All Is Quiet On The Penguins’ Front

GM Ray Shero didn't do much this time around

The Pittsburgh Penguins team you see today is the team that will be with us until the end of the season.

On Trade Deadline day, GM Ray Shero did absolutely nothing to switch up the roster, meaning the biggest move he’s done was acquiring Cal O’Reilly off of waivers.

So why no big shake up? Shero says that while he did have his eye on some players and talked to some teams, either the price was too high for the Penguins or some of the players being discussed would not have fit on the Penguins.

In his six years with the Penguins, this is the first time Shero hasn’t made a huge trade before the deadline. In the past, he managed to acquire Marian Hossa, Billy Guerin, Hal Gill, and Gary Roberts, among others, at the deadline.

Despite his past successes, Shero is happy with his decision and with the team we have.

“I said this six weeks ago when we had lost six in a row, I like our team and I believe in our hockey team,” Shero said. “I still do and I’m comfortable with this team moving forward. That’s where we are.”

And why shouldn’t he be comfortable with this team? If he’s OK with it, then I sure am!

Thursday’s Tidbits

After having an off day yesterday, the Pens were back to work this morning. It was announced that forward Cal O’Reilly who was picked up off of waivers from the Phoenix Coyotes less than two weeks ago was sent down to Wilkes-Barre Scranton. Since the Pens have had him for less than 10 days, he did not have to hit waivers. But if they Pens decided to bring him up again, he will have to go through re-entry waivers. He had one assist in six games with the big club, but was scratched the last three games.

Goaltender Brent Johnson was back at practice after being sick the past couple days and Coach Bylsma believes he should be ready to go for the weekend.

Defensemen Brooks Orpik who sat out last game against the Rangers, was back at practice today. His undisclosed injury leaves him day to day and his status for the weekend is unknown.

Forward Tyler Kennedy who was expected out four to six weeks with a lower body injury, skated with strength and conditioning coach Mike Kadar before practice today.

Defensemen Matt Niskanen missed practice due to an illness.

Forward Sidney Crosby skated with the rest of the team at practice, but did not participate in the team scrimmage. He did not meet with the media after practice, but Bylsma said he has had no change in status.

Another odd development is it seems Forward Eric Tangradi who was just brought up this week has taken Dustin Jeffrey’s place on the fourth line. Jeffrey practiced along with Crosby as an extra. Is General Manager Ray Shero trying to showcase Tangradi for a possible trade, or are they upset with Jeffrey’s recent play? I guess we will see soon enough as the trade deadline is this Monday!

The Pens face-off against Tampa Bay, Saturday at 1.

Don’t Forget. You’re Here Forever

Hug me brother! You're ours for another 6 years!

James Neal has signed a contract extension, making him ours for a bit longer!

Neal signed a 6 year, $30 million contract, ensuring that he stays with us until the 2017-2018 season.

Neal just hit a career high 30 goals on Saturday against Philadelphia, and he’s had a stellar season thus far. He could have gone into the unrestricted free agency market, but chose to stay with the Penguins.

And why not? In less than a year, he’s gone from the Dallas Stars to the Pittsburgh Penguins to line mate of Evgeni Malkin (the league’s top point scorer) to NHL All Star to 30 goal scorer. You’ll be hard pressed to find someone who says this isn’t deserving.

So congratulations to James Neal. Penguins fans can’t wait to see what you’ll do for the six years.

Jordan Staal Is Back! And Other Updates

Jordan Staal at practice this morning with his brand new lip stitches!

Dan Bylsma confirmed today that Jordan Staal, who’s been out with a knee injury, will be back in the line up for tomorrow’s game against Winnipeg.

“Jordan Staal will be playing in the game (Saturday),” Bylsma said. “As long as he had, as we expected him to (have), a good day on the ice, he’ll be in the lineup (Saturday).”

According to Dan, Jordan will be playing on a line winged by Pascal Dupuis and Matt Cooke.

Jordan was accidentally highsticked by a teammate’s stick yesterday at practice. He just needed some stitches and is fine.

That’s a step in the right direction!

Now, the fun part! Let’s see how our injured players are doing!

• Sidney Crosby skated today and yesterday. He’s been skating for the past few practices. There is still no timeline for him to return from the soft tissue injury in his neck.
• Arron Asham skated together yesterday and today before the rest of the team. While Sid has been skating for a while now, this is the first time Asham has skated since being diagnosed with a concussion. Awesome, no?
• Simon Despres skated yesterday, but tweaked his knee injury again and didn’t skate today. Shoot. Get better soon, buddy!

