Jonathan Bombulie stories, Page 26
With Kris Letang out, defensemen take turns leading Penguins in ice time
BUFFALO, N.Y. – When Kris Letang went down with an upper-body injury during the outdoor game in Philadelphia on Feb. 23, the remaining healthy defensemen on the Pittsburgh Penguins roster realized it would require a collaborative effort to replace him. They’re taking that concept to the extreme. The Penguins have...
Ex-Penguins winger Conor Sheary heating up for Sabres
BUFFALO, N.Y. – When the Pittsburgh Penguins visit the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday night, the most dangerous scorer on the other bench might be a familiar face. With Jack Eichel serving the second game of a two-game suspension Thursday night and Jeff Skinner slumping, Conor Sheary is Buffalo’s leading scorer...
Injury news good for Penguins’ Bryan Rust, bad for Zach Aston-Reese
BUFFALO, N.Y. – The news was good for Bryan Rust, bad for Zach Aston-Reese and status quo for Kris Letang and Olli Maatta as Pittsburgh Penguins coach Mike Sullivan gave an injury update Thursday afternoon. Rust made the trip to Buffalo with the team and participated in morning skate in...
Penguins give Matt Murray night off in Buffalo
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Matt Murray’s streak of consecutive starts in net for the Pittsburgh Penguins won’t hit double digits. After turning to Murray to start the team’s previous nine games, coach Mike Sullivan will use backup Casey DeSmith in goal for Thursday night’s game against the Buffalo Sabres. Murray was...
5 fun facts about Evgeni Malkin’s 1,000-point milestone
Considering the only 88 players have reached the 1,000-point milestone in the 102-year history of the NHL, it’s pretty remarkable that PPG Paints Arena has hosted two such celebrations in the span of a little more than two years. Evgeni Malkin hit 1,000 with a third-period assist on a Phil...
Another big game for Jared McCann sparks Penguins
In 20 games since being acquired from the Florida Panthers in a Feb. 1 trade, Jared McCann has made a significant impact with the Pittsburgh Penguins. He’s scored nine goals. He’s given the team’s top-line duo of Sidney Crosby and Jake Guentzel a formidable running mate. He’s been an effective...
Three-goal flurry in 2nd period helps Penguins knock off Capitals
If he tried really hard, Evgeni Malkin could think up a thing or two that could have gone better on the night he became the 88th player in NHL history to record 1,000 career points. The milestone moment could have come on one of those trademark Malkin goals where he...
Trade to Capitals blurs line between good guys, bad guys for ex-Penguin Carl Hagelin
A short time after he was traded to the Washington Capitals on Feb. 23, Carl Hagelin came to a shocking realization. They’re not the jerks he thought they were all those years. Playing against the Capitals in high-pressure, high-intensity games for the better part of three seasons while with the...
Erik Gudbranson latest Penguins player to tackle Tom Wilson problemVideo
Over the past year-plus, controversial winger Tom Wilson has been the centerpiece of the rivalry between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals. From an illegal hit that injured Zach Aston-Reese in last year’s playoffs to a right hand that gave Jamie Oleksiak a concussion in a fight early this season,...
Opportunity knocks for Penguins’ Teddy Blueger with Zach Aston-Reese hurt
With winger Zach Aston-Reese sidelined on a day-to-day basis with a lower-body injury, the Pittsburgh Penguins will have a different look up front when they face the Washington Capitals on Tuesday night. Aston-Reese was injured in the second period of a 4-2 Penguins win over Boston on Sunday night. His...
With Zach Aston-Reese injured, Penguins call up Joseph Blandisi from Wilkes-Barre
Needing reinforcements after an injury to winger Zach Aston-Reese, the Pittsburgh Penguins called up forward Joseph Blandisi from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the AHL on Monday. Aston-Reese suffered a lower-body injury in the second period of a 4-2 Penguins victory over Boston on Sunday night and did not return. Afterwards, coach Mike...
Penguins leaning on young wingers for playoff push
Veterans Phil Kessel and Patric Hornqvist are in scoring slumps. Bryan Rust is injured. Carl Hagelin and his replacement, Tanner Pearson, have been traded away. On the wings, as they battle in a tight Eastern Conference playoff race, the Pittsburgh Penguins have placed their fate in the hands of a...
