Pens Points Saturday: Letang Return Still Up in the Air

Good morning everyone,

The Pens dropped one in Florida last night. Zatkoff's NHL debut was not very good, but I suppose he'll get a few more chances. Zatkoff acknowledged the obvious and said he needs to be better. Something resembling a defense in front of him would be great as well.

Kris Letang participated in two consecutive optional skates on Friday and Saturday morning. It's another step forward in his recovery from a lower-body injury, and the team will keep evaluating his condition through the weekend. No word yet on when he might be back in the lineup.

The PHWA had their share of voting mishaps, none more hilarious than voting Ovechkin to both first and second All Star teams last season. Adam Proteau writes that voting trends for the Norris Trophy are starting to veer too much toward offense, arguing for more balance. Can't disagree with that.

The age-old adage of players wanting to play for a coach, or not wanting to play for a coach. The Buffalo edition, from Kukla's Korner.

The Flyers lost to the Coyotes 2-1 last night and dropped to 1-4-0, and also lost Scott Hartnell and Vincent Lecavalier to injuries for at least a week. At face value this would be a good thing for the Pens, their not playing on Thursday, but it would also mean more TOI for people I never want to see on the ice much against the Pens.

A great look at Twitter legend that is @Strombone1. But I'll have to say that the Kings' new backup Ben Scrivens (@Scrivens_30) is quickly catching up. What is it about goalies?

The founder of You Can Play Project and current NHL player safety director Patrick Burke details his battle with depression.

Expect the first big suspension of the season to be handed down on Tuesday, when Sabres' Patrick Kaleta has another date with Shanny, this time for a hit to the head of Jack Johnson. Last time they met, Shanahan made it clear he expected Kaleta to change. He's already missing two games leading up to the hearing.

Still a few unbeaten teams left standing. Which will be the last one to lose a game this season?