Pens Points: Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween, Pensburgh readers. No Penguins hockey until Saturday but still plenty of news to catch up on after they smoked the Flyers on Tuesday night and with the impending return of Evgeni Malkin to the lineup. Looks like the biggest treat we’ll get this year is a healthy Penguins lineup for the first time since opening night.

Your treat from us on this Halloween is Pens Points...

It didn’t take long for the Penguins to put the Flyers away on Tuesday night, but even with the victory well in the bad early, they kept piling on all game long by taking advantage of continuous Philadelphia miscues. [Pensburgh]

Sidney Crosby, Jake Guentzel, and Dominik Simon all scored goals against the Flyers on Tuesday night. This performance was just another example showing just how good this first line trio has been this season. [Pensburgh]

On Saturday, the Edmonton Oilers come to town for their annual visit to the city. Having the Oilers on the schedule means it’s time for another meeting between generational superstars Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid. [Pensburgh]

It’s only October and fans from all over have already been flocking to Pittsburgh to see the Penguins play. Earlier this year a woman traveled from Kazakhstan, now a young man from Ireland made the long haul and received the surprise of a lifetime. [Penguins]

It looks like Evgeni Malkin will return to the lineup on Saturday against the Oilers and his first order of business is clear, help jumpstart the Penguins slagging power play unit as soon as possible. [Trib Live]

With players returning from injury, others who were called up to fill their spots in the roster will be heading back to the AHL once their services no longer needed. One player who doesn’t believe he should be packing his bags is Sam Lafferty. [Trib Live]

Given the Penguins roster situation with everyone healthy, it may be difficult to find a place for Lafferty at this time, but he will surely be back. With a return to the AHL imminent, all Lafferty can do is hope to build on this experience. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]

For the first few weeks of the season, Dominik Kahun was nearly invisible on the ice. Now with two goals in his last two games, Kahun seems to be adjusting to life in Pittsburgh after that rough start. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]

One very noticable change for the Penguins this season has been the lack of odd-man rushes going the other way. This was a focal point for Mike Sullivan this offseason and so far it seems to be paying off for the Penguins. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]

If the scoreboard wasn’t enough evidence, a closer look at the numbers from Tuesday night show you just how dominant the Penguins were against the Flyers. From their four first period goals to flustering Brian Elliott, it was a complete thrashing. [NBC Sports]

While Tuesday night was fun for us, it was the exact opposite for our friends over at Broad Street Hockey, thought I guess it’s not supposed to be a good time when you’re biggest rival puts a touchdown on you. [Broad Street Hockey]

News and notes from around the NHL...

Any players held up from juniors for a trial run are now facing the decision whether they will stay in the NHL or head back for further development. One player who will be staying put is Kirby Dach of the Chicago Blackhawks. [Second City Hockey]

There is a lot of rookie talent all around the NHL this season, but in the end, only one will walk away with the Calder Trophy. With a month of hockey in the books, it appears Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar leads the rookie race. [ESPN]

It’s been a good season for goalies thus far, with more than a handful putting up all-star type numbers. Among the best through October are Tuukka Rask, Pekka Rinne, and our old friend Marc-Andre Fleury. [NBC Sports]