Mark Madden stories, Page 15
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: A lazy, but not boring, list of Steelers’ top offseason stories
Much about sports coverage these days revolves around rankings or lists. It’s lazy, predictable and boring. I haven’t done enough to prove I can be all those things. Or have I? Anyway, here are the top 10 Pittsburgh Steelers stories of the offseason. 1. The Steelers are not a lot...
Mark Madden: Pirates could try to be a real baseball team, but they don’t have to
The Pirates have the most interesting psychology, if that’s how to put it, of any Pittsburgh sports franchise. Perhaps of any team on the continent. The Pirates are the little engine that could but won’t. They’re a perpetual underdog with a great ballpark and hot dogs piled with pierogis and...
Mark Madden: Something seems sketchy with Shohei Ohtani, but does MLB want to know?
As MLB and the NBA face calamitous gambling scandals, one wonders how ESPN covers them without casting a bad light on ESPNBet, the company’s online sportsbook. Networks and leagues are sponsored so heavily by bookies. It’s everywhere. (My radio program, too.) Gambling and sports are directly and massively intertwined now,...
Mark Madden: Penguins’ collapse in Colorado was unacceptable; their failures should dictate the future
Coach Mike Sullivan after the Penguins blew a 4-0 lead at Colorado on Sunday, losing 5-4 in overtime: “I thought we competed hard. That’s one of the most explosive offenses in the league that we played against. We knew they were going to push back. We competed hard all night.”...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: Big contracts for Penguins’ aging stars have handcuffed Kyle Dubas
The Pittsburgh Penguins are in deep decline. That’s OK, for now. Keep that first-round pick. Get more balls in the draft lottery. Maybe the Penguins get lucky. It’s happened before. Despite my faith in president of hockey ops/GM Kyle Dubas, he can’t do as he says. Dubas can’t reassemble a...
Mark Madden: Duquesne surpasses Pitt, steals the show for college basketball in Pittsburgh
The City Game between the Pitt and Duquesne men’s basketball teams is a tradition that dates to 1932. The Panthers and Dukes have played each other 87 times but not since 2018. The rivalry ceased because Pitt refuses to play Duquesne. Pitt feels Duquesne is a lesser foe, that playing...
Mark Madden: Pitt should have made the NCAA Tournament, but what would that have really meant?
Pitt basketball fans enjoyed wallowing in despair Tuesday night when Virginia got beat by 25 points in the First Four of the NCAA Tournament. Virginia scored just 14 points in the first half of a 67-42 loss to Colorado State. This was evidence that Pitt should have gotten into March...
Mark Madden: Steelers have had a perfect offseason, choosing progress over saving face
This much should be made clear about the Pittsburgh Steelers’ reconstructed quarterback room: There’s a pecking order. Russell Wilson is the starter. He’s not on a short leash or any leash. Justin Fields didn’t come to Pittsburgh to compete with Wilson. He’s clearly the backup and in a position to...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: Kenny Pickett failed and got what he deserved
Kenny Pickett failed. That’s his story. He got lied to by Mike Tomlin, but that’s not an exclusive club. Pickett was well-served by a previous Tomlin fib, one that fleeced Mitch Trubisky. In 2022, Tomlin told Trubisky he’d be the starting quarterback at least through Week 9, the Pittsburgh Steelers’...
Mark Madden: Without changes at the top, Penguins will stagnate
The Penguins are in a very important transitional period. Let’s see if there’s any actual transition. The Penguins have four large contracts: Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang and Erik Karlsson. They don’t want to move Crosby, Malkin or Letang. That’s the franchise’s commitment. The Penguins can’t ditch Karlsson. His...
Mark Madden: Steelers aren’t settling but are still a long way from Super Bowl contender
With the Pittsburgh Steelers, it’s not just who they’re getting. It’s what they’re doing. They’re no longer settling. They signed quarterback Russell Wilson, which effectively pulls the plug on Kenny Pickett. (Pickett might not know that yet. You might not, either.) They signed Patrick Queen, 24, a linebacker in his...
Mark Madden: Mediocre veterans, Mike Sullivan’s system among Penguins’ plethora of problems
The Penguins have just one goal in their last 190:07 of hockey. But refreshing Penguins notes score big all the time. SHOOT THE PUCK! • It’s OK to lose now. Don’t get too mad when the Penguins do. If the Penguins finish in the NHL’s bottom 10, that keeps their...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: These ‘original four’ have no room to gloat about Penguins’ demise
Some around the NHL are taking delight in the Penguins’ decline. Here are some things that bring me joy: • The New York Rangers have won one Stanley Cup since World War II. • The Boston Bruins have won one Stanley Cup since Richard Nixon was president. • The Toronto...
