Penguins/NHL category, Page 292
Who’s next to follow Teddy Blueger’s long road to Penguins lineup?
When the Pittsburgh Penguins re-signed Teddy Blueger to a two-year contract on Tuesday, assistant general manager Bill Guerin praised the 24-year-old center’s ability to “trust the process of going through the proper steps to get to the NHL.” A look at Blueger’s career path to date shows Guerin wasn’t kidding....
First Call: 1 Steeler loves his ‘Madden’ rating; Penguins legend Ron Francis gets new gig
In Wednesday’s “First Call,” at least one Steeler is happy with his EA Sports “Madden NFL 20” ranking. Brooks Koepka is big-timing Tiger Woods. And a new gig for a Penguins legend. Madden madness The EA Sports ratings are out for this year’s “Madden NFL 20” video game. And everybody...
Tim Benz: Can Penguins coach Mike Sullivan be empowered by his contract extension?
It’s our final “money quote” post, looking at the interview Trib columnist Mark Madden conducted with Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan on 105.9 the X last week. Here, we examine Sullivan’s recent contract extension. Empowering the head coach rarely has been a priority for the Penguins. That’s not to...
Penguins fought a little more last season. They weren’t particularly good at it
The Pittsburgh Penguins grew a little bit more ornery last season, but once the gloves were dropped, they didn’t have a whole lot of success. Those are the takeaways from a detailed look at all 16 fighting majors the team picked up last season. League wide, fights continue to become...
Penguins re-sign center Teddy Blueger to 2-year deal
The Pittsburgh Penguins signed one of their remaining three restricted free agents Tuesday, agreeing with center Teddy Blueger on a two-year, one-way contract with an average annual salary of $750,000. Blueger, a 24-year-old former second-round draft pick, emerged as an NHL regular last season after playing two-plus years with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton...
Tim Benz: Mike Sullivan admits Penguins had chemistry problems
We are three posts into our five-part series of “money quotes” from Mark Madden’s interview with Penguins coach Mike Sullivan on 105.9 the X. We’ve gotten Sullivan’s reaction to the Phil Kessel trade, his thoughts on getting Evgeni Malkin right again and his views on how to address some defensive...
Vegas sours on Penguins after last season’s struggles
After a 100-point season followed by a first-round playoff exit, Las Vegas doesn’t like the Pittsburgh Penguins quite as much as they used to. The Penguins are a 10-1 choice to win the Eastern Conference in odds released by BetOnline.ag on Monday. They were a 6-1 pick to win the...
Former Penguins center’s dog hits charts with rendition of ‘Old Town Road’
There’s a good chance Josh Jooris’ dog is about to become more famous than he is. Last Thursday, the former Penguins center posted a video on Instagram of his Australian Shepherd, Charlie, singing along when the Lil Nas X hit “Old Town Road” starts playing. The video went viral. View...
Tim Benz, Mark Madden discuss Pirates disaster vs. Cubs, Penguins chemistry, NFL schedule
In this week’s “Madden Monday” podcast, Tim Benz and Mark Madden take a look at what went wrong with the Pirates during their disastrous series in Chicago to start the second half of the season. Not only did the Pirates come out of the All-Star break cold, they helped the...
Tim Benz: Penguins going younger, faster to mask issues on defense
This is the third of our five posts examining the “money quotes” from Mike Sullivan’s interview on 105.9 the X with Mark Madden last week. This entry looks at an admission from Sullivan about his team. Two, actually. Frankly, neither is groundbreaking. More or less, both corroborate opinions that many...
Pittsburgh athletes trying to find ways to avoid social media messes
On many summer nights, 25 ticking time bombs can be located on the ground floor of PNC Park. In the fall, 53 incendiary devices can be found Sundays at Heinz Field. In the winter, there often are 23 potential explosives on the premises at PPG Paints Arena. In the era...
Penguins re-sign speedy winger Adam Johnson
The Pittsburgh Penguins signed one of their four remaining restricted free agents Friday, agreeing with winger Adam Johnson on a one-year, two-way deal worth $700,000 at the NHL level. Johnson, 25, signed with the Penguins as an undrafted free agent out of Minnesota-Duluth in July 2017. A speedy left wing,...
Hockey News writer says Penguins will miss playoffs in 2020. Hear why.
