The Pittsburgh Penguins have plenty of NHL talent, but too much can also be a problem, and the overstocked roster is due for a good trimming via another Penguins trade or three. In the NHL trade rumors, the Vancouver Canucks are looking for short-term goalie help, while the Edmonton Oilers are looking at a former Penguins (and Oilers) right-shot defenseman. We’ll wrap up the fallout of the Yaroslav Askarov trade that splashed Friday afternoon, and the St. Louis Blues players are feeling empowered by “winning” the offer sheet drama.
The comments section at PHN has taken a sharp upturn, and we are down for that. Bring ’em on! Unfortunately, we’re also experiencing a deluge of spam comments and making changes on the back end, so many of your comments need to be approved before publishing. It’s nothing personal. We’re trying to stay on top of it, but it takes us a moment to get in there. Don’t be offended.
Although, the people who do get offended are pretty funny, “Kingerski only lets positive comments” or “Kingerski censors real opinions.” For the record, we only delete comments that add no value and simply resort to name-calling the author, other commenters, or those that reference politics. The filter is set pretty tight on that last one.
I mean, poor Pete comments every day, “Fire Sullivan,” and we post it … every day! To Pete’s credit, he’s gotten more creative lately. We love ya, Pete.
But if you’re going to hurl a criticism my way, at least explain or use an example. Lord knows, there are plenty to choose from.
Pittsburgh Hockey Now
Pittsburgh Hockey Now: Nineteen forwards (19?!) have the talent to appear on the NHL roster this fall. President of hockey operations/GM Kyle Dubas has packed the station wagon with more kids than there are seats, so here is the full breadth of the situation, which probably ends in another few Penguins trades.
Seriously, that story took HOURS to write. The minutia and research it required were far more than I anticipated, but I think it puts the Penguins’ organizational puzzle together–or at least I gave it a good try. And who didn’t love a station wagon with wood on the side and jump seats in the back?
Pittsburgh Baseball Now: It was Pirates Hall of Fame Day. Jim Leyland, Manny Sanguillen, and … Barry Bonds. John Perrotto and I disagree strenuously on this one, but JP writes a scorcher in favor of Bonds–This is how Barry Bonds should be treated.
Oh, and the Pirates lost 10-2. Night night, baseball season.
Steelers Now: The final preseason game. The big chance to do some game planning, show what they’ve got, and get ready for the season. Or not. The Steelers lost to the Lions. So, who played well? Who didn’t? It’s all in Derrick Bell’s Duds and Studs Steelers analysis.
NHL Trade Talk, News & National Hockey Now
Daily Faceoff: Frank Seravalli reports the Edmonton Oilers are poking around for a right-handed defenseman. You may remember that fans once ran Justin Schultz out of Edmonton after being the prized college free agent signing. Seravalli reports he’s on the Oilers’ radar again.
NHL.com: Jordan Binnington can run hot, but he loved the St. Louis Blues swiping the Edmonton RFAs, Philip Broberg and Dylan Holloway, “It’s good to some fight from management.” Here’s Binnington’s take on the St. Louis offseason.
TSN: It’s been an offseason of upheaval for the Penguins’ rivals in Columbus. PoHO/GM Don Waddell said losing became acceptable in Columbus, and it’s not. He laid down the law in the days following the Patrik Laine trade and has been trying to change the Blue Jackets culture.
Now, let’s get to the other earth-shattering trade of a highly sought-after prospect on Friday. Yaroslav Askarov might be the next big thing in net. Or, he might not. San Jose paid handsomely for the goalie, and they are accelerating their rebuild.
San Jose Hockey Now: From Sheng Peng, it’s really simple. Here are the four reasons the trade makes sense for the San Jose Sharks.
Nashville Hockey Now: Our boys down south spent some time examining exactly what GM Barry Trotz got in return. Here is the analysis of the trade whopper from the Nashville Predators side.
History shows that former Penguins GM Jim Rutherford should have traded the young goalie (Matt Murray) in 2017, too. What’s really funny is the number of people who excoriated me for advocating that who now claim they agreed. You know who you are!
The Athletic ($): Multiple sources report that goalie Thatcher Demko won’t be ready for camp and may not be ready for the season opener. So–trade rumors. There are some free agents still available who might fill the void, too.