The NHL saw something begin on Jan. 1 that it has not seen in its storied 100 year history — bye weeks for its member clubs. Between Jan. 1 and April 9, all 30 clubs will send their players home, or wherever else they choose to go, for five days in what amounts to a…
The past few weeks have been filled with people, pundits and talking heads complaining about 2016. They were all anxious for a year full of disagreements, polarizing political races, religious upheaval and high profile celebrity deaths to become a blip in the rearview mirror. One person who might not complain if 2016 were to have…
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins’ defenseman David Warsofsky has four points in his last two games, yet he’s left sitting across the state waiting for his chance. When the Pittsburgh Penguins lost two of their most valuable defenders – Kris Letang and Trevor Daley – to injury since Thursday, he seemed like an obvious candidate to be recalled…
If winning back-to-back Stanley Cups were easy, every good team that hoisted the 34.5-pound trophy would do it again and again. That’s the rub when it comes to winning the Cup. Only 13 of the 30 – soon to be 31 – teams in the NHL have won it more than once and just 10…
Have you ever heard of the Stanley Cup hangover? If not, you will at some point during the first two months of the 2016-17 season. It is an often-used idiom that comes up every hockey season when the defending Stanley Cup champion doesn’t win every game it plays in the beginning months of the season….
Penguins’ left wing Conor Sheary is currently a member of the team’s top line alongside Sidney Crosby. But will Sheary maintain his lofty standing? His goals in blowout wins over the Rangers in Games 4 and 5 of the Penguins’ opening-round series may be a sign of offensive things to come. Goals in Games 1…
Buffalo, NY – The Penguins do not have a dog in the race that is the first round of the NHL Draft, but that doesn’t make the evening any less intriguing. The draft is the first step towards rebuilding your franchise, reloading it or simply giving your fanbase hope for the future. That is especially…
By Dan Scifo From the Point contributor Pierre McGuire didn’t even have to interview for the job. The “Inside-the-Glass” analyst for the NHL on NBC was initially approached prior to the 2004-05 NHL lockout by NBC executive producer Sam Flood, who pitched the groundbreaking idea that would put McGuire between the benches, giving fans and…
By Dan Scifo From the Point Contributor PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Penguins’ coach Mike Sullivan didn’t want to go through a feeling-out process during the first game of the Stanley Cup Final against the San Jose Sharks. He wanted his team to dictate the tempo. Consider the message received. Pittsburgh jumped on San Jose early in…
By Dan Scifo From the Point Contributor PITTSBURGH — Sidney Crosby picked an opportune time to snap out of a playoff slump. Crosby scored 40 seconds into overtime, lifting the Pittsburgh Penguins to a 3-2 victory against the Tampa Bay Lightning during Game 2 of their Eastern Conference Finals series Monday at Consol Energy Center….
