LOS ANGELES — The Pittsburgh Penguins have a day off on Wednesday, but they had a rough night Tuesday in which they had chances, traded chances, and had plenty of team defense breakdowns. We did the heavy lifting in the report card, so you know what’s going on. The team also laid out a plan for Harrison Brunicke and Ben Kindel in which they’ll be scratched, but kept the door open to one or both going back to juniors.

Elsewhere in the Daily, the Calgary Flames are on the NHL trade block for a backup goalie, there’s talk the Buffalo Sabres’ players could start asking out soon if they don’t start winning, and it’s not a good year for the Tkachuks as Brady suffered an injury that will keep him out at least a month, if not several.

We’re doing a Live Chat at 1:05 p.m. ET today, assuming the hotel WiFi holds out. If it doesn’t, I’m going to switch to a Q&A on X, but do a video so we can have a podcast version. The new folks tell me the podcast is picking up numbers, and on the Audacy platform, we’re actually generating money (unlike the last platform that paid me a couple of dollars…literally).

So, I’m also going to put some effort into making sure there’s at least one No Pucks Given each week, but trying for two.

Since I got back to the hotel and crawled into bed just a couple of hours ago, the Daily is going to be short and sweet (OK, I slept an extra 45 minutes).

Pittsburgh Penguins

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: A Penguins Q&A was mostly about the rebuilding process and the status of the rookies with the team. Could Kindel or Brunicke be sent back to juniors? Why was Ville Koivunen sent down? Could Kyle Dubas begin to rethink the rebuild strategy if the Penguins start winning games? There were some really good questions inside the Penguins Q&A.

Brunicke was scratched. Kindel will be scratched. Dan Muse clued us in as to what’s going on with the Penguins’ lineup.

We’ll talk a lot about this in the Live Chat. I may lead with it because there was a little wiggle room in the answer, a Freudian slip that caught my attention.

As for the game, we can skip past the recap (you NEVER read the recaps after a loss). The report card is worth paying attention to as we get into the bigger issues with the team, and I tried not to swing too big a club, but there are persistent Penguins problems.

NHL Trade Talk, News, & National Hockey Now

Jeff Marek begins digging the Sabres’ grave early.

32 Thoughts Podcast: Amongst other topics, including Mikko Rantanen’s heel turn, Elliotte Friedman reports the Calgary Flames have one goalie they trust–Dustin Wolf–but are not satisfied with the rest of their depth. So, they are on the trade market for a goalie.

ESPN: Uh oh. Brady Tkachuk is out a least a month with a hand/wrist injury, but it doesn’t end there. Surgery could be needed, which could keep him out longer.

TSN Insiders: Oh goody–more Nick Robertson trade talk. Will the Leafs finally (for god sakes, FINALLY) give him a fresh start elsewhere? More on Buffalo’s pressure and Montreal’s looming decision with Mike Matheson.

Canadian and Canadien media have been wondering about Matheson for two years, but also write about how well he’s playing and how important he’s become to the team. Folks, pick a lane, eh? Matheson is a good defenseman. He’s not a Hall of Famer. Leave it be.

Forever Blueshirts: Would you like to read about some Rangers misfortune? The up and down Blueshirts lost at Madison Square Garden, again. In the process, they set a dubious record that has never been “achieved” before. Here’s the breakdown of the breakdowns, and the New York Rangers make bad history.

Montreal Hockey Now: He’s electric. Ivan Demidov stole the show in the Canadiens’ home opener. The kid might be the best player taken in the 2024 NHL Draft, or at least, he’s going to give Macklin Celebrini a run for his money. Anyhoo–it was a big night for the Russian kid and a win for the Montreal Canadiens.

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