PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Penguins and Bryan Rust got some bad news Wednesday, and then a little more bad news with Rust’s suspension. Coach Dan Muse didn’t mince words in his reaction. The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins also made an interesting recall. Elsewhere in the Daily, the New York Islanders continued their trades with local rivals in a surprising move, Patrick Kane reached an American milestone, the Buffalo Sabres dealt the Toronto Maple Leafs’ season a hard right hand, and the Minnesota Wild is shaking the NHL trade trees for some bigger names, again.

Finally home. The connecting flight home from Minneapolis was canceled Monday night. The rebooked flight boarded. We all sat, but were then kicked off the plane because of a maintenance issue. They told us to stay at the gate…as every 30 minutes they delayed the plane, again … and again.

I got home around 5 p.m.

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Pittsburgh Penguins

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: Bryan Rust gets three games for his elbow on Brock Boeser. Here’s what the NHL Department of Player Safety said.

After the suspension, coach Dan Muse broke script and said a bit more than the typical defense. Muse criticized the decision and defended Rust.

And a couple of noteworthy recalls in the minors. Emil Pieniniemi and Melvin Fernstrom are headed to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.

Steelers Now: Mike McCarthy press conference. Alan Saunders said it went very, very well. Here’s the news and analysis from the Steelers press conference.

NHL Trade Talk, News, & National Hockey Now

New Jersey Hockey Now: Another day, another Islanders trade with a tri-state team. This time, the Islanders picked up Ondrej Palat and picks in the very freeing New Jersey Devils trade.

Sportsnet: How the playoff races are shaping up and what would happen if the NHL went to the 1v8 format or the 3-2-1- points format?

Detroit Hockey Now: It’s been a minute in the making. Patrick Kane tied Mike Modano for the all-time leading US-born scorer in the NHL. It’s been a ride for Kane.

Toronto Hockey Now: A closed-door meeting. Uh oh. Coach and players. What went on, and yeah, now it’s getting very serious for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Sportsnet: Also for the folks up North, it seems fans and media are waving the white flag on this season already. After a disastrous homestand, Luke Fox writes that it’s time for the Toronto Maple Leafs to give the middle finger to the playoffs and sell.

The Athletic ($): The Minnesota Wild are or aren’t looking at Vincent Trocheck? If not, they are looking at the other notable centers on the NHL trade market, and general manager Bill Guerin is big-game hunting, again.

Evgeni Malkin didn’t appear on this list. I think everyone got the message.

Philly Hockey Now: A rough patch was met with a rough practice. Coach Rick Toccet put the boys through some battle drills and shuffled his lineup. For the Penguins’ playoff hopes, the team to watch–so this is important–is the Philadelphia Flyers.

Boston Hockey Now: It seems we got another equipment manager assist. On ice. Off ice. Jack Studley breaks down the win over the Nashville Predators. Everybody was feeling it after the Boston Bruins’ win.

San Jose Hockey Now: Tell me again why some are leaving him out of the Hart Trophy race? Macklin Celebrini had four points, and the Vancouver Canucks were short against the playoff-contending San Jose Sharks.

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