Latest news with #PittsburghPenguins'
Time of India
14-05-2025
- Sport
- Time of India
Pittsburgh Penguins' emotional post about Sidney Crosby and Marc-André Fleury's reunion sparks backlash from angry fans
Image via Eric Hartline-Imagn Images Sidney Crosby , the Pittsburgh Penguins' star player, has been in the news ever since he scored his first goal at the match against Team France in a preliminary game at the prestigious International Ice Hockey Federation's (IIHF) World Championship tournament on Tuesday. While fans are in awe of Sidney Crosby, recently a picture of him and former Penguins' player Marc-Andre Fleury has gone viral as they play for Team Canada together and fans are furious at Pittsburgh Penguins . Pittsburgh Penguins' post for Sidney Crosby and Marc-Andre Fleury sparks major outrage among fans A few hours ago, the NHL took to its official account on X to make a wholesome post about Sidney Crosby and Marc-Andre Fleury as they joined forced in Team Canada. The caption od the picture reads as, 'Some things never change. ❤️ Sidney Crosby and Marc-Andre Fleury are reunited as teammates playing for Canada at the IIHF Men's World Championship.' The Pittsburgh Penguins reposted the picture on X with a caption that read as, 'Brb crying 🥹' but fans are furious at this. A fan commented, 'You idiots traded a 2nd rounder for Vegas to take him off your hands in favor of Matt freaking Murray. Spare us your tears', while another fan wrote, 'No respect for Pittsburgh traded their franchise goalie … garbage organization.' A third fan posted, 'Can you plant a seed that MAF should forego retirement and come back here to finish out with Sid, Geno and Tanger? A MAF / Blom rotation might be magical'. Another user wrote, 'Not sure what you're crying about you dumb a**es let him go for Matt Murray', while a fifth fan noted, 'Whole heartedly believe that Flower is the only reason Sid is playing in this. A chance for one last ride with his favorite goalie #FlowerPower'. Another user commented, 'Sid and Flower back together, just like the good old days 🥲' For the unversed, Marc-Andre Fleury made his NHL debut with the Pittsburgh Penguins back in the 2003-04 season and in 2017, he ended up joining the Vegas Golden Knights. While Sidney Crosby and Marc-Andre Fleury have continued to remain close despite being in different teams, they are yet to react to the controversy. Also Read: 'He should be playing for America': Pat McAfee under fire for suggesting Sidney Crosby should play for Team USA
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Penguins Must Invest Wisely; When Does Johnson Cash Out?
All indications are that Kyle Dubas, the Pittsburgh Penguins' president of hockey operations and general manager, s has ownership's permission to spend to the salary-cap ceiling during the coming season, when it will spike to $95.5 million. That doesn't mean he will – or even, should — do so. Advertisement Oh, it's fine if Dubas wants to be aggressive in pursuing trades and/or free agents – especially ones who are young enough to get around the locker room without relying on a walker – but transforming the Penguins into serious Cup contenders will require more than ample cap space. A reasonable chunk of time, for starters, since upgrades of the number and magnitude the Penguins will require to compete for anything more lofty than a low seed in the playoffs can't be rushed. Quick fixes rarely provide long-term solutions. Still, that cap space can be put to productive use, even if it isn't all invested in long-established veterans who can have an immediate impact. Dubas could, for example, collect assets – be it a prospect, draft choice or NHL player – for taking on the contract of an underachieving player whose current club is strapped for cap space. Or for facilitating a trade between two other clubs by agreeing to accept a share of a player's cap hit if that's necessary for the exchange to go through. Advertisement If Dubas decides to go after free agents, he presumably will focus on restricted ones, since they tend to be younger than their unrestricted peers and conceivably could fill roles on a relatively extended basis. There's a lot more to it than simply convincing an RFA to accept a contract proposal, though. Unless his team is in serious salary-cap distress – as was the case with Edmonton last summer, when it declined to match the offer sheets St. Louis extended to defenseman Philip Broberg and forward Dylan Holloway – clubs pursuing him might simply be doing the current team's negotiating for it, since it can match any proposal to which the player in question agrees. Overpaying is one potential way to clear that hurdle, but even for a club