for Sunday’s home contest against the Boston Bruins after missing three prior games due to a concussion. There were two reasons why he dressed for his team’s penultimate game of the season. First and foremost, his health allowed him to...
Penguins forward Philip Tomasino a ‘game-time decision’ against Bruins
Pittsburgh Penguins forward Filip Tomasino has been labeled as a “game-time decision” for Sunday’s home contest against the Boston Bruins at PPG Paints Arena. Coach Mike Sullivan declared Tomasino’s status approximately two hours before the opening faceoff. A concussion has sidelined Tomasino for the previous three games. In 59 games...
Minor league report: Joel Blomqvist returns in Penguins’ winVideo
Goaltender Joel Blomqvist made 22 saves on 23 shots for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in a 4-1 win against the Springfield Thunderbirds at Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre on Saturday. The result improved Blomqvist’s American Hockey League record to 8-5-3. Due to an undisclosed injury, Blomqvist’s most recent contest at any...
Penguins forward Valtteri Puustinen seeks more ‘unlikely’ goals near the netVideo
Scoring goals has never been a problem for Valtteri Puustinen, at least not in the American Hockey League or the Liiga in his native Finland. He has routinely put up healthy figures at lower levels of the sport. However, that acumen has not necessarily translated to his sporadic appearances in...
Penguins assign forward Emil Bemstrom to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton
The Pittsburgh Penguins assigned forward Emil Bemstrom to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League (AHL) on Saturday. In 14 NHL games this season, Bemstrom has recorded one assist while averaging 8:20 of ice time per contest. An All-Star selection at the AHL level this season, Bemstrom has appeared in 45...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: Erik Karlsson reached 200 goals and his expiration date with Penguins
Erik Karlsson scored his 200th career goal Tuesday night. That’s pretty impressive given that Karlsson never got to play against himself. The Pittsburgh Penguins have several players they would be well rid of at season’s end. But despite being a three-time Norris Trophy winner as the NHL’s best defenseman, Karlsson...
How Ray Shero turned the Penguins into champions in 3 years
Toward the end of its life, the Pittsburgh Penguins’ previous arena suffered from a poverty of luxuries. Like reliable plumbing and a roof that kept the rain out. But it was home. That was in part because of Ray Shero trying to spruce up the aging facility upon taking over...
Minor league report: Penguins’ losing streak reaches 4Video
Goaltender Sergei Murashov made 20 saves on 23 shots for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in a 4-2 loss to the rival Hershey Bears at Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre on Friday. The result dropped Murashov’s record to 11-3-0. Forwards Tristan Broz and Mathieu de St. Phalle scored goals for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (37-22-7-1,...
Penguins beat Devils in final road game of season
Erik Karlsson has been on some bad teams before. And he has a pretty good idea of what it looks like when a squalid squad ceases to compete. He has seen no such evidence of that with his current employer, the Pittsburgh Penguins, as they play their final games of...
For Penguins players, the route from college to professional hockey varied for different reasons
This weekend is the most important part of the calendar for NCAA men’s hockey. On Thursday, Western Michigan and Boston University defeated Denver and Penn State, respectively, in the Frozen Four semifinal round of the NCAA tournament, setting up Saturday’s championship game. And on Friday, the Hobey Baker Memorial Award,...
Penguins’ Kyle Dubas named Canada’s general manager for IIHF World Championship
Pittsburgh Penguins president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas was named general manager for Hockey Canada’s entry in the upcoming International Ice Hockey Federation’s (IIHF) World Championship tournament. His appointment was announced Thursday. A native of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., Dubas has previously worked for Hockey Canada in international tournaments. Earlier...
Penguins’ Valtteri Puustinen, Vasily Ponomarev excited for call-up ahead of Calder Cup playoffs
By nature of having spent the majority of this season in the American Hockey League, as compared to last, when he was in the NHL for most of the year, 2024-25 could be framed as disappointing for Valtteri Puustinen. Becoming a full-time NHLer remains the primary objective for the 25-year-old...
Injuries to sideline 5 Penguins forwards for final 3 games this season
Pittsburgh Penguins forwards Noel Acciari, Blake Lizotte, Rutger McGroarty, Tommy Novak and Matt Nieto will miss the final three games of the regular season due to undisclosed injuries. Coach Mike Sullivan announced their statuses following a practice session in Cranberry on Thursday. Sullivan noted there is hope McGroarty, a rookie,...
Penguins recall trio of forwards from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton
With three games remaining in the regular season, the Pittsburgh Penguins made a handful of transactions with their American Hockey League affiliate Thursday morning, recalling forwards Emil Bemstrom, Valtteri Puustinen and Vasily Ponomarev from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton under emergency roster conditions. Bemstrom, an All-Star at the AHL level this season and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s...
Tim Benz: Ray Shero’s sense for the moment served him, and the Penguins, quite well
When I heard about the untimely death of former Pittsburgh Penguins general manager Ray Shero Wednesday afternoon, a specific memory of interviewing him quickly came to mind. I think about it often, independent of hockey, the Penguins, or, up until Wednesday, even independent of Shero himself. In over 30 years...
Former Penguins general manager Ray Shero dies at 62Video
Ray Shero noted the pattern. And laughed about it. The son of legendary NHL coach Fred Shero, Ray Shero followed in his father’s sizeable footsteps and got into the business of professional hockey on the management side for more than 30 years. So, when Ray Shero’s college-educated sons, Chris and...
Mark Madden: Penguins’ development plan should focus on building a championship contender
The Pittsburgh Penguins have a plan. President of hockey ops/GM Kyle Dubas has a plan. Like with any plan, whether it works remains to be seen. The Penguins have 18 picks over the first three rounds of the next three drafts. That includes four first-rounders. That indicates a commitment to...
This weekend’s Frozen Four will have a heavy Western Pa. influence
As college hockey crowns a men’s national champion at this weekend’s Frozen Four in St. Louis, the event will have a significant Western Pa. influence. Nine skaters from the region will be on rosters from the four teams participating. Wexford’s Brian Kramer will be on defense for the Western Michigan...
Forward Boko Imama selected as Penguins’ nominee for Masterton Trophy
The Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy is often misconstrued as a “comeback award.” And sure enough, the three Pittsburgh Penguins players who have won it came back from some manner of personal hardship. Lowell MacDonald (1973) overcame severe knee injuries, whereas Mario Lemieux (1993) rebounded from Hodgkin’s disease, a form of...
