Happy Wednesday Penguins fans and welcome to the latest edition of the Big Dave's Pens Pregame show. Tonight, our Penguins are in my least favorite place on the planet to play, arguably, my least favorite team in the NHL. That's right! The Penguins are in Bahstahn tonight to face those bruising Bruins.
Puck drops on Rivalry Night at 7:30pm, but the Pregame starts now...
Tonight's "Big Dave's Gameday Jam" comes from one of the few things I like about the city of Boston. For those that are unaware, I lived there for a year while at school, and I absolutely hated it. But there are several things about the city I enjoy: the New England Revolution (MLS soccer), it's revolutionary history, Boston creme anything, the Dropkick Murphys and tonight's band, Big D and the Kids Table. That's right, were going Ska for tonight's jam, with Big D's song "Steady Riot," off of their "Strictly Rude" album. Enjoy it!
The State of the Penguins
The Penguins announced that All-Star center Evgeni Malkin, who has missed the majority of the month of February, and center Nick Bonino, who has been out since mid-January, are expected to return to the lineup Saturday v. Winnipeg. Their return will certainly benefit the Penguins, as the power play has been atrocious without Geno and the PK will be glad to have such a solid killer back in Bonino.
So what does that mean for the makeup of the current Penguin team?
The guys that will likely be the odd-men out with Malkin and Bonino's return are the guys who have played the best over the last two weeks. Oskar Sundqvist, who made his NHL debut in Florida due to Malkin's absence, will likely be the first guy relegated back to Wilkes-Barre. The young Swede has played well despite not scoring any points. The question will remain until the team makes a move as to who joins Oskar. Scott Wilson would have been the obvious choice before the last week, when he has produced a goal in each of the last three Penguins game. Tom Kuhnhackl, who scored his first career goal Saturday, is another name that could go, but has played very well for the Penguins. Conor Sheary has produced the most points for the Pens from the AHL bunch, with 3 goals and 5 points in 25 games in a fourth line role, while Bryan Rust has added excellent speed and chances in a third line role.
The obvious odd man out to me would be Kevin Porter. The former Michigan Wolverine has just one point in his last 14 games, though he has been solid on the PK. But, Bonino plays center and the PK, so Porter's use would easily be replaced there. And though Sullivan has held on to him like Bylsma did to Craig Adams or Joe Vitale, the likes of Rust, Sheary, Wilson and Kuhnhackl have all outperformed the veteran forward. If it were me, Sundqvist and Porter go down with Malkin and Bonino returning.
I also think the return of both Malkin and Bonino will help this team, but we won't have them in the lineup tonight. The Penguins look to avoid their second season sweep in the past week when they head to Boston to face the Bruins tonight. The Penguins need to play similar to how they did v. Detroit or in Buffalo Sunday if they hope to get the win. If they play like they did in Tampa, it could be another really ugly night for Pittsburgh.
The Bahtteahed Bahstahds: The Bahstan Bruins
Anyway, it hasn't been the prettiest of season's for the Boston Bruins, yet they still find themselves in the playoff discussion once again. The Bruins had a down season last year due to salary cap constraints, injuries and underperformance. While this year has been far from pretty, injuries and underperformance has been at a minimum for the Bruins this season.
Boston enters tonight's game in third place in the Atlantic Division with 70 points on the season. They have gone 6-4-0 over their last 10 games and were beaten by the lowly Blue Jackets in their last matchup. Despite the loss, the Bruins have played decent hockey, even if it isn't pretty. They have a plus-16 goal differential this season, which means their defense is back up to par after a dreadful year last year.
Offensively, they are getting production out of guys who had abysmal years last season. Loui Eriksson, the focal point in the Tyler Seguin-to-Dallas deal a few years back, has finally been a good, productive player. Eriksson has 23 goals and 48 points through 60 games. Zdeno Chara, who missed chunks of last year with a barrage of injuries, has played in 58 games and posted 32 points from the blue line. Brad Marchand, who had a down year in 2014-15, leads the Bruins with 30 goals and 46 points. Finally, veteran center David Krejci has remained mostly healthy for the first time in several seasons, he currently has 48 points in 50 games.
The Bruins are still in the hunt, and though they still have salary cap issues, I wouldn't be surprised to see them do some moves at the deadline. Whether that's impending UFAs, such as Loui Eriksson, out or other pieces in, the Bruins likely won't stand pat over the next week.
Boston is still a tough team. They still play physical and they still grind you down. They've already handled the Penguins twice easily. If the Penguins don't play up to snuff tonight, they'll get swept by the Bruins just as they have by the Lightning.
