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<\/p>\nVANCOUVER, British Columbia \u2014 And the road trip continues for the Pittsburgh Penguins. The boys had a night in Vancouver Friday and will get another one Saturday before facing the Vancouver Canucks Sunday afternoon. As a travel day feature, we took a deeper look at one of the primary differences for this year\u2019s Penguins team.<\/p>\n
Elsewhere in the Daily, Mitch Marner made his awaited return to Toronto, and he got the full 2001 Jaromir Jagr treatment with vociferous boos and one moment of acknowledgement. The NHL trade market is stirring, and Evander Kane looks like the next contestant on The Price is Right. Minnesota\u2019s young goalie is on the trade boards, Seattle\u2019s Shane Wright isn\u2019t really available, and five destinations for Dougie Hamilton.<\/p>\n
OK, since I picked the last restaurant and my little Vancouver haunt closed, I let someone else pick dinner Friday. You might have been absolutely shocked to see me eating a sushi roll (spicy tuna. Quite good) and a vegetarian dish (because it was the cheapest on the menu, by a full $10). I don\u2019t do seafood very often, but everyone seemed to love the Blue Cafe, closer to the arena. Even my dish sans real protein was bouncing with bold flavors. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
But we\u2019ve got to have a serious talk with the PG\u2019s King Jemison. During the after-dinner beverage, apparently, a couple of women attempted to chat, but King was in between, and I never heard them. I wondered why I got a couple of awkward stares. King only told me about it after they left. He\u2019s a good addition to the beat, but we\u2019ve really got to work on his wingman skills!<\/p>\n
I kid. I kid. He\u2019s good people and I hope the PG survives for people like him. And, hey, I was looking pretty good last night. I mean, for my standards, anyway. <\/p>\n
Also, it was quite an honor to meet a couple of you in Edmonton.<\/p>\n
The Calgary-Edmonton trip is a hockey pilgrimage you must take. There\u2019s a feeling\u2013as a course of the community and culture, that the games matter. And you have to get to the Saddledome before it\u2019s gone. It really is a much larger version of the Johnstown War Memorial.<\/p>\n
Pittsburgh Penguins<\/p>\n
Pittsburgh Hockey Now: The column was a week in the making, and we didn\u2019t start out with the desire to reach the conclusion we came to, but it had become obvious in our conversations and being around the team. Here\u2019s our weekly Penguins insider column\u2013There is a big difference this year, and it is coach Dan Muse<\/a>.<\/p>\n Steelers Now: There are too many stories to link to them all. I think Alan Saunders and team are trying to set a land speed record for typing. The Shrine Bowl scouting, inside dirt on one of the coaching candidates, and more Steelers coaching interviews<\/a>.<\/p>\n NHL Trade Talk, News, & National Hockey Now<\/p>\n TSN: The difference between internet mavens who spill breathless trade rumors and the real thing is enormous if you look closely at the language\u2013very closely\u2013and keep score. The Seattle Kraken are looking to improve, and Shane Wright is kind of available in that process, but not really<\/a>. <\/p>\n Canucks Army: ESPN\u2019s Kevin Weekes used X to drop a hefty little bit of trade chatter. There are two teams interested in Evander Kane, and it seems like things are moving forward for either the Colorado Avalanche\u00a0or the Dallas Stars<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Athletic: What\u2019s next for the crumbling New York Rangers? Artemi Panarin is keeping mum about his preferred destinations, and could Alex Lafreniere be on the move, too<\/a>?<\/p>\n Lafreniere would seem to be the kind of player the Penguins would quietly stalk, at least in my sometimes humble opinion. He has skills and physicality that have only sometimes been on display in NY. He\u2019d be a nice fit beside Ben Kindel for a long time. I think. <\/p>\n Also from the NYT sports people, Pierre LeBrun reports the Edmonton Oilers have circled several top-nine forwards, the Maple Leafs are looking for defense, er, defence, and the Florida Panthers are making some calls<\/a>.<\/p>\n Boston Hockey Now: Another surprising team in the East is the Boston Bruins. One of the big differences this season\u2013along with a new coach\u2013is the effective, impactful Bruins power play<\/a>.<\/p>\n Philly Hockey Now: Will James correctly assesses that if there\u2019s a team that could pull Shane Wright out of Seattle, it is\u2013and should be?\u2013the Philadelphia Flyers<\/a>.<\/p>\n I don\u2019t think much of Philly\u2019s roster. They\u2019re in playoff contention, but in the times I\u2019ve seen them this season, they are uncharacteristically soft. I think they will fall away sooner than later, but some good trades like Wright could change the landscape. Oh, and some goaltending. <\/p>\n Vegas Hockey Now: Here\u2019s the game. Mitch\u2019s return. Take that, Toronto. The Vegas Golden Knights<\/a> came to play. <\/p>\n Sportsnet: It was like this all night. Boooo!! Toronto did give Marner some love during his tribute video \u2026 then went back to hate in his tense return<\/a>.<\/p>\n Historical aside: Marner chose to leave, but fans were a big part of that. Bad behavior. Jaromir Jagr was booed like that for years after he left Pittsburgh. It\u2019s a great thing the organization and he have made amends, but it remains the absolute dumbest and blockheaded reaction by fans in the history of Pittsburgh sports. Jagr didn\u2019t choose to leave Pittsburgh; the Penguins couldn\u2019t afford his paycheck, quite literally. They were just out of bankruptcy with a crappy arena deal, and didn\u2019t have two nickels. There was no revenue sharing or salary cap. He left to help the team survive (because a duffel bag full of cash coming back to the Penguins was part of the trade). Jagr could have come back to the Penguins on a couple of occasions, but chose other teams. All\u2019s well that ends well, but sometimes acting like a toddler who needs a nap can really have an adverse effect on your team. *Ahem, Toronto. <\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTags: mitch marner<\/a> nhl trade<\/a> Pittsburgh Penguins<\/a> <\/p>\n Categorized: Links<\/a> NHL Trade Rumors<\/a> Pittsburgh Penguins<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"VANCOUVER, British Columbia \u2014 And the road trip continues for the Pittsburgh Penguins. 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