Pens Points: Rest and Recover

Coming off the formidable back-to-back against the Tampa Bay Lightning and Carolina Hurricanes, the Pittsburgh Penguins got some deserved time off before this ruthless stretch of games resumes Tuesday night with the Florida Panthers in town. A mostly quiet weekend for the Penguins didn’t see much happening in terms of on-ice news, but that could certainly change in the coming days.

Get the new week rolling with Pens Points...

Five points from last week’s slate of games helped keep the Penguins in second place in the Metro division for the time being. Along with Carolina and the New York Rangers, the division leaders have put some space between the fourth place Washington Capitals. [Pensburgh]

An astonishing 42 of the Penguins 77 points this season have come on the road. Currently holding a 19-6-4 record away from PPG Paints Arena, the Penguins are the best road team in the NHL with a dozen away games left to play. [Pensburgh]

Mark Freidman has returned to the Penguins lineup and made his impact felt immediately. Solid on defense and perhaps slightly unhinged, Freidman has been getting under opponents skin and that’s something he loves to do. [Trib Live]

What moves the Penguins need to make at the trade deadline remain up for debate. One move almost universally agreed upon was the need for a backup netminder. With Casey DeSmith surging at the moment, that need may be off the board. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]

With points in all three games last week, the Penguins were able to wash away the stench of a three game losing streak to get back on track. Perhaps the biggest takeaway from the week was their play against two of the best teams in the league on back-to-back nights. [Pensburgh]

A fired up Evgeni Malkin is the most dangerous Evgeni Malkin as the Lightning learned on Thursday night. After delivering a big hit in the neutral zone, Malkin forced a turnover then scored one of his trademark revenge goals to slam the door. [Pensburgh]

News and notes from around the NHL...

Even at 50, Jaromir Jagr is still lacing up the skates in his native Czech Republic. With war raging in Ukraine, thousands of refugees have poured into Jagr’s homeland. In an effort to help, Jagr and his Czech side Kladno will be raising funds to help those fleeing war. [NHL]