• The Penguins will enter the final five games before the NHL's Olympic break tonight against the Blackhawks -- 7:08 p.m., PPG Paints Arena -- and they'll do so, in my estimation, best off if they can collect seven or eight of those 10 points.
Seems greedy, right?
Well, maybe. The overall standings show the Blackhawks at 27th and the Rangers, the next opponent Saturday, at 28th in the 32-team league. Chicago's lost six of eight, and New York's in such dire shape under Mike Sullivan these days that the team announced yesterday it'll make Artemi Panarin a healthy scratch until a trade partner's found.
(Don't get any ideas on that front. Bad, bad seed.)
A bona fide contender fresh off a 4-0 Western sweep AND a rare three-day break should be all about burying all four of those points.
The homestand ends Monday against the annoying but hardly unbeatable Senators, and the final two games are on the road against the Islanders and Sabres, both with significant playoff implications, both against Eastern teams on the rise.
Big stuff. Show up for it. Don't dare drag anything lousy into a 20-day mega-pause that's soon followed by the NHL trade deadline. Have Kyle Dubas chewing his fingernails off on the entire flight to Italy ... not about the Olympics but about how he can help the group here.
• Jack St. Ivany's hand surgery should open up -- yet again -- a space for Connor Clifton. The Tuesday practice this week saw newcomer Ilya Solovyov, a lefty, in that right-handed spot vacated by St. Ivany. That makes zero sense. Stop labeling Clifton a healthy scratch and, instead, watch what he's making happen when he plays.
• That said, this blows my mind:
PENGUINS
Dubas has earned A-grades across almost every level, but this might be his shining star. A general lack of defensive mobility and puck movement had been my chief concern entering this season, but the acquisition and development of Ryan Shea (19 points) and Parker Wotherspoon (16) have beautifully grafted onto this All-Star version of Erik Karlsson (33) and a solid Kris Letang (25) to make this happen. Well done by all. Coaches included.
• Just wait till Harrison Brunicke gets back here.
• Five games in eight days before a monster break sure sounds like an awesome time to capitalize on Stuart Skinner's extensive playoff experience, yeah?
• The Steelers have NOT hired Patrick Graham to be Mike McCarthy's defensive coordinator at the time this is being typed, the team confirmed to DK Pittsburgh, but we've heard he's a front-runner. If he's the choice, it'll be ... interesting to try to evaluate his work.
He'd been the DC in Las Vegas the past three seasons and, in 2025, with not a notable name on his side beyond that of Maxx Crosby, Graham's group finished 14th in the NFL in total defense. That's impressive and, just as important, it's impressed people throughout the football world. I'm not about to suggest the Steelers are ultra-loaded with defensive personnel, but they're the '85 Bears next to what the Raiders just had. And if Graham could get these guys to OVER-achieve rather than going the other direction perennially, that'd be something.
• Graham's 47, which obviously isn't old or young in NFL coaching contexts. Speaking for myself, I'm not going to get hung up on age/youth as a factor in McCarthy's many remaining hires. It'd be best if he just gets the best people, the best fits.
But ...
In an environment where the head coach is calling offensive plays, as McCarthy's acknowledged he will, it might be extra beneficial to have an offensive coordinator who's oozing imagination, innovation and all the latest trends. This version of the job's all about play design.
• I don't cover college athletics, so I'll seldom comment on them, but Pitt football closing off the upper decks at Acrisure Stadium represents, in my eyes, a long-overdue acknowledgement of where it stands in our city. It'd be a challenge for any program to fill 68,500 seats, and it's an irrational challenge for a fan base that lacks anywhere near that size.
I'll never be one of those dreamers proposing a new football stadium in Oakland -- on the hospital rooftops, maybe? -- but I can see where both the optics and the atmosphere at Acrisure improve by pushing everyone down to the main level.
THE ASYLUM
Grind: A challenging fistful
Good Thursday morning!
