The Penguins have returned to Pittsburgh after a three-game road trip and will open a busy week tomorrow night at home against Columbus. They are back on the ice Wednesday night at Buffalo, then they’ll play the Rangers on Friday night and come back home to face the Red Wings on Sunday.
Today is NHL trade deadline day. Teams have until three o’clock to make deals and the Penguins may be in the market for a scoring forward, but their salary cap is very near the top and in order to make an impact deal, they would likely have to trade one of their high-priced defensemen, such as Marcus Pettersson or Mike Matheson. One trading chip is forward Kasperi Kapanen, who has been snakebit all season long and has not re-found his scoring touch.
Coach Mike Sullivan is more concerned with the players he has than with the ones he may lose or get. His power play has been slumping lately, but he says they are getting quality chances, and something should click soon.
Penguins captain Sidney Crosby is focused on the final quarter of the regular season, with an eye toward peaking for the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Kapanen scored a goal Saturday against Phoenix, his first in 20 games. After Sullivan sat him down for a game as a healthy scratch, his game has picked up and he is getting chances. He says stepping back for a game helped.
Yesterday, the Penguins signed defenseman Mark Friedman to a two-year contract extension. He’s been basically the seventh defenseman in a six-man group, although he’s gotten more playing time and has been very effective lately.
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