Seth Rorabaugh stories, Page 181
Alex Galchenyuk breaks through in Penguins’ OT win over FlamesVideo
For weeks Alex Galchenyuk worked. As his more established and productive teammates were economic with their work at practice and usually spent no more than a handful of minutes on the ice past the time scheduled by coaches, Galchenyuk remained on rinks in Cranberry, downtown Pittsburgh, Dallas and Newark, N.J....
Kris Letang to return to Penguins lineup; Tristan Jarry startingVideo
Penguins All-Star defenseman Kris Letang will return to the lineup for Monday’s game against the Calgary Flames according to Mike Sullivan. The team activated Letang from injured reserve earlier in the day. Injured Nov. 4, he has missed eight games because of an undisclosed ailment. In 15 games this season,...
Dominik Simon isn’t out of position at center for PenguinsVideo
Pittsburgh Penguins forward Dominik Simon is usually out of position. Listed as a center, Simon predominantly has played as winger since he began playing in North America with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in 2015-16. And through the vast majority of his NHL existence, Simon mostly has lined up on the wing...
Penguins seeking improvement in faceoffs
Toward the late stages of practice in Cranberry on Sunday, four members of the Penguins roster met at center ice with head coach Mike Sullivan and assistant coach Mark Recchi. The four players who congregated with Sullivan and Recchi were Teddy Blueger, Evgeni Malkin, Jared McCann and Dominik Simon, each...
Penguins forward Patric Hornqvist’s 1st career fight was not memorableVideo
Through 734 career games, Pittsburgh Penguins forward Patric Hornqvist has amassed 376 penalty minutes. Only five of those have come from a fighting major. Hornqvist would beg to differ over that designation, however. “I don’t know about that,” he said after Sunday’s practice. “Yeah, I got five minutes, but …”...
Penguins defenseman Kris Letang returns to practiceVideo
Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang returned to practice Sunday in Cranberry, the first time he skated with teammates since suffering an undisclosed injury Nov. 4. Letang practiced with no restrictions on contract and reported positive results afterward. “I’m feeling good,” said Letang, who has missed eight games. “It was fun...
Minor league report: Penguins’ winning streak snapped
Goaltender Dustin Tokarski made 26 saves for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in a 1-0 loss at home to the Charlotte Checkers at Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre on Saturday. The loss snapped a six-game winning streak for the Penguins (11-6-1-1). Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s next game is at home against the rival Lehigh Valley...
Penguins struggle to replace Sidney Crosby on faceoffs
There are a myriad of ways the Pittsburgh Penguins miss captain Sidney Crosby, currently sidelined as he recuperates from surgery for a core muscle injury. Five-on-five effectiveness, proficiency on the power play, execution in overtime, etc. Just about everything the team does on the ice is duller because of his...
Penguins assign Joseph Blandisi to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton
The Pittsburgh Penguins assigned forward Joseph Blandisi to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League. In nine NHL games this season, Blandisi has two points (one goal, one assist). He has played in eight AHL contests and has four points (two goals, two assists). The Penguins had a scheduled day off...
Empty Thoughts: Penguins 4, Devils 1
Observations from the Penguins’ 4-1 win against the Devils. Of all the questions or criticisms lobbed at Matt Murray throughout his half decade in the NHL, playing too much hasn’t really been one of them. He’s either platooned the goaltending position with Marc-Andre Fleury or he’s been too injured to...
Minor League Report: Andrew Agozzino leads Penguins to sixth straight win
Forward Andrew Agozzino had a goal and an assist for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in a 4-2 road win against the Springfield Thunderbirds at the MassMutual Center in Springfield, Mass. on Friday. The Penguins (11-5-1-1) also got two goals from forward Stefan Noesen as well as three assists from forward Adam...
Devils coach John Hynes still carries respect with Penguins
Anytime John Hynes assumes his spot behind the visiting bench at PPG Paints Arena, he can look up and see five Stanley Cup banners. The two of the most recent vintages might not have been possible without the contributions of the New Jersey Devils’ coach. Hynes wasn’t a member of...
Empty Thoughts: Islanders 4, Penguins 3 (OT)
Observations from the Penguins’ 4-3 overtime loss to the Islanders. NEW YORK — Jake Guentzel was standing there. Chest out. Perfect posture. Hands on his hips. Equipment bag at his feet. As reporters were allowed into the Penguins’ dressing room, Guentzel was waiting for them. He was ready to claim...
