Mark Madden Columns category, Page 43

I’ve been a Penguins fan since I was 6. Working in journalism has made me hide that occasionally. But I’ve never done a great job at it, or even felt the need to. On Sunday, I was embarrassed to be a Penguins fan. Matt Murray struggled in goal at game’s...

I grew up loving the Pittsburgh Steelers of the ’70s: four Super Bowl wins and right in my wheelhouse chronologically. The Pro Football Hall of Fame made me hate those Steelers. Ten players, the coach, the owner and the owner’s son/primary designer of those teams are recognized by Canton. Thirteen...

The Houston Astros were heavily punished for using technology to steal signs during their march to a World Series win in 2017. Their GM and manager were suspended for a year, then fired. They lost first- and second-round draft picks this year and in 2021. The club was fined $5...

Who should play with Sid? That ought to be a game show. Josh Getzoff could host. He’s got the look, and the rap. With Sidney Crosby’s return to action seemingly imminent, the Penguins lineup must be shuffled to accommodate. But not too much. The Penguins have the most points in...

Tristan Jarry leads the NHL in all three significant goaltending categories. Matt Murray’s stats are his career worst in goals-against average and save percentage. Yet the story of the Penguins’ goaltending situation is far from written. Murray is playing better. He has won three of his last four starts. He...

Kris Letang is an elite defenseman. He finished sixth in the balloting for the NHL’s Norris Trophy (top defenseman) last season. Letang’s numbers for 2019-20 are strong: 10 goals, 18 assists and plus-7 in 35 games. His fancy stats are good, too: The Penguins have controlled the puck 54.9% of...

After nearly two full decades, the New England dynasty is over. (Probably.) That’s the good news. But the Pittsburgh Steelers never got a signature playoff win against that dynasty. That’s the bad news. That’s why Steelers fans shouldn’t gloat about New England’s elimination by Tennessee in Saturday’s wild-card playoff round...

Before it started, the Steelers’ season had promise. Then Ben Roethlisberger got hurt. Then the Steelers were 1-4. Then they were 8-5. Then the Steelers collapsed and missed the playoffs. The 2019 campaign was very literally up and down, then up, then down again. Should you be disappointed the Steelers...

Take down the Christmas decorations and put up refreshing sports notes! I got a lot of problems with you people, and you’re going to hear about it! • New Year’s Eve is JuJu Smith-Schuster’s favorite holiday: party for six hours, then drop a ball at midnight. (That joke was stolen...

The Penguins started their Christmas break last Saturday. Unfortunately, they also played that night at Vancouver. What a dastardly performance in a 4-1 loss. But, as we await the Penguins’ re-emergence Friday at Nashville, fans of the team have little complaint. Despite being beset by a hailstorm of injuries, including...

For the second straight year, the Steelers seemed to be locked into a playoff berth late in the season. For the second straight year, they’re going to blow it. What went wrong? The most shocking development: The offensive line fluctuated between mediocre and terrible. Ramon Foster is washed up. Alejandro...

Mike Tomlin is a strong candidate for NFL Coach of the Year. But jabroni quarterback Duck Hodges throwing 38 times in a losing effort vs. Buffalo didn’t help. Neither did Hodges tossing four balls to the wrong team. OK, so the Bills had eight men in the box. Is the...

The Pirates signed catcher Luke Maile. He hit .151 with Toronto last season. His career batting average is .198. Gee, how can you not get excited? The new Pirates management effectively has batted its eyes at the local stooge media, because we keep reading/hearing about Maile’s defensive acumen, particularly his...

Every duck has his day. But for Devlin Hodges, his day is done. The Steelers should start Mason Rudolph in Sunday’s game at the New York Jets. Hodges caught lightning in a bottle. He won three games as a starter, one in relief. But when confronted by a good defense...

Hockey is a physical, grueling sport. Those who play it are tough. So why do they need a help line? NHL commissioner Gary Bettman recently instituted measures to curb coaching misconduct. Among those measures is a help line that current or former players can use anonymously to report abuse. No...

After Spygate in 2007, the New England Patriots lost a first-round draft pick. Coach Bill Belichick was fined $500,000. The team was fined $250,000. That punishment was fair. But the Patriots kept cheating. The NFL’s discipline inexplicably got lesser. After Deflategate in 2015, quarterback Tom Brady was suspended four games,...

Punch ’em in the beak, and put it on my bill! The Duck dynasty is upon us, and we’re quacking up! Hey, sports editor: Post these refreshing sports notes on the web. Beak, bill, quack, web, GET IT? I might be mallard-justed. Duck, you suckers! • Never mind Jordan Berry...

The Penguins don’t have a goalie controversy. Not yet. Backup Tristan Jarry has played well: He’s 5-1 with a 1.86 goals-against average and .941 save percentage in his last six games. He made 28 saves as a Penguins team missing seven regular players blanked Stanley Cup champion St. Louis, 3-0,...

Brian Dumoulin is out eight weeks after ankle surgery. Justin Schultz is sidelined by a lower-body injury. That leaves two big holes on defense. The Penguins also are decimated up front in the absences of Sidney Crosby, Nick Bjugstad and Bryan Rust. (Just when Rust got red-hot, too.) But the...

Are the Baltimore Ravens the NFL’s best team right now? Yes. Can they be the NFL’s best team on a frozen January day in Foxboro, Mass.? Maybe. New England is said to be “in trouble” despite a 10-1 record. At 43, quarterback Tom Brady might finally be fading, albeit in...

For those imagining Sunday’s game between the Steelers and Cleveland will morph into a blood feud or race war on Heinz Field’s grass or in its adjacent parking lots, think again. The current fans and players are soft as puppy excrement compared to those competing and watching when Steelers vs....

Mike Tomlin has not committed to a starting quarterback for this week’s home game against Cleveland. Mason Rudolph stunk out the joint before being pulled in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 16-10 win Sunday at Cincinnati. Devlin Hodges wasn’t much better, manufacturing a big play thanks to a James Washington stiff-arm, not...