Mark Madden: Signing Russell Wilson at least would improve Steelers’ chances
If Russell Wilson arrives for his meeting with the Pittsburgh Steelers and is asked by coach Mike Tomlin to compete with Kenny Pickett for the No. 1 quarterback job, Wilson should laugh in Tomlin’s face and walk out. Yet, by all accounts, that’s the scenario Wilson will be presented with....
Mark Madden: Rempe-mania is grabbing headlines, but his showbiz act doesn’t belong in NHL
The NHL’s newest sensation is a 6-foot-7 slug who handles the puck like he’s trying to beat a snake to death with a tree branch. But he fights and plays in New York City. So welcome to stardom, Matt Rempe. It’s Rempe-mania. A stupid version of Lin-sanity. (Remember him? Nah,...
Mark Madden: Penguins need change at trade deadline, but options are limited
Nobody should be mad about the Pittsburgh Penguins for falling apart. It’s organic and was inevitable. The Penguins made the playoffs every year from 2007-22. They were legit Stanley Cup contenders every year from 2008-18, winning three times and reaching another final. Great teams in capped leagues ultimately go splat....
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: Penguins have few options with aging Evgeni Malkin
Sidney Crosby and Kris Letang, both 36, have prepared to play when they’re 40 since they were 10. Crosby is thusly still one of the NHL’s five best players, and Letang is very good. Their conditioning is insane. Evgeni Malkin didn’t do that. Malkin is 37. He’s aged like a...
Mark Madden: Pittsburgh is lucky to have had all-time great sports announcers
Bill Hillgrove retired. Kind of. He will cease doing Pittsburgh Steelers radio broadcasts after 30 years. But Hillgrove will continue to do Pitt football and basketball. It says a lot about Hillgrove’s limitless energy when, at 83, he wants to slow down gradually. And continue to serve as the midnight mayor...
Mark Madden: Liverpool FC’s Carabao Cup victory will remain my most vivid sports memory
I’ve attended Super Bowl XXX, two World Series, five Stanley Cup finals, Mario Lemieux’s comeback game in 2000, Pitt-Penn State football and several Pittsburgh Condors games. I’ve seen Neil O’Donnell disappoint, Roberto Clemente dazzle, Lemieux score with 13 seconds left, Jaromir Jagr perform heroically on one leg and John Brisker...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: Mitch Keller signing means little
The Athletic posted a lengthy, detailed story exposing the Pittsburgh Pirates’ frugality, pettiness and incompetence Wednesday. The Pirates signed No. 1 starter Mitch Keller to a five-year, $77 million contract extension Thursday. That timing was not coincidence. The Pirates needed to get their PR train back on track after Wednesday’s...
Mark Madden: Trading Tristan Jarry would bring value, lay groundwork for Penguins’ future
As the NHL’s March 8 trade deadline approaches, a few obvious moves beckon for Kyle Dubas, the Penguins’ president of hockey ops/GM. Trade winger Jake Guentzel. It will be a shame to see him go, but Guentzel is a free agent at season’s end. He can’t be allowed to walk...
Mark Madden: Coaching isn’t the Penguins’ biggest problem, but it impacts major flaws
Firing Mike Sullivan wouldn’t matter now, nor would a coaching switch have changed the course of the Penguins’ season had it happened earlier. This isn’t 2009 0r 2016. These Penguins were going to go splat at some point, and that time is upon us. But it’s fair to say that...
Mark Madden: Which Penguins will be next to have their numbers retired?
No. 68 is in the rafters at PPG Paints Arena. Sunday’s ceremony to honor Jaromir Jagr was among the best of its kind, as was Jagr’s charismatic speech. Jagr’s return to Pittsburgh was everything that could have been hoped for. His legend was heightened. The question now: Who’s the next...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: How can the Pirates still have uncertainty with Henry Davis?
The Pittsburgh Pirates took catcher Henry Davis with the first pick of the 2021 MLB Draft. When you select a player 1/1, he should make big-league impact fairly quickly. You should have a clear plan in place for his progress. With Davis, the Pirates didn’t. If they did, it was...
Mark Madden: From Kladno to Bayside, Jaromir Jagr put smiles on hockey fans’ faces
Only in a city that’s had a hockey timeline like Pittsburgh’s since 1984 could a player the caliber of Jaromir Jagr get somewhat lost in the shuffle. But that’s what happened. Out of sight, out of mind. Obscured by the permanent shadow of Mario Lemieux and by the commotion and...