• The Penguins will enter the final five games before the NHL's Olympic break tonight against the Blackhawks -- 7:08 p.m., PPG Paints Arena -- and they'll do so, in my estimation, best off if they can collect seven or eight of those 10 points.
Seems greedy, right?
Well, maybe. The overall standings show the Blackhawks at 27th and the Rangers, the next opponent Saturday, at 28th in the 32-team league. Chicago's lost six of eight, and New York's in such dire shape under Mike Sullivan these days that the team announced yesterday it'll make Artemi Panarin a healthy scratch until a trade partner's found.
(Don't get any ideas on that front. Bad, bad seed.)
A bona fide contender fresh off a 4-0 Western sweep AND a rare three-day break should be all about burying all four of those points.
The homestand ends Monday against the annoying but hardly unbeatable Senators, and the final two games are on the road against the Islanders and Sabres, both with significant playoff implications, both against Eastern teams on the rise.
Big stuff. Show up for it. Don't dare drag anything lousy into a 20-day mega-pause that's soon followed by the NHL trade deadline. Have Kyle Dubas chewing his fingernails off on the entire flight to Italy ... not about the Olympics but about how he can help the group here.
• Jack St. Ivany's hand surgery should open up -- yet again -- a space for Connor Clifton. The Tuesday practice this week saw newcomer Ilya Solovyov, a lefty, in that right-handed spot vacated by St. Ivany. That makes zero sense. Stop labeling Clifton a healthy scratch and, instead, watch what he's making happen when he plays.
• That said, this blows my mind:
PENGUINS
Dubas has earned A-grades across almost every level, but this might be his shining star. A general lack of defensive mobility and puck movement had been my chief concern entering this season, but the acquisition and development of Ryan Shea (19 points) and Parker Wotherspoon (16) have beautifully grafted onto this All-Star version of Erik Karlsson (33) and a solid Kris Letang (25) to make this happen. Well done by all. Coaches included.
• Just wait till Harrison Brunicke gets back here.
• Five games in eight days before a monster break sure sounds like an awesome time to capitalize on Stuart Skinner's extensive playoff experience, yeah?
• The Steelers have NOT hired Patrick Graham to be Mike McCarthy's defensive coordinator at the time this is being typed, the team confirmed to DK Pittsburgh, but we've heard he's a front-runner. If he's the choice, it'll be ... interesting to try to evaluate his work.
He'd been the DC in Las Vegas the past three seasons and, in 2025, with not a notable name on his side beyond that of Maxx Crosby, Graham's group finished 14th in the NFL in total defense. That's impressive and, just as important, it's impressed people throughout the football world. I'm not about to suggest the Steelers are ultra-loaded with defensive personnel, but they're the '85 Bears next to what the Raiders just had. And if Graham could get these guys to OVER-achieve rather than going the other direction perennially, that'd be something.
• Graham's 47, which obviously isn't old or young in NFL coaching contexts. Speaking for myself, I'm not going to get hung up on age/youth as a factor in McCarthy's many remaining hires. It'd be best if he just gets the best people, the best fits.
But ...
In an environment where the head coach is calling offensive plays, as McCarthy's acknowledged he will, it might be extra beneficial to have an offensive coordinator who's oozing imagination, innovation and all the latest trends. This version of the job's all about play design.
• I don't cover college athletics, so I'll seldom comment on them, but Pitt football closing off the upper decks at Acrisure Stadium represents, in my eyes, a long-overdue acknowledgement of where it stands in our city. It'd be a challenge for any program to fill 68,500 seats, and it's an irrational challenge for a fan base that lacks anywhere near that size.
I'll never be one of those dreamers proposing a new football stadium in Oakland -- on the hospital rooftops, maybe? -- but I can see where both the optics and the atmosphere at Acrisure improve by pushing everyone down to the main level.
Bottom line: Not nearly enough people care.
• Thanks for reading!
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