Penguins goalie Matt Murray thriving under heavy workload
Playing on back-to-back nights for the second time in the past two weeks, Pittsburgh Penguins goalie Matt Murray had one thing going for him Sunday at PPG Paints Arena: Space. “Columbus is a short flight, which helped,” Murray said, referring to the location of his team’s game the night before....
Penguins sign college free agent Jake Lucchini
Having regularly traded away draft picks in pursuit of Stanley Cup championships, it’s important for the Pittsburgh Penguins to replenish their prospect pool with undrafted college free agents. They took a step in that direction Monday, signing Michigan Tech winger Jake Lucchini to a one-year contract that kicks in next...
Jared McCann, Penguins cool off Bruins for key victory
While most NHL players fall somewhere between tolerating and actively hating it, Pittsburgh Penguins forward Jared McCann said he actually likes playing games on back-to-back days. “You almost feel better the second game. You feel like you’re still in it from the first one,” McCann said. He proved it Sunday...
Penguins, Blue Jackets end up where they started after home-and-home series
COLUMBUS, Ohio – There was plenty of sound and fury contained in a home-and-home series between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Columbus Blue Jackets that concluded Saturday night. There was the great Blue Jackets goaltending debate. Columbus coach John Tortorella all but admitted that Sergei Bobrovsky has a Penguins problem when...
Penguins to stick with Matt Murray in goal against Bruins
Pittsburgh Penguins goalie Matt Murray is officially moving into workhorse territory. Murray will make his eighth straight start when the Penguins play host to the Boston Bruins on Sunday night, coach Mike Sullivan announced a few hours before the puck dropped. Casey DeSmith, who hasn’t started since Feb. 21, will...
Penguins sign high-scoring draft pick Justin Almeida
The Pittsburgh Penguins got a draft pick under contract Saturday, signing 2018 fifth-rounder Justin Almeida to a three-year entry level contract that kicks in next season. A 5-foot-11, 165-pound center, the 20-year-old Almeida is having an outstanding season for the Moose Jaw Warriors, ranking fourth in the Western Hockey League...
For Penguins, schedule gets no easier after back-to-back set with Columbus
COLUMBUS, Ohio – A physical home-and-home series with the Columbus Blue Jackets that will wrap up Saturday night is just the beginning of the most difficult stretch of schedule the Pittsburgh Penguins will deal with in the last quarter of the season. On Sunday night, they’ll play the tail end...
Penguins aim to use shot blocking as a tool, not a crutch, down the stretch
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Columbus Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella had no problem pinpointing the one area of the game that gave his team the most trouble in a 3-0 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday night. Shot blocking. The Penguins held a 24-12 advantage in blocked shots in the...
Blue Jackets turn to goalie Sergei Bobrovsky for important matchup with Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins have won eight straight meetings with the Columbus Blue Jackets. Over the past two seasons, goalie Sergei Bobrovsky is 0-2-3 with an .882 save percentage of the Penguins. Columbus coach John Tortorella said he will pay neither of those facts any mind as his team prepares to...
Columbus rivalry makes Penguins’ Garrett Wilson feel right at home
A home-and-home series – like the one the Pittsburgh Penguins and Columbus Blue Jackets are currently in the middle of – is a relatively rare occurrence in the modern NHL. The Penguins, for instance, have only three of them on their schedule this season. For someone like winger Garrett Wilson,...
Penguins goalie Matt Murray heating up as season hits stretch run
By winning two Stanley Cup rings before his 24th birthday, Pittsburgh Penguins goalie Matt Murray established himself as the type of player who ramps up his game as the stakes get higher. Murray wouldn’t say he’s the kind of guy who particularly likes playing at this time of year, though....
Despite Matt Murray’s strong performance, Penguins fall to Blue JacketsVideo
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Faced with the prospect of falling six points behind the Pittsburgh Penguins in the standings, the Columbus Blue Jackets were forced into the role of a cornered animal Saturday night. Not even a spectacular performance from goalie Matt Murray could keep them from claiming their prey. Boone...
Phil Kessel ends scoring drought as Penguins blank Blue JacketsVideo
During the famous HBK run that carried the Pittsburgh Penguins to the 2016 Stanley Cup, Phil Kessel cemented his reputation as a high-stakes player. He scored a big goal in a big game again Thursday night, but the satisfaction of coming through in the clutch wasn’t the prevailing feeling that...
