Sport-scan daily brief

Winners of 15 straight in March, the short-handed Penguins were outclassed for a second consecutive game. Buffalo snapped the Penguins' win streak with a 4-1 victory Tuesday at Consol Energy Center.

In their 10 losses this season, the Penguins have been outscored, 45-19.

The Penguins, still the leaders of the Eastern Conference by five points because of Montreal's loss in Philadelphia, will look to avoid a three-game losing streak when they host the Rangers on Friday night.

They should be better equipped by then.

New center Jussi Jokinen — acquired in a trade from Carolina on Wednesday — is expected to be in Friday's lineup. So, too, might defenseman Mark Eaton, who missed Wednesday's game because of an illness.

Star defenseman Kris Letang (broken toe) also could be back in the lineup shortly.

Although the Penguins are missing obvious star power — center Sidney Crosby remains out — the competitiveness that was so evident during their winning streak has been lacking during the past two games. During their streak, the Penguins seemingly created turnovers at will and rarely committed mental lapses.

The opposite has taken place during the past two games.

Center Evgeni Malkin and left wings Chris Kunitz and Matt Cooke took penalties that led to Rangers power-play goals.

The Penguins were outmuscled in front of the net on all three power-play goals. Dan Boyle and two new Rangers — Derick Brassard and Ryane Clowe — scored. Clowe scored twice, his first two goals of the season.

When the Penguins lose, they spend time in the penalty box.

In their 28 wins, the Penguins killed 86 percent of their penalties. In their 10 setbacks, their penalty kill dipped to 69 percent.

The Penguins find themselves short-handed five times per game when they lose but three times per game when they win.

Of course, they weren't much better during five-on-five play.

After Boyle had given the Rangers a 1-0 lead midway through the first, a defensive lapse allowed Rangers defenseman Ryan McDonagh to skate toward the net untouched from the right point and bury a shot over goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury's glove.

Two minutes later, another defensive miscue led to another New York tally.

Defenseman Brooks Orpik had possession of the puck to Fleury's right but was ridden out of the play by center Derek Stepan. Clowe gathered the loose puck and beat Fleury with a backhand shot to give the offensively challenged Rangers a sudden 3-0 advantage.

The Penguins never recovered.

Josh Yohe

Tribune Review LOADED: 04.04.2013

667908 Pittsburgh Penguins

Penguins notebook: Crosby endures another dental procedure

By Josh Yohe

April 3, 2013, 8:27 p.m.

Updated 11 minutes ago

Sidney Crosby had an outpatient dental procedure in Pittsburgh on Wednesday, an anticipated follow-up from his surgery to repair a broken jaw, his agent Pat Brisson said.

There remains no timetable for Crosby's return, mostly because of the uncertain nature of his recovery — an infection could delay his return. Crosby has gone four days without concussion symptoms since taking a puck to the mouth during the Penguins' home win over the New York Islanders on Saturday.

There are no symptoms of post-operative infection, and Crosby remains in good spirits, Brisson said.

Coach Dan Bylsma did not offer an update regarding Crosby's health.

• Bylsma also did not offer details about the recoveries of defenseman Kris Letang (broken toe) and defenseman Paul Martin (broken bone in hand). Letang has skated numerous times this week, and his return could be imminent. Along with the toe injury, he has been dealing with a sore groin for the past few weeks. Martin remains a possibility to return when the postseason starts.

• Defenseman Mark Eaton was not in the lineup against the Rangers on Wednesday at Madison Square Garden. Eaton was not feeling well during the Penguins' 4-1 loss against the Sabres on Tuesday, prompting the Penguins to leave the veteran in Pittsburgh. Eaton has surprised many with his play since being signed in February, and the coaching staff has been pleased with his penalty killing.

• Defenseman Robert Bortuzzo finally made it back into the lineup Wednesday. He had not played an NHL game since Feb. 28. Bortuzzo played three games during March in a conditioning assignment in Wilkes-Barre.

• Root Sports Pittsburgh's broadcast of the Penguins-Buffalo game Tuesday generated a 15.01 rating, according to Nielsen Media Research. About 450,300 local television viewers tuned into the broadcast, which was the eighth-highest rated Penguins regular-season game in Root Sports Pittsburgh history.

— Josh Yohe

Tribune Review LOADED: 04.04.2013

667909 Pittsburgh Penguins

Behind the scenes: Following the big Penguins trade

By Justin LaBar

April 3, 2013, 5:00 p.m.

Updated 6 hours ago

It's always fun getting to know or see something that most normally can't.

Every practice, every game, every trade and every injury-you see the press conferences at the podium, quotes from the players and analysis from the reporters.

The Penguins have been busy as the NHL trade deadline was quickly approaching. Our TribLIVE cameras followed Penguins beat reporter Rob Rossi on another day at the office, or arena, while covering the big trade that brought Jarome Iginla to Pittsburgh.

