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Dan’s Daily: One East Spot Left; Latest on GM Searches; Penguins Health
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- Dan’s Daily: One East Spot Left; Latest on GM Searches; Penguins Health
Philip G. Pavely-Imagn ImagesPhilip G. Pavely-Imagn Images
The Pittsburgh Penguins lost to the Washington Capitals . Typically, such words bring a sour taste akin to tart lemonade completely lacking sugar. But on Saturday, the game was about a chance for depth players to get ice time and for the Penguins to get healthy. In total, seven of the Penguins’ best missed the game due to injury.
Elsewhere in the Daily, the NHL rumor mill is swirling around former New Jersey Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald, who seems to be a favorite for the open gig in Nashville , while there is a groundswell around one for the Florida Panthers assistant GMs for the Toronto job. After Saturday’s games, there is just one playoff spot left in the Eastern Conference, and the Philadelphia Flyers are in the driver’s seat.
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We are off to D.C. this morning. My gut says that Sidney Crosby will play today because the game needs him to play. Rather than racing back to Pittsburgh tonight to catch the early morning flight to St. Louis , I canceled the St. Louis trip. My consecutive games streak will end today at 235.
Instead, I’m going to spend the night in D.C. and if you’re headed down there, I can’t recommend the night-time monument walk more strongly. In the day, it is a wonderful stroll, but at night, if the hair on your arms doesn’t stand up a little, you probably had too many of those history teachers. The WWII monument has a subtle yet powerful aura, and you can lineup the Washington Monument and the Capitol in one view.
If you’re quick after the game, the Old Ebbitt Grill is still my favorite restaurant in D.C.. It’s a place that presidents used to walk to in the days before the modern world. They still use the big gas lamps inside, too. It’s quite a treat.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Pittsburgh Hockey Now: The bad news came about two hours before game time. The Penguins’ injury list was longer than it has been all season. With everything clinched, the team listed SEVEN players, including Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin , on the Penguins injury list .
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The Penguins had some spunk Saturday. The execution stunk, but they gave it a spirited go. Here’s the recap of the Penguins 6-3 loss .
The grades read more like a column–though no one commented on the less than subtle jab–as we graded the players whom coach Dan Muse had to insert into the lineup, including Rutger McGroarty , Ville Koivunen , and Jack St. Ivany . We went big picture with small picture details in the Penguins Report Card .
Ottawa and Boston claimed the wild cards Saturday.
Philly Hockey Now: The Penguins let Washington live to fight one more day, keeping the final playoff spot open. After the Atlantic Division claimed both wild cards Saturday, third place in the Metro remained unclaimed, though after some big performances, the Philadelphia Flyers are almost there.
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NHL.com: Not done yet. The Columbus Blue Jackets kept their hopes alive for third place by outworking and beating the Montreal Canadiens . The CBJ are hanging on f or dear life .
NY Post: The Pete DeBoer bump lasted one game. Saturday brought a catastrophic loss. A shutout loss, to boot. The Ottawa Senators shut out the New York Islanders , who are now on the verge of an epic collapse and playoff miss .
I love Islanders fans. So passionate, so dedicated, yet so mistreated by their governments for 30 years. But I’m not sorry the Islanders will probably miss.
NHL Rumors, News, & National Hockey Now
Hockey Night in Canada: The Headlines Segment. Nashville likes Tom Fitzgerald. Toronto likes Sunny Mehta. New Jersey is figuring it out. The rumors about the open GM chairs are swirling .
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Montreal Hockey Now: Penguins prospect Will Horcoff will keep one of his talented teammates for next season. Highly touted Michael Hage will return to Michigan next season, and won’t immediately join the Montreal Canadiens .
TSN: Darren Dreger had more insights into the upheaval of the Vancouver Canucks . It sounds more and more like both GM Patrik Allvin and coach Adam Foote could be casualties in the organizational changes .
There’s also speculation in Vancouver that should Allvin be canned, he has a job waiting for him under Bill Guerin in Minnesota . The pair spent a few years together with the Penguins.
Boston Hockey Now: She’s got a ticket to ride. It took an extra few days, but the Boston Bruins clinched an Eastern Conference wild card berth .
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Vegas Hockey Now: My folks out west will have playoff hockey again. The Vegas Golden Knights clinched , finally.
Colorado Hockey Now: An OT loss to Vegas was costly. A defenseman hurt and coach Jared Bednar was hit in the head by a puck and taken to the hospital (it’s not life threatening). It was a wild night for the Colorado Avalanche .
Also from Aarif Deen, the Colorado Avalanche signed one of the hot college free agents, T.J. Hughes from Michigan. That should help the Avalanche prospects pool .
The post Dan’s Daily: One East Spot Left; Latest on GM Searches; Penguins Health appeared first on Pittsburgh Hockey Now .
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