Pens Points: Another Light Week

It’s a new week but the schedule is even emptier for the Pittsburgh Penguins than it was last week. It was only supposed to be a two game week to begin with but schedule changes have left only a single game against the New York Islanders set for Thursday. Between now and the end of the month, the Penguins will only play games against either the Islanders and Washington Capitals so be prepared to get very familiar with those two sides.

A new Pens Points to open a new week...

ICYMI from Saturday, the NHL announced a laundry list of schedule changes and the Penguins had eight games affected by the moves. They have another lengthy break this week but the games will come fast and furious as the season moves along. [Pensburgh]

With all the postponements wreaking a havoc across the NHL, there wasn’t much movement in the standings from our update last week. The Penguins remain in fourth place but only sit one point ahead of everyone below them, all who have game in hand. [Pensburgh]

Note: Since that piece was published, the Philadelphia Flyers defeated the Washington Capitals to vault into a first place tie atop the division.

Since having their 2019-20 season halted almost 11 months ago, the AHL has been out of action ever since. Now, even as the pandemic that shut it down still rages on, the league is set to begin its newest campaign today with 28 teams taking part. [Pensburgh]

The Penguins search for their next general manager enters another week and the candidate list remains quite long at the moment. Ron Hextall has been granted permission to interview for the post with many believing he is the best fit for the team. [Trib Live]

For the most part, the Penguins were the better team on Saturday night, but the better team doesn’t always win. With the Penguins leading 3-2 in the third period, a costly gaffe by defenseman Kris Letang opened the door for the Islanders and they took advantage. [The Athletic $$]

Regardless of whether you are a football fan or not, Sunday was a significant date on the sports calendar with the Super Bowl taking place in Florida. The Penguins were split in their picks on the winner but it was Pierre-Olivier Joseph who had the best pick. [KDKA]

News and notes from around the NHL...

At the rate things are going, you’re going to need a whole Excel spreadsheet to keep track on which players are currently on the COVID list. As of Sunday, there are over 40 players sidelined with 15 coming from the New Jersey Devils. [TSN]

Teams are either at, over, or approaching the 10 game mark of the season and we are starting to get a better sense of where everyone stands. So far, the good teams have been good and the bad have been bad, but there are also a few surprises lurking. [Yahoo! Sports]