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Every week there are minor moves and stories around the National Hockey League that tend to fall through the cracks. Consider this our weekly roundup of those stories from the previous week, all wrapped up in one neat little package.Right about now, it seems like an eternity since Petr Sykora ended game 5 of the Stanley Cup Finals in the third overtime, capping off one of the classic moments in Penguins history. At that point, everything was roses in Pittsburgh, presumably because the team was two wins shy of potentially claiming its third Stanley Cup.
What a difference a few months makes.
Here we are, ready to turn the calendar over to 2009, and everything seems to be coming apart for the flightless birds. We've already talked about the month-long slump the Penguins have been in, and following last night's loss to Boston, the team held a players only meeting. Here's what head coach Michel Therrien had to say on the topic: "it's about time they had a meeting ... I'm anxious to see what's going to come out of this."
Yeah, Michel, so are we. The most troubling thing to come out of Therrien's post-game presser was the comment that some guys are more concerned about "personal agendas," and not the team concept, which is a complete 180 from what we saw a season ago. Ouch.
So, is this team just not as good as we thought? Underachieving? Simply in a slump? Honestly, it's probably a combination of all three right now.
As I said this morning, the Penguins record on December 31 isn't all that different from where it's been the previous two seasons on the same date:
2008-09: 19-14-4
2007-08: 20-16-2
2006-07: 16-15-6
Obviously, the Penguins were able to close the previous two seasons white-hot, finishing with 105 and 102 points respectively. Hopefully they have not only another mid-season push in them, but also another Marian Hossa on the radar. They need both.
Though, I still think they're playing with fire to play like crap the first three months of the season, and then rely on a 20-4 run during January and February to cement their status in the playoffs. Because, you know, that's not always going to happen.
Signings You Probably Missed
... Tampa Bay signed its fifth round pick from this year's entry draft, goaltender Dustin Tokarski, to a three-year entry level deal. He's currently playing for team Canada in the IIHF World Junior Championships.
... The Ducks added some toughness to their AHL team in Iowa this week by signing Matt McCue to a three-year entry level deal. McCue is an enforcer all the way, registering over 100 penalty minutes three different times -- including this season -- in the Western Hockey League. In 34 games between the Brandon Wheat Kings and Medicine Hat Tigers this season, McCue has already picked up 101 penalty minutes, while scoring five goals.
Fail of the Week
With his team trailing 4-0 in the second period Monday night, Nashville's Jordin Tootoo attempted to deliver a big hit along the boards.
Nice.
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