Pens Points: Back to Brooklyn

For the third time in two weeks, the Penguins and Islanders will renew acquaintances on Thursday evening when they complete the second half of their home-and-home series, facing off at Barclays Center in New York. On Tuesday night, the Islanders completed a third period comeback before winning the game in overtime. This served as a answer to a Penguins overtime comeback victory on November 7th in Brooklyn. This will be the final meeting between the two sides until March 15th back in Pittsburgh.

Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 PM and will be broadcast on AT&T Sports Network.

Begin your Thursday with a fresh edition of Pens Points...

It didn’t make major headlines but the Penguins did make a minor trade on Wednesday afternoon that will be felt mostly at the AHL level. Graham Knott will be joining the Penguins organization from the Blackhawks in exchange for Joseph Cramarossa. [Pensburgh]

Overall, it has been a brutal season for Justin Schultz who is set to become an unrestricted free agent after the season. Unless he’s traded away, the Penguins will need to decide how best to use him going forward. [Pensburgh]

One way the Penguins could limit Schultz’ ice time if they decide to do so is increase playing time for rookie John Marino. Everytime Marino steps on the ice, he seems to impress all while learning something new at the same time. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]

Some good news on the injury front for once. Power forward and goalie pest extraordinaire Patric Hornqvist is set to return to the Penguins lineup on Thursday against the Islanders after missing six games. [Trib Live]

After blowing a late lead on Tuesday night, the Penguins still had a chance grab two points in overtime, but more poor play from their 3-on-3 units allowed the Islanders to score and escape with the comeback victory. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]

Both Bryan Rust and Matt Murray played a key role in the Penguins back-to-back Stanley Cup championships, but before they reached hockey’s highest peak, they started out as roommates in the AHL fighting their way to the NHL. [Penguins]

News and notes from around the NHL...

Washington Capitals forward Garnet Hathaway has been suspended three games by the NHL for spitting on Anaheim Ducks defenseman Erik Gudbranson last week. Hathaway was ejected from the game following the incident. [NHL]

Bobby Ryan will be away from the Ottawa Senators for an indefinite amount of time as he enters the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program. The Senators nor the league expounded on what issues or matters Ryan will be attending to in the program. [Sporting News]

Goal scoring has been on the upswing over the past few seasons and it should come as no surprise given all the high scoring talent in the NHL today. While some teams can spread their offense out, others rely on one or two players to do the heavy lifting. [ESPN]