The Lowdown on the Bruins:
- 32-22-6 overall record
- 70 points, good for 3rd in the Atlantic Division.
- Boston enters tonight after losing to the Blue Jackets Monday, and going 6-4-0 over their past 10 games.
- The Bruins have a plus-16 goal differential on the season.
- Home has not been where the heart is, as the Bruins are 12-15-3 at TD Garden this season.
- The Bruins special teams have been great, with the league's 4th best PP and 9th best PK entering tonight.
Scoring Leaders:
- C Patrice Bergeron - 50pts (22G-28A)
- RW Loui Eriksson - 48pts (23G-25A)
- C David Krejci - 48pts (14G-34A)
- LW Brad Marchand - 46pts (30G-16A)
- C Ryan Spooner - 40pts (11G-29A)
Injury Report:
- C Chris Kelly (lower-body) is OUT tonight. Kelly will be out the remainder of the season after suffering a broken femur in November. His timeline was 6-8 months at the time of the injury.
Projected Lines:
- Brad Marchand - Patrice Bergeron - Brett Connolly
- Loui Eriksson - David Krejci - David Pastrnak
- Matt Beleskey - Ryan Spooner - Jimmy Hayes
- Zac Rinaldo - Max Talbot - Landon Ferraro
Projected Pairs:
- Zdeno Chara - Kevan Miller
- Joe Morrow - Dennis Seidenberg
- Torey Krug - Adam McQuaid
Tuukka Rask is expected to start for the Bruins tonight.
News & Notes From The Penguins
- C Evgeni Malkin (lower-body) is OUT tonight, but will return Saturday. Malkin returned to practice on Tuesday at Cranberry with a no-contact jersey. The big Russian has missed the last two-and-a-half weeks with an LBI, but HCMS stated Malkin will play Saturday v. Winnipeg.
- C Nick Bonino (hand) is OUT tonight, but like Malkin will play Saturday. Bonino hasn't played since mid-January with a broken hand, but also returned to practice at Cranberry on Tuesday.
- D Ben Lovejoy (lower-body) is OUT tonight. HCMS stated Tuesday that the veteran defenseman will be lost "for the long term." Lovejoy, who has been playing well of late, did not return after taking a shot off his leg in Saturday's loss to Tampa.
- RW Beau Bennett (upper-body) has been skating, but there is no timetable for his return according to HCMS.
- No update on Eric Fehr.
Roster Moves:
- D Steve Oleksy was recalled from WBS. Oleksy has a goal and 11 points in Wilkes-Barre and leads the team with 78 penalty minutes.
Pens/Bruins Matchup Notes:
- The Bruins are looking to sweep the season series, winning the first two matchups of the year 6-2 and 3-0 back in December.
- The Penguins are 7-2-1 in their last 10 games at TD Garden in Boston.
- Penguins forward Conor Sheary scored his first career goal against his home-town team on December 18th. He currently leads Penguin scorers with 2 points in the season series.
- Sidney Crosby also has two points in the season series (2A).
- Jeff Zatkoff earned the two losses v. Boston so far this year. Marc-Andre Fleury, who was out injured at the time, will likely start tonight. He is 6-2-2 with a 2.18 GAA at Boston's TD Garden.
- Boston forward Ryan Spooner leads the Bruins with 6 points (1G-5A) v. Pittsburgh this year.
- Tuukka Rask earned both Bruin victories over Pittsburgh this year, including a 3-0 shutout at TD Garden on December 16th.
Miscellaneous Notes:
- Pittsburgh is currently 3-0-1 in their last four road games.
- The Pens have scored a short handed goal in each of the last two games (Kuhnhackl on Saturday v. Tampa and Cullen on Sunday @ Buffalo).
- RW Patric Hornqvist's 12 goal of the season Sunday was his 300th career NHL point.
- D Kris Letang has 5A over his last 3 games and leads all NHL defensemen since December 14th with a 1.35 points per game average.
- C Sidney Crosby leads the NHL with 12 even-strength points in February and is 4th in the NHL with 6 even-strength goals.
- Rookie Scott Wilson has goals in each of his last 3 games after failing to score in his first 12. This is the longest Penguin rookie streak since Jordan Staal from February 3-10, 2007.
#AskBigDave
From Michael S. on the Tweety: "Why to the Penguins have so much trouble with Tampa Bay?"
Good question Michael, but a hard one to answer. The Penguins got swept in their season series on Saturday v. Tampa, their third loss of the year to the Lightning. Tampa outscored Pittsburgh 15-9 over the three games and out shot them 109-74. Tampa controlled the flow of almost every game and earned the wins in each. The Penguins earned the loss in a couple of them.