with plenty of cap space now, that could cause problems in the future. Advertisement There also is the matter of compensation, which is determined by annual cap hit of the deal the RFA signs with his new team. Broberg ($4,580, 917) cost the Blues a second-round draft choice, while the Oilers received a third-rounder for Holloway ($2,290,457). Given that the Penguins have at least one choice in almost every round of the next three drafts – the exceptions are the fourth and fifth rounds in 2026 – compensation shouldn't be a major problem, although the picks used as compensation cannot be ones acquired in a trade. Thanks for stopping Jack Johnson hasn't played for the Penguins since the 2019-20 season. In another a year, he'll finally be off their payroll. Advertisement The Penguins, who bought out Johnson's five-year contract after two seasons, owe him $915,557 in 2025-26. That's more than his salary on three of the five contracts he's signed (with the New York Rangers, Chicago, Colorado and Columbus) since being cut loose. That the Penguins expected more from Johnson is an understatement, and while he wasn't quite the unmitigated liability that a considerable segment of the fan base made him out to be, the $16,250,000 contract he got in 2018 isn't going to go down as one of then-GM Jim Rutherford's most inspired moves. While Johnson's offensive numbers during his time with the Penguins were understandably modest – four goals and 20 assists in 149 games – because his game was predicated on his defensive work, it's hard to overlook how much they paid for each of his 24 points. With two seasons of full salary and three more worth of buyouts (spread over six years), his take from his time with the Penguins comes to $9,250,001, which works out to $385,416.71 per point. Advertisement If Sidney Crosby – who admittedly is not a defense-oriented defenseman – were paid at that rate in 2024-25, when he had 91 points, he would have earned $35,072,920.50. The post Penguins Must Invest Wisely; When Does Johnson Cash Out? appeared first on Pittsburgh Hockey Now.
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Sidney Crosby And Nathan MacKinnon Could Reunite At The 2025 World Championship For Team Canada
Sidney Crosby will be joining Team Canada at the 2025 IIHF World Championship. Also, Darren Dreger and John Shannon reported that fellow Nova Scotian, Nathan MacKinnon, could be joining the team, too. Sounds like a decent chance Nathan MacKinnon will play for his country as well. — Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) May 4, 2025 When Hockey Canada announced their first 15 players to join the team for the World Championship, Crosby and MacKinnon were not listed. However, with this decision, the two will be participating in the World Championship for the first time in a while. After the Pittsburgh Penguins' season ended, Crosby hinted at the possibility of participating in the tournament in a post-season scrum, but never made a definitive decision until Sunday. "I told (Dubas) I'll just take some time here and see how I feel,' Crosby told reporters. 'It's almost better when you keep going, you know?' he said. The last time Crosby and MacKinnon represented their country was in February during the 4 Nations Face-Off, where they led Canada to win the tournament over Team USA. In four games, Crosby scored one goal and five points while MacKinnon recorded four goals in as many contests. 'As far as 4 Nations, we didn't really have a break. We jumped right back into it, and I was able to just keep playing. And, sometimes, when you finally stop, that's when you realize how you really feel,' Crosby said. As for MacKinnon, there was never a discussion about his availability for this tournament because his Colorado Avalanche were in the playoffs. However, because the Dallas Stars eliminated the Avs in Game 7 of the first round, MacKinnon became eligible to join. MacKinnon has played in three world championships, participating in the 2014, 2015, and 2017 campaigns. His last performance at the World Championship was his best, where he scored six goals and 15 points in 10 games. This will be Crosby's third World Championship tournament, with his first experience coming in 2006, the off-season after his rookie campaign. He set that tournament on fire, scoring eight goals and 16 points in nine games. He led the tournament in scoring as an 18-year-old. The last time he went to the World Championship was in 2015, where he captained Canada for the second time in his career. In this campaign, he scored four goals and 11 points in nine games. Crosby went on to win gold in the 2015 tournament and became a member of the triple gold club, which is