Pens Points: Should Sutter Stay as 2C?

Good morning one and all,

No game till Friday but we do have a great lineup of fun (and mostly good for a change) news. Off we go.

Kris Letang put in a full practice on Tuesday, and he seems like a safe bet to play on Friday, barring any unexpected setbacks. [Penguins Roundup]

Patric Hornqvist, while not officially diagnosed with a concussion, sat out a few days but he too looks possible (or even probable) to return on Friday against the Flames. [Trib - Yohe]

Is Sidney Crosby stuck in a scoring rut? Yeah, kind of (for him, I mean). He'll probably burst out of it with a vengeance if I know anything about this guy. [NHL.com]

I really like when Seth Rorabaugh sits down with a player. Here is his interview with big guy Rob Klinkhammer (that name cracks me up). [Empty Netters]

Brandon Sutter is having success as a second-line center with Malkin on his wing, and some argue this is where he should be. I'm not sold on it, because I think Malkin should - and can - carry more weight at center, and frankly when you're thin you need your big guys to carry more. That said, I can't say enough good things about Brandon Sutter. Whoever is the fancy stats person who deemed him "consistently terrible", I hope he gets hired by the Flyers. [Hockey Buzz]

Scott Wilson, while formally on the big club roster, is rehabbing his leg injury in Wilkes-Barre. What a shame we weren't able to see more of him. His numbers in WBS are eye-popping - on ice for 22 goals for, 3 against. [Citizen's Voice]

On Friday we'll get to see the most pleasant surprise in the Western Conference aside from Nashville, those pesky Calgary Flames and their Norris frontrunner Mark Giordano. How are they doing it? [The Hockey News]

Here are Dan Rosen's five questions with Flames head coach Bob Hartley. [NHL.com]

Anaheim Ducks will lose Corey Perry for 3-4 weeks with a knee injury sustained in the Ballard hip check. [Pro Hockey Talk]

And while we're in Anaheim, guess who's back?? That's right, the one and only Ilya Bryzgalov was signed to a humongous big 1-year deal worth $2.88M, practically assuring John Gibson will toil in the AHL for the season. [Sportsnet]

The Chicago Blackhawks sent unhappy camper Jeremy Morin off on a conditioning assignment to the AHL. Way to circumvent the waiver wire, fellas. [Pro Hockey Talk]

Biznasty was released from a PTO in Portland but was immediately signed to another one by the Kings AHL affiliate in NH. [Manchester Monarchs]

Why Martin Brodeur's (presumably short-term) success is a long-term nightmare for the Blues. [The Hockey News]

Brad Richards's toughest adjustment wasn't joining the Chicago Blackhawks, it was leaving the New York Rangers. [NHL.com]

The entire Canadian nation is checking up on his x-rays and we're happy to report that Connor McDavid's cast was removed and hand is healing well ahead of World Juniors. Oh man if they lose to Finland... [The Score]

Despite Gary Bettman’s back-pedaling, an NHL team in Las Vegas is a virtual certainty. This is all moving rather quickly, or am I imagining things? [The Hockey News]

This was a nice read by Justin Bourne. Ten best NHLers from the east coast of Canada. You can guess #1, but I forgot about some of these other great players who all hail from Atlantic Canada. [The Score]

A cool new feature from Down Goes Brown: 10 facts about a team. The 1995-96 St. Louis Blues. [Grantland]

Jaromir Jagr moved into fifth place in NHL scoring history. Another look at what could have been for Jags. [The Hockey News]

So, in the end they couldn't actually point to any specific Paul MacLean failings, and it became the generic "he lost the room". What does that mean, really? Here are some ways coaches lose the room. [The Score]

You can't trick the people, though. A fan burst into MacLean's press conference to yell "You're the f***ing best!" [YouTube]

Nothing against Buffalo fans, but they're not the ones giving Zemgus Girgensons a 500,000-vote lead in the All Star vote. It's the Yao Ming syndrome - all those folks in Latvia with too much time on their hands. Get with the program, Slovenia! This is pathetic. [ESPN]

And for the end, the greatest tribute to Jean Beliveau by the incredible montage maker for Hockey Night in Canada. Feel all the feelings. [CBS Sports]