Dan’s Daily: Rutherford Slams Miller Trade Rumors; Penguins Snubbed

WILKES BARRE, PA — Tell me again why Pittsburgh Penguins winger Rickard Rakell, who has had 30-goal seasons in the past and is again on such a pace, would be left off of Team Sweden. Marcus Pettersson was also left off the team, but in fairness, Sweden’s defensive depth is pretty good. The Four Nations Face-Off rosters are out, and the Canadian media is having a field day dissecting Team Canada because of the depth of snubs and surprises. Team USA GM Bill Guerin and coach Mike Sullivan left a few big names off the roster, too, including Cole Caufield?! Locally, the Penguins held a “workload maintenance” practice with only nine players on the ice and the rest unavailable due to off-ice maintenance, while Pittsburgh media members outnumbered players at the small practice. NHL trade rumors have been popping up regarding J.T. Miller as he takes a leave of absence, but Vancouver Canucks president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford publicly slammed those rumors.

The New York Rangers also used Larry Brooks at the NY Post to slam recent rumors they’ve kicked the tires on former Chicago Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville.

I am in Wilkes Barre again today to attend the WBS Penguins practice and talk to a few of the kids who are pushing for NHL ice. Last night’s game was not a good one to cover. WBS played well enough in the first period against powerhouse Hershey, but a few mistakes in the final few minutes of the first period turned a 0-0 game into a 3-0 game, and then a few more in the second period turned it into a 6-1 blowout.

However, I saw what I needed to see regarding a few players and their readiness, or lack thereof. I’m not looking for results; I’m looking for physical tools, game awareness, anticipation, and hockey IQ.

I’m pretty proud of my scouting track record. Like every “scout,” I have hits and misses, such as alerting you to Jack St. Ivany being ready and warning of Sam Poulin’s (and Valtteri Puustinen’s) limitations despite angry fans and national coverage contradicting what I wrote. My (recent) big miss is a classic example of a prospect figuring it out in a hurry: Owen Pickering. He’s made incredible improvements to all parts of his game in record time.

The next Penguins prospect we’re going to disagree on is Vasily Ponomarev. To make these extra trips worthwhile, we hope to attract another 12 subscribers. (Heck, the gas alone requires four new subscribers!) There are only a couple more days left of the Cyber Monday sale—get PHN+ for just $19.99—that’s HALF PRICE here.

Thank you to the 26 new members who signed up in the last couple of days. The support always humbles me (and makes me work that much harder).

Pittsburgh Penguins

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: From Dave Molinari–Are the Penguins learning to win? Are they learning to (again) overcome adversity even when they create it? Tuesday night was a happy ending to a tired old story. Was it a real sign of the Penguins’ growth?

Bryan Rust’s exclusion from Team USA isn’t surprising, though he probably had a Rabbi or two in the room. However, Team Sweden snubbed the Penguins roster hard.

Now—the big picture team analysis that I think you should read. It took me a week to put it all together (and 30 seconds for people to argue while missing the fundamental point), but there is a gap in GM Kyle Dubas’s plan. Call it what it is. It will become a rebuild despite efforts to avoid it. Here’s the why, here’s the unavoidable gap, and what it means for the Penguins’ present and future.

PHN+: How is Rutger McGroarty progressing? Is his skating that big of an issue? I made the drive to WBS to get my own eyes on him, as well as have a postgame chat with him and coach Kirk MacDonald. Beyond McGroarty’s evaluation, there was one player who showed himself to be very close to ready and another pushing very hard for a return to the NHL. Whose stock is up, and whose stock is down among the Penguins prospects.

NHL Trade Rumors, News & National Hockey Now

Vancouver Province: Jim Rutherford didn’t pull any punches. Not only did he dismiss the rumors, he went on the offensive and attacked those who might report them. JR bared his teeth and slammed the J.T. Miller trade rumors.

NY Post: Apparently, it’s rumor stomping day, which is not to be confused with Weird Al’s Weasel Stomping Day. No, a coaching change isn’t under consideration, and no, Joel Quenneville isn’t under consideration, reports Larry Brooks.

ESPN+: Grading the Four Nations rosters, the big snubs, and the big surprises.

Boston Hockey Now: After hilariously burying Biz during the pregame on TNT last Friday, Boston Bruins captain and noted personality Brad Marchand burned Paul Bissonette again.