 

Jason Williams, Colin McDonald Sent Down

Thanks for the help boys!

 

After last night’s 3-2 shootout loss to the Montreal Canadiens, the Penguins announced this morning that Colin McDonald and Jason Williams have been reassigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

Williams had 1 goal and 1 assist in 8 games, while McDonald has gone scoreless in 5 games.

Pair this news of them being sent down with a lot of the Penguins beat writers talking about how strong Jordan Staal is looking in practice, and it’s easy to assume that this means Jordan is ready to come back. I sure hope so!

We’ll see once Saturday’s game against the Winnipeg  Jets rolls around.

Superbowl Sunday Tidbits

Today is the one day a year we will allow hockey to take a back seat in your mind–just as long as it never takes a back seat in your heart!

Here’s some food for thought to supplement all of the actual food you’ll be eating today:

• Marc-Andre Fleury has won nine out of his last nine starts. Where’d all those wishy-washy comments go, hm?
• In case you missed it, Brooks Orpik completely annihilatedDaniel Paille in yesterday’s showdown against Boston.
  

  Brooks Orpik lays down the law.

• Coach Bylsma has stated Despres and Staal are both progressing in their rehabilitation from their respective knee injuries and could soon be returning to practice as soon as next week.
• Matt Cooke has two goals in his last three games. He’s been playing some incredible hockey lately and is one to watch.
• Most importantly, we face off against the New Jersey Devils today at 1:00 PM EST! Go Penguins!

Vitale Proves Vital; Signs Two-Year Extension

Joe Vitale probably didn't look this angry when he heared the news.

If there is anyone that has earned their place in the lineup this season, it’s Joe Vitale. The hardworking forward has had a breakout season. His name isn’t lighting up the scoreboard every night, but his incredible work ethic, team-leading faceoff win percentage (55.9), and versatility on the penalty kill have earned him the title of unsung hero.

Perhaps Shero sees a little of what he saw in James Neal last season: energy, grit, and incredible skill that is simply waiting to come to fruition.

Either way, Joe Vitale will be donning a Pens uniform for another two seasons; earning $550,000 a season.

Way to go, Joe!

 

Pens Pick Up O’Reilly, More Coming?

With only a few weeks away from the NHL trade deadline (25 days to be exact) the excitement is beginning to fill the air as the rumors are just getting started.

Yesterday, the Pens added some depth offensively by picking up Cal O’Reilly off of waivers from the Phoenix Coyotes. The 25 year-old forward racked up six points in 27 games so far this season. So many might be wondering why the Pens would pick up a player with a so-so season so far instead of just relying on players such as Colin McDonald and Eric Tangradi who have been up and down all season between Pittsburgh and Wilkes-Barre. Well, the answer would be with General Manager Ray Shero. Shero actually drafted O’Reilly while he was with the Nashville Predators organization. O’Reilly ended up playing on a line with current Penguin, Steve Sullivan while in Nashville.

With key players such as Sidney Crosby and Jordan Staal out, it would seem like a win-win situation. Pittsburgh will only be paying half of O’Reilly’s $375,000 cap hit and did not have to make any roster moves to add him to the lineup.

As of now, the Penguins have about $5.5 million dollars to work with going into the deadline. Recently TSN did a team by team evaluation of what they think they will do by that February 27th deadline. Of course, all depends on whether or not they expect Crosby to be back by the playoffs. If he is, they will probably sit back and watch the other teams fight it out. But if he is going to be out, expect the Pens to work on their secondary scoring.

Recently, Evgeni Malkin has taken the absence of Sidney Crosby in stride by carrying the team through their most recent eight game winning streak. Of course that is all good and dandy but with a roster filled with talent, there should be more people chipping in if they expect to make it far in the postseason.

The rumors about who is going where have already started. One of the biggest (and most consistent) rumors has been about Jarome Iginla. Although he is 35 years old and has a cap hit of around $7 million, he has still proven to be a consistent veteran presence on the ice. He has played alongside Sidney Crosby in the Olympics and most recently Evgeni Malkin in the all-star game and has success with both. So sure it would be great to get him, but what do you have to give up in order to get this kind of playmaker? The Pens would definitely have to make room on the roster to hold this kind of salary. Would prospects be involved? Is it really worth it? Well, I guess we will find out within the next 25 days!