There will be some knuckle sandwiches served in the Metro Division this season, and the Philadelphia Flyers’ chef will be in the lineup and on the ice more often this season, which is probably bad news for the Pittsburgh Penguins. On Sunday, we took the advice of readers and revisited one of the hot-button topics that has dogged the Penguins fanbase and organization for a couple of years–the Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang contracts. Elsewhere in the Daily, the hockey media seemed to take the weekend off, but we’ve got an interesting comparison between Macklin Celebrini and Sidney Crosby, and will the Detroit Red Wings surpass the Penguins and Capitals to make the playoffs?
We received some interesting ideas on our Sunday callout for ideas and Penguins issues that you’d like to dive in head first. Sunday night’s column regarding Malkin and Letang was our first example. I’m not sure if I made a dent in the conversation–fans are fairly entrenched in their polarized opinions, but if you take a look, I think you’ll see a more realistic take.
I’ll happily take a few more requests.
My favorite part of this job is the retort, “And everybody knows it!” I can spend a thousand words explaining, dissecting, and delivering a thorough examination, and without fail, someone will reply with a strident opinion that takes absolutely none of the content into consideration, “and everybody knows it!”
We once had a writer on the network who did that, too, and it always made me chuckle. Just a heads up, that’s not a winning argument.
However, we did receive a reply on Facebook that was the scariest reply I’ve ever seen: “I don’t believe any news unless it comes from the Penguins!” OooooK. Four people liked the reply. There are just far too many levels to unpack there.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Pittsburgh Hockey Now: On the eve of free agency in 2022, former general manager Ron Hextall delivered contracts for Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang, but the contract terms were long, and they were 35+ contracts. Were they a mistake? Yes, but not in the way you think. Here’s a real breakdown and the real mistake of those Penguins contracts.
The story also includes a breakdown of the 35+ contract rules changes. I don’t think most fans understand the rules. I saw a column from a national pub on Friday that clearly didn’t, so I explained the rules and how they affect the Penguins, too.
San Jose Hockey Now: Macklin Celebrini was the first-overall pick at the NHL Draft in June. Sheng Peng interviewed a college hockey scout who covered Celebrini, and the comparison was “a hybrid between Sidney Crosby and Jonathan Toews.” Check out the fish who might save the San Jose Sharks.
Pittsburgh Baseball Now: Andrew McCutchen homered twice, but … yeah, things fell apart in the end, again. The Pirates were learning to fly but ain’t got wings. It’s now a season-worst skid for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Steelers Now: Training camp takeaways. The offensive line lost one and gained a newbie on Sunday. As training camp comes to its conclusion, rookie Zach Frazier was taking reps with the first team as he climbs the Steelers depth chart.
NHL News, National Hockey Now
Philly Hockey Now: This isn’t good news for Marcus Pettersson. GM Daniel Briere said enforcer Nic Deslauriers is Matvei Michkov’s “new best friend,” and Deslauriers will be on the ice a lot more this season for the Philadelphia Flyers.
After two decades of trying to kill hockey, the NHL seems to be careening back to the exciting stuff, like offense and fighting.
Boston Hockey Now: Especially for those of you who like hockey history and enjoy a good historical context, our venerable Mick Colageo swims into the surprising Bruins’ lineup depth at one position but lacks at another. It’s an interesting read on the Boston Bruins.
Detroit Hockey Now: It’s going to get crowded in the middle, with teams on their way up and some teams on their way down. Bob Duff isn’t optimistic—don’t bet on the Detroit Red Wings making the playoffs.
With some goaltending, Detroit is easily a playoff team. Detroit might want to read the tea leaves and jump on the next available goalie before Ottawa realizes Linus Ullmark won’t re-sign there. I also think the Penguins and Red Wings could be good trade partners…