The Penguins missing the playoffs in 2020? Pfft! That’s not going to happen. I mean, they haven’t missed out since 2006. Then again, the Penguins made the playoffs by only four points in 2019. And it took until Game 81 to clinch a berth. And they couldn’t win a playoff...
Tim Benz: What Penguins coach Mike Sullivan didn’t say about Phil Kessel is telling
This is the second of our five posts examining the “money quotes” from Mike Sullivan’s interview on 105.9 the X with Mark Madden this week. On Thursday, we focused on what the Penguins head coach had to say about Evgeni Malkin. On Friday, we look at his comments about the...
Tim Benz: Mike Sullivan nails Evgeni Malkin’s biggest problem. Now fix it.
We do a lot of “Take 5’s” around here. Five takes on the Steelers’ loss to the Broncos. Five takes on the Steelers’ loss to the Raiders. Five takes on the Steelers tying the Browns. Five takes on why the Steelers can never get a win against a lousy team...
Retiring Matt Cullen: Penguins Stanley Cup runs were ‘the best years’
Matt Cullen, a two-time Stanley Cup champion with the Pittsburgh Penguins and the oldest player to appear in a game for the team, announced his retirement Wednesday at the age of 42. Cullen made the announcement in a video and essay posted on the team’s website. “I will spend the...
First Call: Steelers Hall of Fame locks; 1 prediction has Penguins missing playoffs
Hall of Fame talk dots “First Call” today. Will the Penguins really miss the playoffs in 2020? And a look at how baseball financial inflation is out of control. Who besides Ben? This isn’t the most scientific NFL list of all time, but it may be worth a debate. The...
Former Penguins center Greg Johnson dies at age 48
Former Pittsburgh Penguins center Greg Johnson, who spent parts of two seasons with the team in 1997, died Sunday in Detroit at age 48, according to multiple reports Tuesday. A cause of death was not immediately known. A skilled center who was the University of North Dakota’s all-time leading scorer,...
Arbitration date set for Penguins winger Zach-Aston Reese
The arbitration hearing for Pittsburgh Penguins winger Zach Aston-Reese is set for July 22 in Toronto. Aston-Reese, 24, recorded eight goals and 17 points in 43 games with the Penguins last season while making $925,000. Evolving Wild’s contract projections suggest he is in line for a two-year deal worth about...
Penguins sign veteran goalie Dustin Tokarski to AHL contract
The Penguins signed one of the top minor league goalies on the free agent market Monday, adding Dustin Tokarski on a one-year AHL deal. Tokarski, 29, has won the Calder Cup twice in his 10-year pro career, including last season with the Charlotte Checkers. He was dealt to Charlotte at...
Tim Benz, Mark Madden talk USWNT, Mike Sullivan, Pirates, Twitter suspension
Mark Madden may be suspended from Twitter (#FreeMarkMadden), but he isn’t suspended from the “Breakfast With Benz” podcast page. We talk at great length about the United States Women’s National Team. They won the World Cup. Have the politics and self-generated sidebar stories surrounding this team outweighed their accomplishments? It...
Penguins turn to college all-stars to replenish prospect pool
In the latter stages last season, any time the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins took the ice, it looked like hockey’s version of football’s Senior Bowl. No fewer than six college free agents reported to the AHL team for their first taste of pro hockey, representing schools such as Boston College, Penn State,...
Penn State vibe strong at Penguins development camp
The sunny and cloud-dotted skies over a warm final week of June weren’t the only blue and white at this year’s Pittsburgh Penguins development camp. That’s because no U.S. or Canadian college was better represented than Penn State. “I think it’s awesome,” said wing Brandon Biro, who had 40 points...
5 things on Penguins coach Mike Sullivan’s summer agenda
Signing a four-year contract extension is the one thing Pittsburgh Penguins coach Mike Sullivan will do this summer that will have the longest-lasting impact on his life and career. He’s got plenty of other offseason irons in the fire as well, though. Here’s a look at five things Sullivan has...
Penguins’ Zach Aston-Reese files for salary arbitration
Pittsburgh Penguins winger Zach Aston-Reese was the only one of the team’s four remaining restricted free agents to file for salary arbitration by Friday’s 5 p.m. deadline. Forwards Teddy Blueger and Adam Johnson elected not to file. Defenseman Marcus Pettersson did not have enough service time to earn the right...
