Dan’s Daily: Former Penguin Goalie Goal; Tearful Banner Raising for Gaudreau

I’m not sure how either team was supposed to play a hockey game after the emotional banner raising for Johnny Gaudreau, which brought tears to the eyes of players on both the Columbus Blue Jackets and Florida Panthers. Still, the tribute video was uplifting and celebratory. In the rest of the Daily, the Pittsburgh Penguins’ fourth line has something happening, but can they deliver on some offense, too? A former Penguins goalie scored a goalie goal, Matvei Michkov scored his first NHL goal, and there’s stirring consternation over the Edmonton Oilers’ start across Canadian media, followed by increasing NHL trade speculation. And our resident expert, Francis Anzalone, dropped another in-depth video on the Penguins’ play this season.

If you haven’t watched one of Francis’s videos on our YouTube channel, you need to check out one. It feels like the snake offering an apple, and you’ll know a lot more about Mike Sullivan when Francis is done.

I’ve known Francis for almost 20 years. His father, Frank Anzalone, was the head coach of the Johnstown Chiefs. Frank built Lake Superior State into a National Championship winner and eventually became an executive with the Tampa Bay Lightning and Calgary Flames. Francis was a savant from a young age but chose not to pursue coaching after a successful stint in the NAHL. He’s been an assistant with World Juniors and worked with World Championship teams. He was also a pretty darned good play-by-play man before he chose the business side. The videos are not for your casual “tell me the score” fan but for the “I want to know why…” fan. The link is below, but I thought I’d tell you more about Francis–he’s the real deal, and he puts WAY too much time into these videos just because he doesn’t half-ass anything.

I’m happy to report that the trip back from Montreal was entirely uneventful. The Penguins have a pair of games in Montreal and Ottawa in December. Maybe we should set up a reader road trip? I think you would love to see a game in Montreal and also have a few Molsons. I didn’t go out in Montreal, but the last time I did, the entire bar started singing Sweet Caroline.

I always come home with a desire to learn to speak French. I hate to see my servers, hotel clerks, and others drop their eyes in disappointment when they realize I haven’t understood a single word beyond Bonjour. Perhaps soon.

Pittsburgh Penguins

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: The fourth lines are usually defensive plugs who can get after the puck or are stuck on the bottom line because they didn’t provide enough to stick on higher lines. The Penguins have a bit of that, but they’ve gotten some offense from the bottom trio. Kevin Hayes, Cody Glass, and Noel Acciari form an unlikely fourth line–can they provide two-way help for the Penguins lineup?

PHN Video: Here’s coach Francis. In addition to making some graphics for this, he also chaptered the video so you can jump to the next segment. The coaching setup is the first few minutes, and the direct analysis begins around the four-minute mark. We listed the chapters below the video—have a go as Francis breaks down the defensive struggles, but also something good in the Penguins video breakdown.

Steelers Now: It’s a QB news week. It looks like Russel Wilson will start Sunday, but here’s what coach Mike Tomlin said and didn’t say about the Steelers QB situation.

SN+: Derrick Bell dipped into THE topic. Will Tomlin’s big gamble on Wilson pay off? Bell is one of the best analysts out there. Here’s his Steelers analysis.

Also, it’s Wednesday, so it’s Penguins Live Chat day! Make sure to set reminders or subscribe to our YouTube channel (it’s free). We’ll also be live on Facebook.

NHL Trade Talk, News & National Hockey Now

The Athletic ($): The free-agent class of defensemen is basically down to the few guys at the bar after Last Call. Needing defensemen and not liking the few who remain available, it’s time for the Oilers to start talking trade.

There were two incredible tributes to Johnny Gaudreau Tuesday night. The first was the banner-raising and tribute video. Sportsnet has the video and ceremony.

Florida Hockey Now: However, it seemed fitting that Florida visited Columbus for the home opener. Matthew Tkachuk was Johnny’s long-time teammate, and a few Panthers were former teammates, too. When the ref dropped the puck, both teams stood in still silence for 13 seconds. Our George Richards covered the game and has firsthand accounts of the reactions to the ceremonies that far overshadowed the Florida Panthers win. It was a night to honor Johnny Gaudreau.

Sportsnet: The perfect chaser for a heartbreaking story is the silly, fun kind. Goalie goal! A former Penguins farmhand scored the 18th in NHL history, Filip Gustavsson, who (trigger warning) was shipped out in the infamous Derrick Brassard trade in 2018. Here’s the goal.

Has it been six years since the Brassard trade?!

TSN Insiders: There is more worry over Edmonton’s slow start (they beat Philadelphia last night), but things looked terrible, and the coaches reunited Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Also, the goalie situation with the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Calgary Flames’ hot start. The insider catchup.

Washington Hockey Now: While we watch Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby check off milestones, another guy is doing the same for the Washington Capitals. Another milestone for Alex Ovechkin.

The Metro roundup:

It’s good to keep tabs on the competition. Jacob Markstrom was brilliant against the Carolina Hurricanes, but it still wasn’t enough as Carolina beat the New Jersey Devils. Those good ol’ Flyers are out west to start the season. Matvei Michkov scored his first NHL goal, but the defense was moose-dropping. Jon Bailey delivers some hard grades as the Edmonton beat the Philadephia Flyers.