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Dan’s Daily: Penguins Troubles, Tortorella Kicked by a Horse

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Pittsburgh Penguins, John Tortorella, NHL Trade rumors

No joke, a horse kicked Philadelphia Flyers coach John Tortorella. The Pittsburgh Penguins may feel like it after suffering their ninth loss in 11 games, and former friend Matt Murray was the goalie who stuffed them in the second period. We have total Penguins analysis. There are no great NHL trade rumors for Wednesday, but the debate is beginning about the Toronto Maple Leafs and which big-name defenseman fits. It has to be a big name, of course. The Boston Bruins are enlisting a former attorney general to help with contract-vetting in the wake of the Mitchell Miller fiasco. And one name to keep an eye on for that trade market is playing pretty well in Montreal.

I owe Kris Letang a thank you, and I’ll personally deliver it, but I want to tell you about it. He didn’t have to, but he sat down with me after the game last night. We talked about the team. What it’s lacking, why they’re not winning. He could have (and should have) blown me off, but he gave his best effort to answer my pointed queries. The body language denoted some incredulity — they know what to do, and they don’t know why they’re not doing it. It was a stand-up action on his part, even as we were sitting.

I thought Sidney Crosby’s answer that he can’t put the team’s struggles in a good soundbite was pretty interesting, too.

Kids, there are issues.

Pittsburgh Penguins / Steelers, Pirates

PHN Video: The 5-minute Penguins postgame from ice level at PPG. Penguins video.

PHN+: The report card. It works if you read it in Dean Wormer’s voice. We delivered plenty of Fs. Penguins analysis.

And the always well-read, well-written, and entertaining: Dave Molinari’s Pittsburgh Penguins recap.

Steelers Now: Bill Cowher is under fire for his heavy-handed comments on Jeff Saturday, and because people need to be outraged. OUTRAGED! Here’s the situation for the former Steelers coach.

Former NFL draft mega-bust Ryan Leaf had a little fun via Twitter with Kenny Pickett.

SN+: Who is to blame for the high sack totals? “Kenny gets Kenny in trouble,” Mike Tomlin said. Steelers analysis.

NHL Trade, News & National Hockey Now

The Daily won’t be voluminous today. My apologies. I’m running behind and short on time due to security lines, lack of functioning flight wifi (because we didn’t get high enough), and chasing planes to Minnesota …

Philly Hockey Now: The Philadelphia Flyers coach is an animal lover and always lives in places that give them plenty of space to roam. However, a horse wasn’t having a good day and kicked John Tortorella this week.

The bruises were visible on TV. The Flyers gained another point but lost in OT. Take a look at the story above.

Montreal Hockey Now: Mike Hoffman is heating up after an achingly slow start to the season. In more ways than one, including increased value on the NHL trade block, that helps the Montreal Canadiens.

Washington Hockey Now: The Penguins aren’t the only “old” team struggling. St. Louis is sputtering. And Tuesday night, yet again, the Washington Capitals stunk.

As a business that closely monitors the Google search volume, fans are jumping ship on the Capitals like it’s the Titanic.

Boston: Former AG Loretta Lynch has been enlisted to help with player-vetting after the Boston Bruins –Mitchell Miller fiasco.

Is that really necessary? The Bruins screwed up. Own it. Call out the lies (and it appears they were handed a few), and get on with the accountability.

On the Jeff Marek show, he suggests that the Maple Leafs grab John Klingberg from Anaheim. The info comes from the NHL Watcher Twitter account.

Sportsnet: The hockey world, especially in Toronto, is still gobsmacked by the moment many of us witnessed Friday night. I don’t know if Pittsburgh TV captured it, but the outpouring of love and support (on the ice and in the stands) for Borje Salming was incredible. Just a moment I won’t forget. Even writing about it, my “allergies” kick up. The latest 32 Thoughts.