Patric Hornqvist scores in return, but Penguins lose in OT againVideo
NEW YORK — One of the hallmarks of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ season has been discipline. Entering Thursday, they had faced an average of 2.3 opposing power-play opportunities per game through 21 contests. Yet, in their 22nd game, referees Jean Hebert and T.J. Luxmore, with assistance from linesmen Steve Barton and...
Penguins defenseman Justin Schultz sidelined because of injuryVideo
NEW YORK — The injuries keep piling up for the Penguins Defenseman Justin Schultz will be sidelined “longer term” due to an undisclosed injury, according to coach Mike Sullivan. Schultz left practice in Cranberry on Wednesday early and did not return. Sullivan was uncertain if he was injured during practice....
Ex-Penguins forward Derick Brassard is producing with Islanders
NEW YORK — Derick Brassard’s time with the Pittsburgh Penguins was a massive disappointment. Few would dispute that. Brassard sure didn’t offer a counterargument when he visited PPG Paints Arena on Tuesday as a member of the New York Islanders. He didn’t agree with it, either. In fact, he had...
Penguins recall defenseman Zach Trotman
NEW YORK — The Pittsburgh Penguins recalled defenseman Zach Trotman on Thursday from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League. Trotman, 29, has appeared in eight AHL games this season and has five points (two goals, three assists). He opened the season on long-term injured reserve because of a sports hernia....
Empty Thoughts: Islanders 5, Penguins 4 (OT)
Observations from the Penguins’ 5-4 overtime loss to the Islanders: When the NHL instituted three-on-three overtime prior to the 2015-16 season in the name of avoiding those unappetizing shootouts, it was automatically assumed the skilled and fleet Penguins would benefit. And sure enough, they did. In the first three seasons...
Penguins blow late lead, fall to Islanders in overtimeVideo
The crown jewel of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ modest accomplishments through all of 21 games of the 2019-20 season has been their penalty kill. Entering Tuesday, it was the second-best penalty-killing unit in the NHL. Much of that success could be attributed to how infrequently that squad had been utilized. Prior...
For Penguins forwards, ‘being a bad goalie’ can lead to good things
As he participated in Tuesday’s morning skate at PPG Paints Arena, Penguins forward Patric Hornqvist was in an area where anyone with even a passing interest in the team over the past five years could safely assume he would typically inhabit. Near the crease. Hornqvist, who has been sidelined due...
Minor league report: Drozg scores twice for Nailers in win over Cyclones
Forward Jan Drozg scored two goals and recorded an assist for the Wheeling Nailers in a 4-3 home win against the Cincinnati Cyclones at WesBanco Arena in Wheeling on Tuesday. A fifth-round pick of the Penguins in 2017, Drozg is now fourth in scoring in the ECHL with 18 points...
Penguins forward Nick Bjugstad sidelined ‘longer term’Video
Penguins forward Nick Bjugstad will be sidelined “longer term” because of an undisclosed ailment, coach Mike Sullivan said. Injured in Friday’s 2-1 road loss to the New Jersey Devils, Bjugstad missed Saturday’s 6-1 home win against the Toronto Maple Leafs. In 10 games this season, Bjugstad has one goal. He...
Penguins potent at scoring short-handed goals
Bryan Rust acknowledges his goal in Saturday’s 6-1 thumping of the Toronto Maple Leafs at PPG Paints Arena didn’t mean much to the outcome of the game. It was early in the third period and his team was already up four goals. His score merely added more security to a...
Minor league report: Nailers beat Komets in overtime
An overtime goal by forward Cam Brown gave the Wheeling Nailers a 6-5 home win against the Fort Wayne Komets on Sunday at WesBanco Arena in Wheeling. Brown also scored with 4:21 left in regulation to force overtime and recorded two assists while forward Jan Drozg, a 2017 fifth-round pick...
Relationships define Hall of Fame Penguins GM Jim Rutherford
Even after he set all sorts of American Hockey League goaltending records with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in 2014-15 then “graduated” to the NHL roster in 2015-16, Matt Murray didn’t have much of a relationship with Jim Rutherford. In fact, based on the way Murray detailed it, he had no relationship...
