Monday links: Crosby's back, Easy December, Jordan performing, props for Dan and Ray

by Hooks Orpik on Dec 7, 2009 12:07 PM EST

Sidney Crosby declared himself good to go for tonight's game against Carolina. Chris Kunitz and Alex Goligoski also took to the ice, another step back in their return to the lineup. [Penguins.nhl.com]

The Penguins have no reason to complain about the schedule: they are tied with six teams for the easiest load in the month of December (games, wise). And for Pittsburgh eight of the thirteen games they play will be at home too. [From the Rink]

Grading the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton forwards to this point [Faceoff Factor]

Trending up: Jordan Staal. [Tribune Review]

Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby rank third and fifth, respectively, league-wide in a points per shift metric. [OGA]

Believe it or not, Dan Bylsma (who's been on the job about 10 months) is the 2nd longest tenured coach in the Atlantic Division. My new career: real estate agent to NHL coaches. [Empty Netters]

Ray Shero hasn't been on the job that long either (about 3.5 years), but he's ranked #6 on a list of general managers of the decade. [Puck Daddy]

Latest debunked announce cliche: Goalies don't need to see more shots to get in a groove. [Behind the Net]

THN hints at a lot of changes in their "People of Power" list, to be released later this month. [The Hockey News]

THN re-did the 2005 draft. Crosby went #1, natch, but Kris Letang (drafted 62nd overall) jumped up to 7th overall [THN magazine by way of HFBoards]

Flyers/Bruins won't be the only game to be played on the outdoor rink, as heated rivals Boston College and Boston University will go at it on Jan 8th. Bill Guerin and Brooks Orpik are BC guys, while former Pens Ryan Whitney and Chris Bourque spent time at BU. For this alone, BC is a lot more popular with the Penguins fan base. [NHL.com]

You'll never guess who Mark Streit would like to line up with a hit (hint: rhymes with Ron Ravery). [Fanhouse]

If you're a Twitter-head like me, check out Mirtle's list of NHL players that you can ~~stalk~~, err follow on it. [From the Rink]

The Flyers and Ray Emery are in struggle mode. Most thought they'd get through more of the regular season than this before these articles would pop up, it's still satisfying. [Philly.com]

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Wow dude, we seriously posted at the EXACT same time.

Follow the Penguins on SBN @ Pensburgh.com and twitter.

by FrankD on Dec 7, 2009 12:08 PM EST reply actions

Scary, isn’t it?

Pensburgh.com

You come at the king, you best not miss.

by Hooks Orpik on Dec 7, 2009 12:10 PM EST up reply actions

I really liked the Behind the Net article. I don’t consider myself much of a stathead but I really admire the work Hawerchuk does.

Follow the Penguins on SBN @ Pensburgh.com and twitter.

by FrankD on Dec 7, 2009 12:16 PM EST reply actions

That 2005 draft class is turning out to be a good one. It’s also amazing that the Avalanche were able to draft Paul Stastny in the second round (44th overall). They didn’t have a first round draft pick that year, having traded the 27th overall pick to Washington. And Stastny was their second draft choice, behind Ryan Stoa.

Ondrej Pavelec was also a second round draft pick that year.

by c0nquistad0rian on Dec 7, 2009 2:22 PM EST reply actions