Dan’s Daily: The Penguins Gamble; Bruins Coach Benches Stars

The Pittsburgh Penguins enjoyed a needed off day Sunday, and they’ll hit the ice this morning at the UPMC Lemieux Complex before departing for a three-game road trip against Metro Division opponents that will surely be a litmus test for their renewed defensive commitment and top-heavy lineup. To that end, we looked at the sustainability of the “other three” Penguins lines since Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin united on the top line. Elsewhere in the Daily, the Detroit Red Wings are getting good results from a free agency signing I thought was very risky, the Boston Bruins are struggling, and the coach is benching star players; the Florida Panthers have the opposite of a Cup Hangover, and the Buffalo Sabres are in need of a good fixing.

The upcoming Penguins roadie really could be make-or-break. If the team plays well and wins two, then the changes are legit. If they crumble when Carolina does Carolina things to them, and Washington puts an Ovechkin-sized boot in their pants, then it’s over. No pressure, eh?

Later this evening, I’m off to Long Island to the fabulous two-star hotel with a sub-7 rating in Jamaica, NY. If you’ve never been to Jamaica, NY, it’s absolutely wild. Dan will not be leaving his hotel to go exploring. Right now, hotel prices in New York City are utterly insane. My typical spots are going for $400 per night?! Yeah, Pittsburgh Hockey Now isn’t paying that.

However, I will be doing plenty of PHN+ content on the road, and I’d love you to join us. Use coupon code Dan10 to save 10 bucks–Join here.

Let’s get to it.

Pittsburgh Penguins

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: We know that Crosby and Malkin are pretty good players, and by putting them together on the top line, coach Mike Sullivan has created an imbalance. We put the “bottom 9” under the microscope to check the sustainability of the Penguins’ lines.

Steelers Now: I know this is important to a lot of you—the announcers have been revealed for the Commanders-Steelers game on Sunday. Oh, and the important sort of information—the Steelers’ scouts are heavily looking at Ohio State. Here’s the important Steelers news.

Pittsburgh Baseball Now: Quick vent—Bob Nutting has destroyed the baseball team and interest in coverage. Good writers like Danny Demilio and John Perrotto are stuck covering a terrible team. Anyway, there was some surprising news–The Buccos reclaimed a draft pick, and we had the rare early offseason trade. It’s in the Pittsburgh Pirates offseason wrap.

NHL Trade Talk, News, & National Hockey Now

Sportsnet: Alex Ovechkin. Goal No. 860. I didn’t think the old man had it in him, and I thought he would come up short, but he’s all in this season and scoring goals for the red-hot Washington Capitals … but they lost to Carolina.

I’m not sure that I’m prepared for the casual hockey media to fawn over Ovechkin later this season because it will include the obligatory Crosby comparisons, and some knucklehead will invariably opine that Ovechkin is better than Crosby.

NESN: Coach Jim Montgomery has called out Brad Marchand during a game and benched David Pastrnak on Sunday. The Bruins coach would only say it’s a “coach’s decision” regarding Pastrnak, but Montgomery is pushing a lot of buttons early in the season.

Buffalo Hockey Now: One of the chief competitors for the second wild-card spot in the East is the Buffalo Sabres, but they’re scuffling to start the season, just like the Penguins and a couple of others. They lost to Detroit, a double ouchy, and Jason Moser goes over the three things that badly need to be fixed for the Buffalo Sabres.

Detroit Hockey Now: Color me surprised. The Detroit Red Wings began the season with Ville Husso as their lead tandem goalie but had to waive him. In the meantime, it seems their best offseason acquisition is a formerly forgotten and tossed-aside starting goalie Cam Talbot.

Florida Hockey Now: It’s widely known in hockey writing circles that when you visit Florida, you have to go out with George Richards. The big man on campus in the land of palm trees, golf courses, and (formerly) unsold seats has a great little haunt that has left many a writer with a hangover. However, despite winning the Stanley Cup, there is absolutely no hangover–quite the opposite–for the buzzsaw Florida Panthers.

NY Post: The New York Rangers 2025 offseason continues to be an attention seeker. Despite the season being well underway, we’re still talking about the looming free agents, RFAs, and potential Jacob Trouba trade. Sooner than later, the Rangers will have to start checking a few of these things off their list.