It is surprising that the Penguins played so poorly against Tampa this year, considering their numbers the last few years have been pretty solid. In fact, the Penguins had won 5 out of 6 games v. Tampa over the past two regular seasons. So it is hard to fathom the problem. Let's look at a couple factors to why this year was rough. Fleury was bad in both games in Tampa. He just wasn't good at all. Zatkoff was far from good on Saturday too. The Pens PK was decent, but the Pens power play was 1-for-11 over the three games. That isn't going to help either. And finally, the Pens big stars just didn't out play Tampa's. Stamkos, Johnson, Kucherov and Bishop all played great in the series. Hard to beat them when their big guns are going.
So Michael, I think it was just an odd year for the Pens v. Tampa. Don't think we should look too deeply into it. If Fleury was on in those games, I think we probably get at least one out of the series.
From Waiting For Hockey on the Tweety: "When is Daniel Sprong's season in juniors done? Can he rejoin the Pens at the conclusion of the season?"
This is a really tough question to answer, and without enough time to really read through the current NHL CBA, I don't think I can give you the 100% factual answer. Here is what I know and believe.
Daniel Sprong plays for the Charlottetown Islanders of the QMJHL. That team is not very good and likely won't get much play in the Memorial Cup after their season ends. By the way, Sprong has 15 goals and 35 points in just 24 games there this season. Now, the Islanders regular season ends Saturday, March 19th. I don't know exactly how the Memorial Cup works or their QMJHL playoffs, but knowing that the Islanders are not a very good team, even if they make some sort of playoffs, they won't last long. My guess is Sprong's junior year will be over by April.
Now, I'm not sure if Sprong is allowed to come back to the NHL this season, but I believe the answer to that is no. Once the Penguins re-assigned him in December, I think he is not eligible to return to the big club until next training camp and he wouldn't even be allowed to join for the playoff run either. I am not 100% positive on the that, but I'm pretty sure that is how it works.
Now, I think Sprong would technically be allowed to join the Baby Penguins during their stretch run. If I read the CBA right, and god knows I may not have, as long as Sprong was 18 years old by December 31st, he could be reassigned to the AHL after his junior year is ended. Again, I am not at all positive about that.
I wish I had a better answer for you, but I believe that he cannot return to the Penguins this season after being sent back in December, but I think he could play in the AHL after the QMJHL season is over.
From Spencer W. on the Tweety: "What would it take it acquire Eric Gelinas? He's been scratched 24 times this year and clearly not working out in New Jersey."
Excellent question Spencer, but to be honest, I don't know if he is even available. As you mentioned, he has been scratched 24 times this season and has only 1 goal and 6 points in 34 games for the Devils this season. The 24-year-old was a 2nd round pick in 2009 and played 120 games over the past two NHL seasons for the Devils entering this year. For his career, he has 14 goals and 54 points in 156 games.
Now, it is obvious he has fallen out of favor in New Jersey, as he has been scratched 24 times so far. That doesn't mean that they are looking to deal him however. His name is not one I have heard any rumors about, nor do I know what it would take to get him. With the Devils in the hunt, and likely looking for offense, Gelinas may be part a deal to bring them a legit scorer. Frankly, that is something we could not offer them for Gelinas. If he is moved at all, he will likely go to a team that could give them a big-time scorer for the stretch run, maybe a Columbus or Winnipeg.
It is a good name Spencer and I wish I knew more. But to my knowledge, his name has not been rumored to be available.
From Nick B. on the Tweety: "Is it worth GM Jim Rutherford making any trades since asking prices are so high and could Jeff Zatkoff be in one of those trades?"
This is probably the big question everyone will have Nick going into the next 5 days. Not just will Rutherford make a move, but is it worth making a move? Only time will tell what Rutherford will do, and it will likely be years from now before we know if any deal was worth making.
The prices are going to be high, they always are this time of year. In fact, look at some of the deals the Pens have made and some of the deals already made this year. The Pens have traded second round picks for the likes of Doug Murray, Daniel Winnik and other average NHLers at the deadline before. Yesterday, the Sharks traded two second rounds picks (granted picks for 2017 and 2018 picks) to Toronto for Roman Polak and Nick Spaling. None of those players are worth a second round pick, but they have been priced as such at the deadline by teams in the hunt. Reportedly, a quality player like Andrew Ladd in Winnipeg has a price tag of a 1st rounder and a top prospect, and Ladd will be a UFA come July.
