Dan’s Daily Links: Domi Suckers Ekblad, Reinhart Bridge & Karlsson in SJ

Here we go, real hockey news trickling in from around the league. Yes, we saw the 600 people who showed up for the Florida Panthers preseason game. Almost laughable at this point, isn’t it?  The Florida papers have given up with real beat coverage of the team and the fans are clearly not too concerned. What a pity, too. Florida has a fun team which should challenge for a playoff spot and with a little luck, be a dark horse for the Stanley Cup.

Instead, the Panthers are getting sucker punched. Literally.

Max Domi, newly of the Montreal Canadiens via trade for Alex Galchenyuk, popped Ekblad Wednesday night.

Domi will have a hearing today with the NHL Department of Player Safety today. It will be interesting if DoPS will minimize the suspension because Ekblad turtled or if Domi’s unprovoked punch will carry greater weight. Your guess is as good as mine. Max Domi Gets Off On Wrong Foot (Sportsnet)

San Jose Sharks defenseman Erik Karlsson showed up for work, Wednesday. Is Karlsson or Brent Burns the number one defenseman in San Jose? Either way, it will still be $3000 per month for a crappy studio apartment with a hot plate in the Bay Area. Nick Cotsonika looked at all of Sharks potential options with Karlsson. Good piece from a hockey person (NHL.com)

NHL clubs benefit when an aged star with a hefty contract can’t play any longer due to injury. The NHL is getting more involved and investigating such cases, including the recent retirement of Henrik Zetterberg. (Craig Custance of The Athletic)

The Buffalo Sabres should beat all expectations this season. Wednesday, they finally signed Sam Reinhart. Full story from our friends at the Canadian Press (TSN).

Join the live Penguins video chat today at noon with Pittsburgh Sports LIVE. It will be on the YouTube Channel. We’ll be doing at least one Pens chat per week. Submit your questions via Twitter or pop in live and use the chat. PSL has started small–just a few live shows, but we’re soon branching out into more specific and interesting videos.