Dan’s Daily: Crazy Day for Penguins, Vegas Trades for Jack Eichel!

The hockey world has a nasty habit of breaking news all at once. It’s the Pandora’s box corollary, and the Pittsburgh Penguins are living proof. We could have written a half dozen stories on Wednesday but had to pick the four most important. Sidney Crosby and three defensemen are out of the lineup because they tested positive for COVID. Kasperi Kapanen admitted Mike Sullivan has been hard on him. The Calgary Flames went all-in for Jack Eichel, and the NHL trade chatter hit a fever pitch.

Update: Vegas wins. The Vegas Golden Knights acquired Jack Eichel shortly after publishing.

It was pretty cool–I was the middle man for three writers as National Hockey Now advanced the Jack Eichel – NHL trade story. Jimmy Murphy did yeoman’s work for Vegas Hockey Now and Calgary Hockey Now. We got the stories up in the evening after multiple sources confirmed the Flames expanded offer.

NHL Trade Chatter:

Calgary: Mathew Tkachuk or Sean Monohan? Calgary offered one of those players and a bevy of picks/prospects. Also, there’s a concern for Jack Eichel and the mental toll of what he’s been going through. The Flames threw all-in on Wednesday night. 

Vegas: WINNER! Jack Eichel has been the belle of the NHL trade ball for a while, but it was down to two teams. Here are the full details from the long-awaited Golden Knights trade. 

Pittsburgh Penguins

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: You’re kidding, right? The first hint was Sidney Crosby, Marcus Pettersson, Brian Dumoulin, and Chad Ruhwedel were not at practice. Then, head coach Mike Sullivan confirmed all, including Sidney Crosby, tested positive for COVID. Sullivan also updated us on their health.

Kris Letang returned to practice on Wednesday. He, too, talked about his ordeal with COVID and being a little bit nervous when he had symptoms. 

Also–Bryan Rust participated in practice with a non-contact jersey. Usually, that would have been the big news, but welcome to the Penguins Fun House.

PHN+: Kasperi Kapanen admitted Mike Sullivan has been hard on him. Kapanen made several admissions about his goalless season. Kapanen didn’t have a lot of answers, either. 

Flash sale! PHN+ for $19.99 per year–click here.

NHL News & National Hockey Now:

Detroit: With some irony, as the Pittsburgh Penguins are suffering a small breakthrough outbreak. The NHL’s only unvaccinated player, Tyler Bertuzzi, is now up to speed. 

Montreal: The Montreal Canadiens are desperately trying to salvage their season. They demoted Cole Caufield and scratched Alexander Romanov. Mitch Gallo writes–the Canadiens are running out of bullets and blaming the wrong people. 

Toronto: It’s been a rough start of the Toronto Maple Leafs. The angst is high inside and outside the organization. Scott Cullen dishes grades for the Maple Leafs’ first 10 games. Some aren’t so kind. 

Sportsnet: It’s official. Brad Aldrich’s name is no longer on the Chicago Blackhawks 2010 Stanley Cup. It’s now XX’s.