The Latest Penguins Buzz

Interim head coach Dan Bylsma has indicated he will implement a more uptempo system and wants the Penguins to be much more aggressive than they were under Michel Therrien. Do the Penguins have personnel to play a uptempo system? That is up for debate. On the backend they have three offensive defensemen in Kris Letang, Sergei Gonchar and Ryan Whitney. Bylsma wants more pinching from all defensemen and for his offensive defensemen to jump up into the play to create offense. He doesn’t want the Penguins sitting back anymore, he wants them to initiate the play. As the trade deadline is approaching the Penguins are engaged with a number of teams and they are seeking speed upfront. Two things that

Sunday’s Insider Report

The Penguins showed absolutely no urgency and no fire in Saturday’s third period debacle against the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Penguins got out to a early 2-0 but the final 40 minutes of the game was owned by the Leafs. When your five points out of the playoffs and playing a team that is basically playing for a lottery pick, there is no excuses for the performance the Penguins had There needs to be some accountability in the organization and Saturday night showed there are very few untouchables on the Penguins roster as the trade deadline is less than four weeks away. Sergei Gonchar returned to the lineup for the first time this season since having shoulder surgery in October.

NHL: Trade Talks with Tampa Bay intensifying

photo courtesy of Dan4th A source tells me talks with Tampa Bay are intensifying. My source believes Mario Lemieux is highly involved and is pushing Shero to finalize a deal “very soon” that would send Whitney as the centerpiece of a potential deal. St. Louis has not been asked to waive his NTC yet. Mark Recchi and Gary Roberts may be an influencing factor as they both don’t like Penguins head coach Michel Therrien. Mario played a strong factor in Gary Roberts waiving his NTC and may have to work that same magic again. As mentioned a few days ago, the lightning are looking at Whitney, Goligoski, Talbot and Jeffrey. I was told today that it doesn’t appear Goligoski will

Inside the Numbers: Power Play

Since the Penguins 6 game winning streak in the month of November ended at the hands of the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday, November 18th, 2008 (2-1 SO loss), the Penguins are 15-20-3 after begining the season 11-4-2. It can be argued that inconsistent goaltending, lack of toughness, wrong personnel are all legitimate reasons for the Penguins struggles this season. One major area of concern has been the Penguins power play (16.7%) and the Penguins struggling power play comes in as one of the main reasons the Penguins are out of the top eight in the Eastern Conference right now In the Penguins 20 regulation losses since they began the season 11-4-2, the Penguins power play is a woeful 8-88. Inside

Who Wants Whitney? Exploring the market for Ryan Whitney

With a reluctance to actively listen to offers for Jordan Staal, Penguins defenseman Ryan Whitney is believed to be the Penguins biggest asset in their attempt to acquire a top line winger. With Four years Р$16 million remaining on his contract, and only 1 goal in 22 games to go along with a -12 plus/minus rating, Whitney’s value has never been lower.

Canadiens hand Penguins third straight loss; Post-Game Buzz

Montreal 4 – Pittsburgh 2 Despite a strong performance from Luca Caputi who opened the scoring 2:30 into the game, the Penguins gave up three unanswered goals and lost for the third straight game Tuesday night against the Monteal Canadiens. Caputi appearing in his first NHL game scored in his first NHL shift. Caputi started the game on the fourth line with Bill Thomas and Eric Godard but was rewarded with minutes on the first power play unit and saw some ice time with the 2nd line. Roman Hamrlik scored a 1st period goal for the Canadiens. Chris Higgins and Maxim Lapierre scored second-period goals and Andrei Kostitsyn scored with 4:15 left to seal the Canadiens 4-2 win. Goaltender Carey

Penguins have mishandled Whitney since returning from injury

The Penguins begin a crucial 5 game stretch beginning Tuesday night against the Montreal Canadiens. So much for the Penguins turning the corner after beating the Rangers 6-2 Wednesday night. Losing to a rebuilding team like the Leafs shouldn’t happen. The biggest disappointment with this team is their inability to clear the front of the net in the defensive zone. Head coach Michel Therrien and associate coach Andre Savard are defensive minded coaches and just as Mike Yeo takes the heat for the power play struggles, Savard and Therrien deserve some criticism for the Penguins defensive struggles. The Penguins have mishandled Ryan Whitney since he came back from off-season foot surgery. Whitney is clearly struggling and since his first game