made up of 30 players who have won a World Championship, an Olympic gold medal and a Stanley Cup. The Nova Scotian duo will join a mixed group of youngsters and experienced veterans. San Jose Sharks rookie Macklin Celebrini is one of the young stars on this team, looking to earn his first piece of silverware as a professional hockey player. Canada played their first exhibition game against Austria and won 5-1. The tournament officially begins on May 9, with Canada's first game on May 10 against Slovenia. Get the latest news and trending stories by following The Hockey News on Google News and by subscribing to The Hockey News newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Penguins GM Kyle Dubas won't put a timeline on return to contention, but believes the worst is over
Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan talks with referee Brandon Schrader during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Washington Capitals in Pittsburgh, Thursday, April 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar) Pittsburgh Penguins' Sidney Crosby (87), and Evgeni Malkin sit on the bench during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Boston Bruins in Pittsburgh, Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar) Pittsburgh Penguins' Bryan Rust (17), Sidney Crosby (87), and Evgeni Malkin (71) sit on the bench in front of head coach Mike Sullivan, left rear, and assistant coach Mike Vellucci during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Boston Bruins in Pittsburgh, Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar) Pittsburgh Penguins' Bryan Rust (17), Sidney Crosby (87), and Evgeni Malkin (71) sit on the bench in front of head coach Mike Sullivan, left rear, and assistant coach Mike Vellucci during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Boston Bruins in Pittsburgh, Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar) Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan talks with referee Brandon Schrader during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Washington Capitals in Pittsburgh, Thursday, April 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar) Pittsburgh Penguins' Sidney Crosby (87), and Evgeni Malkin sit on the bench during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Boston Bruins in Pittsburgh, Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar) Pittsburgh Penguins' Bryan Rust (17), Sidney Crosby (87), and Evgeni Malkin (71) sit on the bench in front of head coach Mike Sullivan, left rear, and assistant coach Mike Vellucci during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Boston Bruins in Pittsburgh, Sunday, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar) CRANBERRY TOWNSHIP, Pa. (AP) — The standings said the Pittsburgh Penguins took a step back this season. At times, far too many, particularly early in the year, the on-ice product did, too. And while another sublime performance by the seemingly ageless Sidney Crosby couldn't stop the Penguins from missing the playoffs for a third straight year, general manager Kyle Dubas believes the worst is behind his club as it tries to navigate the tricky and often painful transition from one successful era to what he hopes is the next. Advertisement While there remains plenty of work to be done at the NHL level over another exceedingly long summer, Dubas thinks the organization as a whole is in a better place than it March 2024, when the trade of popular winger Jake Guentzel to Carolina served as an emotional gut punch to both the fan base and Guentzel's former teammates. It was a move Dubas deemed a necessary part of the process in an effort to restore a prospect pool decimated by years of trading away picks in hopes of extending a near two-decade run of excellence that included three Stanley Cups. The pace of prospect and pick acquisition has only picked up over the last 14 months. The Penguins have a whopping 30 selections over the next three NHL drafts and their minor league teams are contending. Dubas believes it's only a matter of time before that success cascades up to Pittsburgh. 'I'm more optimistic going into next year than I was organizationally (last year),' Dubas said Monday. 