Ah, the joys of being home for a couple of days before the whirlwind road trips through Canada and Sweden begin. The Pittsburgh Penguins have overachieved, and we took a sharp look at what is sustainable and what will regress, and how that will affect the rest of the season. Elsewhere in the Daily, three young players who are struggling with their current teams are on the NHL trade block, kind of. The Toronto Maple Leafs got some bad injury news, the Utah Mammoth are big-game hunting, and the Golden Knights officially gave Carter Hart an NHL contract.

I am starting a campaign for the Pittsburgh Airport to rename its parking lots. It’s incorrect to call it short-term parking or long-term parking if you can park in long-term parking for one day and you can park in short-term parking for weeks.

They charge more or less based on distance to the airport, right? So, we should call the three lots: Near, Middle, and Ohio.

What do you think?

I would like to congratulate Spirit Airlines for getting me back and forth to the Florida Panthers game mostly on time. Of course, they oversold the plane home by a half-dozen people (I was the next to last person to keep a seat).

And the guy sitting beside me on Thursday morning was so blasted or high that they had to move him from the exit row. He was probably 6-feet tall, about 275 pounds, and still wearing a gaming headset, but had no connection to this earthly realm. After three attempts to get him to say “Yes,” he could help in an emergency, the flight attendant finally asked, “Sir, do you know where we’re going?”

He replied slowly, “Nah, I’m good.”

And that’s now my go-to expression for everything in life.

The guy in the row behind me apparently chose some adult content, but his phone wasn’t yet connected to his earbuds, so we all got to hear a few seconds of his selection. My aisle got a good laugh out of that, too.

Spirit Airlines, never change.

Pittsburgh Penguins

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: There are a lot of players outperforming their expectations, including a couple of star players. What is sustainable and what will regress? And what happens when the regression hits? What comes next after the Penguins’ hot start?

Steelers Now: Mike Tomlin defended his secondary publicly, but internally he let the guys know that their performance has not been OK. Alan Saunders has the inside scoop on the Steelers’ secondary.

Pittsburgh Baseball Now: Danny Demilio says it’s a big blow to the Pirates organization. I say as long as the owner remains, mediocrity will remain regardless of any changes. The Pirates’ director of amateur scouting said bye-bye and left for a new job. Here’s the big Pirates news.

Not that the amateur department could find a hitter to save the planet.

Sportsnaut

Game 1 of the World Series was a blowout. The four big winners and losers of the Blue Jays’ big win.

Daniel Suarez signs with Spire Racing and reunites with a former rival. It’s pretty big NASCAR news.

The latest NFL power rankings of all 32 Teams.

NHL Trade Talk, News, & National Hockey Now

Spector’s Hockey: Pierre LeBrun had one report on TSN that Columbus is shopping Yegor Chinakov, and another on the Athletic that the Toronto Maple Leafs are taking calls on Nick Robertson. Our buddy Lyle Richardson has all of the trade talk fun.

Chicago Hockey Now: Lukas Reichel has been on the block for a hot minute, and Vancouver is desperate for help. Sooo, the teams got a deal done; Chicago Blackhawks trade details.

Vegas Hockey Now: It feels like we’re putting the trial and the salacious details behind us. The Vegas Golden Knights officially ended the PTO and delivered a two-year NHL contract to Carter Hart.

TSN: More NHL trade chatter. The Calgary Flames have been doused by the early season. No offense, few wins. Now the GM is making waves and trying to find some help.

The poor New York Islanders so badly want a national event with the NHL. Never mind that there are NO hotels within walking distance and NO arena district of shops, restaurants, or hangouts. The NHL keeps trying … OK, 2025 won’t work, how about 2026? Oops, you don’t like the Olympic send-off instead of an All-Star Game? Really? OK, ummm, how about the 2027 All-Star Game?

I’ve never covered an ASG, and as much as I love Islanders fans (really, I do), I despise that arena location and won’t be doing that one, either.

Sportsnet: The NHL power rankings with special attention to the NHL’s new crop of young players.

Tags: carter hart nhl trade Pittsburgh Penguins yegor chinakov

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