Penguins buzz: Bylsma taking heat for pulling goalie when game was out of reach

**Head coach Dan Bylsma is taking some heat for pulling the goalie late in the third period of Tuesday’s game when the Penguins trailed by two goals and giving Alexander Ovechkin an opportunity to tie Sidney Crosby for the league lead in goals.

“We wanted to win that game and that’s how it was coached, ” Bylsma said. “That’s why we pulled the goalie.”

Ovechkin scored with 0.2 seconds remaining in the game. With the game out of hand, Bylsma called a timeout with 41 seconds remaining in the third period and opted to go with 6 skaters.

**There is talk that Sidney Crosby is making the strongest case to win the Hart Trophy but most of that talk is believed to be only coming from the local media.

**St. Louis Blues forward Keith Tkachuk has announced that he is retiring after the season and will play his final home game Friday night.

Tkachuk has 1,063 points on 538 goals and 525 assists and 2,219 penalty minutes in his career. The 38 year old has 13 goals and 17 assists on the season. Will Tkachuk’s former teammate and close friend Billy Guerin follow suit after the season?

I spoke to a source close to Guerin about three weeks ago who told me that Guerin has all intentions of playing next season. Guerin has talked glowingly about playing in the Penguins new arena.

However, whether Guerin returns for his 18th season remains to be seen.

The 39 year old has 19 goals and 23 assists on the season and keeps himself in extremely good shape. After being the Penguins most consistent forward prior to the Olympic break, Guerin’s play has fallen off. Guerin turns 40 next November.

**The Pittsburgh Penguins will host their 1,667 and final regular season game at Mellon Arena Thursday night.

The Penguins are expecting a media frenzy tomorrow as more than 50 former members of the Penguins organization will be apart of the pre-game celebrations.

Many of the alums will attend the Penguins morning skate at 10:30 a.m. Six members of the Penguins organization who were apart of the first regular season game at Mellon Arena, will be apart of the celebration.

**The Carolina Hurricanes have been awarded the 2011 All-Star game. The Penguins made a bid for the game but were not a serious contender.

According to a high ranking official, the Penguins, Blue Jackets and Blackhawks are among the serious suitors for the 2013 game.

Ottawa is the front runner for the 2012 game.

**The Penguins have not been active in trying to sign college free agents but the Penguins did make a pitch to sign Princeton’s Cam MacIntyre.