Morning Notes: Penguins Scouts Not Sighted; Maroon Could be Moved

Scouting activity is increasing around the NHL in anticipation of the NHL trade deadline. However, it appears from the surface the Pittsburgh Penguins are not part of the vultures circling the St. Louis Blues. There has been a deep list of scouts watching St. Louis but the Penguins have not recently been listed among them. Nor has St. Louis recently scouted the Penguins in Pittsburgh.

Stick tap to our subscriber and frequent hockey DM compadre Tom McCarthy for keeping us abreast of several accounts and reports. Tom even follows a few Twitter accounts we wouldn’t touch just to make sure he’s not missing anything. He sent us these tweets (Adam Kimmelman is definitely an account we follow)

Scouts in the house for Blues-Flyers tonight: Wild, Maple Leafs, Predators, Capitals, Bruins, Sabres, Blues, Islanders, Red Wings

— Adam Kimelman (@NHLAdamK) January 7, 2019

And the Fourth Period listed the scouts in Toronto on Monday. Do you think the Maple Leafs are engaged in talks?

13 teams with reps at NAS/TOR tonight: BOS, TB (2), VGK, VAN, LA, MTL, WPG, CAR, CGY, AZ (2), CHI, NJ, DET

— David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) January 8, 2019

Want to know how many scouts were in attendance for the Penguins vs. Chicago? None. Or at least none were listed.

I often suspect teams are getting wise to the growing number of reporters, such as those from Pittsburgh Hockey Now which report the scout list. We didn’t start it, but the volume of clicks we earned last year opened a few more eyes to the practice and earned us a couple of side-eyes, too. (Amusingly, one outlet which took a poke at us last season has reported it this season. We forgive).

Winning eight games in a row has likely cooled any urgency the Penguins brass felt to make a move but that doesn’t mean crafty veteran GM Jim Rutherford will be silent. PHN has heard a couple of whispers over the past few days from second-hand sources which believe the Penguins are calmly waiting on a couple of their roster situations to shake out but are preparing to move boldly if they determine it necessary.

Now to the daily links portion…

Patrick Maroon could be moved. Again. (The Athletic)

Martin Jones isn’t getting it done in San Jose. The Sharks could be goalie shopping (SJ Mercury News)

The Penguins third line situation is something to watch. Here is an in-depth story about its current status (Pittsburgh Hockey Now)

Edmonton fans and media are getting riled up over the way Connor McDavid is being treated by officials and opponents. (Edmonton Sun)

Now, fans can A) argue over who is better–Sidney Crosby or McDavid. B) Argue over the past and look the other way because your player got the same treatment when he was young. C) join forces and get loud.

When fans figure out the power of C can do more than put AHL defensemen in the NHL All-Star game, things may begin to change, albeit slowly.