'The results are going to be what they're going to be, but I feel we're closer to where we want to get back to now than last year.' Advertisement The Penguins finished 11 points out of a playoff spot, their worst since Crosby's rookie year nearly two decades ago. Only Chicago and San Jose gave up more goals and only three teams had fewer wins in regulation. There are plenty of areas that need to be addressed by the time Pittsburgh reports for training camp in September. The goaltending tandem of Tristan Jarry and Alex Nedeljkovic ranked among the worst in the league. Jarry, a two-time All-Star, endured a demotion to the American Hockey League in January and Nedeljkovic couldn't seize the opportunity to establish himself as a bona fide No. 1. Yet given Jarry's contract carries more than a $5 million cap hit, don't expect teams to call Dubas to offer a lifeline. Dubas has already told both goaltenders they will be competing for a job when camp arrives, with the idea they will be pushed by Joel Blomqvist and maybe even Sergei Murashov, who turned 21 earlier this month. 'If you look at every metric measuring performance, we also conceded a lot defensively in terms of what was expected to be given up, but we also allowed more than expected,' Dubas said. 'So that's a really poor combination. Both need to be rectified.' Advertisement Better play in front of them would help. Pittsburgh's defensemen struggled to make any sort of impact. Three-time Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson would mix flashes of brilliance with extended periods of play where he too frequently gambled and lost, symbolic of a unit often left whoever was in net in a tough spot. Dubas described the team's approach to defense an 'organizational' matter, one that he will sort out with longtime head coach Mike Sullivan and his staff in the coming weeks. Sullivan, the second longest-tenured coach in the NHL behind Tampa Bay's Jon Cooper, is expected to return for what would be his 10th full season with Pittsburgh. Many coaches, no matter their resume, don't stick around after three straight playoff misses. Yet Sullivan remains committed to trying to help the club navigate its retooling to the finish. 'There's always the point that very few coaches who are in (Sullivan's) realm often want to see a team through this," Dubas said. "But he's been very open about this (as) what he wants to do so we'll just continue to reaffirm that and as long as he's on that side of it, we will roll with that.' Advertisement Dubas declined to offer any sort of timeline on when he expects the Penguins to return to the NHL's elite, only that he remains committed to building Pittsburgh into a long-term winner rather than try to patch the roster together in hopes of sneaking into the postseason. There are no plans to add any more 30-somethings to a roster that began the season as the NHL's oldest. The Penguins do have more salary cap space than they've enjoyed in quite some times, and there's a very real chance Dubas turns some of that draft capital into NHL players in their early-to-mid 20s who currently work elsewhere. The only real concession Dubas has made in terms of when he sees Pittsburgh becoming a legitimate Stanley Cup threat is before Crosby retires. The future Hall of Famer turns 38 in August, though he shows little signs of slowing down and has two years left on the extension he signed last September. Crosby has admitted it's been difficult at times to endure the franchise's roughest patch since the early 2000s. Dubas expects Crosby to be 'grumpy' until the Penguins get back to where they have been for most of Crosby's career. Advertisement '(We're) trying to build something that can contain itself for a long time,' he said. 'Getting those younger players who are going to be a part of that core around Sid (is important). Him helping them and them helping him is really what the focus is.' ___ AP NHL:
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang undergoes surgery to close small hole in his heart
FILE - Pittsburgh Penguins' Kris Letang during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the New York Rangers Friday, Feb. 7, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File) PITTSBURGH (AP) — Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang's season is over. The 19-year veteran will miss Pittsburgh's finale against Washington on Thursday night after undergoing a procedure to close a small hole in his heart. Advertisement The Penguins made the announcement on Wednesday. Letang did not participate in the team's practice on Tuesday for what coach Mike Sullivan called a medical appointment. Letang, a three-time Stanley Cup champion, has missed time earlier in his career due to strokes related to a hole in his heart. The team said the expected timeline for Letang to make a full recovery is 4-6 weeks. Pittsburgh was eliminated from postseason contention earlier this month. Letang, who is signed through the 2027-28 season, had nine goals and 21 assists in 74 games for Pittsburgh this year, his lowest point total over a full season since 2009-10. The 37-year-old Letang also averaged a team-high 23:32 of ice time. ___ AP NHL:
