Dan’s Daily: Phil Kessel Pre-Game Speech, Penguins Begin Offseason Moves

The moment was not exactly Knute Rockne standing before his Notre Dame squad, but Phil Kessel gave his Vegas Golden Knights teammates the pep talk they needed before Game 5. The Pittsburgh Penguins moved their offseason forward with another contract and a prospects camp schedule. NHL trade chatter outed the New Jersey Devils kicking tires on Connor Hellebuyck. The guessing game over Alex DeBrincat’s next destination has begun, and Sportsnet laid out the top 22 trade candidates.

I’ve got nothing cool to tell you today. We’re just working our butts off. Offseason? Sure, let the legacy media folks take the summer off. We’re at it full steam. Later today, I’ll preview one of the potential Penguins draft picks, though in the National Hockey Now mock draft, the prospect didn’t make it to No. 14.

The coming Draft will be interesting. There is some real talent in this draft, but it’s anyone’s guess who might be available.

Pittsburgh Penguins / Steelers, Pirates (Sports Now Group):

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: So, I’ll guess fans will get to clamor for “Puusty” for another year. The Penguins re-signed prospect Valterri Puustinen.

It’s not yet a headline roster, but the Penguins development camp is July 1-3.

Today is HHoF day. The calls will go out. Will Tom Barrasso and Sergei Gonachar get a call from the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Steelers Now:

Sad news — former Steelers linebacker Clark Haggans died Tuesday at 46.

The Steelers waived a veteran WR Tuesday. Steelers news.

Lastly, our boys give the first projections for the Steelers 53-man roster.

Pittsburgh Baseball Now:

The quickie recap: Oh boy. The slide gets worse, and the offense is on life support. Cubs beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-0.

It’s a couple of days into his tenure, but Henry Davis already has a weird career arc.

NHL Trade Talk, News & National Hockey Now:

New Jersey Hockey Now: The Connor Hellebuyck trade tal has a new suitor: the New Jersey Devils.

Calgary Hockey Now: With Noah Hanafin on the trade block, it’s a chance for the Calgary Flames to cash in.

DFO: NHL trade rumors surrounding Alex DeBrincat seem an annual summer rite of passage. Matt Larkin rolled out the potential landing spots.

Matt included the Penguins on his list, but I don’t see that happening unless Ottawa really likes Mikael Granlund.

Sportsnet: And to satisfy your demand for more NHL trade rumors, the top 22 trade candidates.

Montreal Hockey Now: My little hockey chat had the same reaction — Damn! Three reasons why Sean Monahan signed a budget deal with the Montreal Canadiens.

NYI Hockey Now: Some good work here by our youngest writer, Andrew Fantucchio. This summer, it’s coming down to a choice between Zach Parise and Pierre Engvall. Who will the New York Islanders keep?

Washington Hockey Now: You got to let me know, should I stay or should I go? What’s the deal with Evgeny Kuznetsov?

Philly Hockey Now: Ok?? Check out the new Philadelphia Flyers uniforms.

Detroit Hockey Now: Steve Yzerman spoke for about an hour Tuesday. An hour?! He’s not moving his first-round picks. So, how close are the Detroit Red Wings?

And lastly, Phil Kessel rallied the troops, kind of. Before Game 5, he gave his boys a kick in the butt. Jonathan Marchessault recounted Kessel’s speech on Spittin’ Chiclets:

Phil Kessel gave the most Phil Kessel speech of all time before Game 5.

📺: https://t.co/fRqnCHeQpC pic.twitter.com/5U7Ge51oNe

— Spittin' Chiclets (@spittinchiclets) June 20, 2023