Jim Rutherford needs to be smart this year at the deadline. He has made really good deals during the season this year with Daley and Hagelin, but he has mortgaged the future in a couple deals thus far in his tenure. The most notable, a 1st rounder in 2015 for Perron, a 2nd rounder in '15 for Winnik and a conditional 1st rounder in '16 for Kessel. Rutherford was smart enough to get his 2nd rounder back that he gave up for Winnik for next years draft in the Kessel move, along with a 2nd rounder in the Bonino deal. If he was smart, he'd keep both of those picks with the 1st rounder in Toronto's hand for Kessel.
Now, I really think the Penguins need to add to the defensive corps, especially with Ben Lovejoy out for the "long term" according to HCMS. Ian Cole is not capable of playing important minutes down the stretch for the Penguins, especially at his current level of play with a minus-17 rating and I don't feel much more confident about David Warsofsky in that role either. I'd like to see the Penguins bring in veteran defenseman who could pair with Pouliot down the stretch until Lovejoy returns or even after he does. That being said, I'd only like to see Rutherford make that move if he can move someone like Cole or Jeff Zatkoff in the deal.
As for your Zatkoff inquiry, I think the Penguins will try to move him. According to DK on Pittsburgh Sports column yesterday, the Penguins informed Zatkoff at the beginning of February that Matt Murray would be their backup netminder for the stretch run and the playoffs. That likely means the Penguins are going to trade him by Monday at 3pm or that they are going to waive him if they cannot. I personally would rather have Murray anyway, but I would like to at least get something for Zatkoff. Move him to a team that needs goaltending (Calgary, Buffalo, Winnipeg, etc.) and try to get a defenseman in the package.
Hope that answers your question Nick.
Projected Lines & Pairs
- Chris Kunitz - Sidney Crosby - Patric Hornqvist
- Carl Hagelin - Matt Cullen - Phil Kessel
- Tom Kuhnhackl - Oskar Sundqvist - Bryan Rust
- Scott Wilson - Kevin Porter - Conor Sheary
Pairs:
- Kris Letang - Olli Maatta
- Brian Dumoulin - Trevor Daley
- Ian Cole - Derrick Pouliot
Marc-Andre Fleury is expected to start in net tonight.
My 3 Keys to the Game
2. Power Play: The Penguins power play needs score. It has been so dreadful without Malkin, but they need to find a way to get one in this game. The Bruins special teams is really good, but if they can get just one against the NHL's 9th best PK group, it would be a big boost.
3. Traffic: I want to see the Penguins get a lot of traffic in front of Tuukka Rask tonight. It will not be easy, but it will be key. If the Pens can get in front of him, they will create a lot of screens to score and some second chance opportunities. At the very least, them being there could lead to penalties, power plays, if the Bruins defensemen get too frisky. I'm looking at Hornqvist, Kunitz, Kuhnhackl and Cullen to be those guys tonight.
My 3 Penguins to Watch
2. Scott Wilson: The kid has some confidence and he is currently red hot! Wilson has scored a goal in each of the Penguins last three games, despite failing to score in his first 12 in the NHL. The 22 goal scorer for the Baby Pens has finally arrived, and with the way the bottom six unit has played, he should get some more chances tonight. Also keep in mind, he will get time on the Pens top PP unit tonight without Malkin back. Maybe he adds the elusive power play goal tonight.
3. Oskar Sundqvist: The young, big Swede is likely the first odd-man out with Malkin and Bonino's return this upcoming weekend. That means tonight is likely his last game with the big club for a while, unless for some reason we are finally rid of Kevin Porter. With this in mind, I would love to see Sundqvist get a huge goal tonight for the Penguins, a real impact goal, for the first of his career. I just have a feeling, and I hope its right. Sundqvist gets his first tonight.
What to Know for Watching/Listening
- Tonight's game will be nationally televised as part of NBCSN's "Rivalry Night" at 7:30pm.
- There will be NO ROOT Sports coverage tonight.
- The latest edition of "In The Room" is available on the Penguins website at the link here: https://www.nhl.com/penguins/video/c-41378403
Here is what you need to know if you're LISTENING to tonight's game:
- 105.9 The X, the Penguins app, the Penguins website and iHeart Radio app are all places you can pick up the game tonight.
- Mike Lange and Phil Bourque will have the game call beginning at 7:30pm.
- Penguins Pregame will precede the game coverage at 6:30pm. Josh Getzoff will host.
- Penguins Hot Line will follow the game action.
Pens Points:
- Pens Radio Keyword: 5pts
- Miller Lite Nite at Dino's Sports Bar in Latrobe: 25pts
- Miller Lite Nite at Bella Luna in Monroeville: 25pts