See the behind the scenes of covering the team, plus some fun interactions with players such as Evgeni Malkin and James Neal.

Tribune Review LOADED: 04.04.2013

667910 Pittsburgh Penguins

Penguins add Carolina forward Jokinen

By Rob Rossi

April 3, 2013, 1:54 p.m.

Updated 6 minutes ago

Jussi Jokinen is a Penguin because of Sidney Crosby's broken jaw.

The Penguins acquired Jokinen, a versatile forward, on Wednesday because Crosby is out indefinitely, general manager Ray Shero said.

Also, Jokinen's former club, Carolina, agreed to paying part of his salary next season, the last on a contract that counts $3 million against the salary cap.

The Penguins will not be on the hook for all of that cap hit because, under the new labor agreement, clubs can retain salary and cap cost for a traded player.

“It made it more appealing for us,” Shero said, declining to identify how much Jokinen will cost the Penguins next season.

The Penguins swapped a conditional sixth- or seventh-round pick in the upcoming NHL Entry Draft for Jokinen.

Jokinen, 30, was third on the Hurricanes, trailing only centers Erik and Jordan Staal, with 283 faceoffs. He won 168 of those draws (59.4 percent).

Faceoff wins are not a Penguins strength without Crosby, who has claimed 54.3 percent of his draws.

Center Joe Vitale, who rarely plays on the penalty kill, leads the Penguins at 63 percent, but he has taken only 211 draws.

Jokinen is a candidate to fill the top-line center role until Crosby returns.

The Penguins had tried right winger Tyler Kennedy, but Shero said playing Kennedy out of position is “not something we'd love to keep doing.”

Upon Crosby's return, and pending the availability of the top three centers, Jokinen could work on a fourth line — just as wingers Pascal Dupuis and the combination of Petr Sykora and Miroslav Satan did for the Penguins during their 2009 playoff run to the Stanley Cup.

“It's always been my strength,” Jokinen said of his versatility. “At junior I played center every other year, and it's been that way since I got to the NHL. Offensive role, defensive role, it's something I've always be able to do.”

Jokinen did not play Wednesday night.

He is scheduled to join the Penguins in Pittsburgh on Thursday for practice.

Rob Rossi

Tribune Review LOADED: 04.04.2013

667911 Pittsburgh Penguins

Second loss in a row as Rangers defeat Penguins, 6-1

April 3, 2013 10:32 pm

By Dave Molinari / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

NEW YORK -- The New York Rangers defeated the Penguins, 6-1, at Madison Square Garden tonight.

The loss was the second in two nights for the Penguins, who had won 15 in a row before being beaten at home, 4-1, by Buffalo Tuesday night.

They are 28-10 and remain in first place in the Eastern Conference, but Montreal and Boston, both of the Northeast Division, remain within striking distance.

The Rangers took control of the game during the first period, building a 3-0 lead.

Brian Boyle put New York up, 1-0, during a power play at 10:01, when a Brad Richards shot from just inside the blue line deflected off him and past goalie Marc-Andre Fleury while Penguins winger Chris Kunitz was serving a slashing minor.

The goal initially was credited to Richards, whose shot appeared to glance off penalty-killer Pascal Dupuis before eluding Fleury.

Ryan McDonagh gave the Rangers a two-goal cushion by beating Fleury from above the right hash at 12:19 and Ryane Clowe, acquired from San Jose in a trade Tuesday night, made it 3-0 two minutes later.

Clowe, who did not have a goal in 28 games with the Sharks, collected the puck after teammate Derek Stepan knocked Penguins defenseman Brooks Orpik off it, then threw a backhander by Fleury from the left side of the crease.

The Rangers' rampage continued early in the second period, when Derick Brassard, acquired earlier in the day from Columbus, scored on a backhander from the right hash to swell New York's advantage to four.

The Penguins finally broke through at 2:27, as Dupuis beat Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist from the inner edge of the left circle for his 18th of the season. Robert Bortuzzo and Brenden Morrow got assists.

If that goal gave the Penguins a lift, it didn't last for long, because Clowe struck again during a power play at 11:52 to restore New York's four-goal advantage.

Defenseman John Moore, acquired in the same deal that made Brassard a Ranger, made it 6-1 at 9:47 of the third.

The Penguins and Rangers will play Friday at 7:08 p.m. at Consol Energy Center.

First Published April 3, 2013 10:20 pm

Post Gazette LOADED: 04.04.2013

667912 Pittsburgh Penguins

Penguins continue to deal, add forward Jokinen from Carolina

April 3, 2013 1:41 pm

By Dave Molinari / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The Penguins have acquired forward Jussi Jokinen from Carolina for a conditional draft choice.

The choice will be a seventh-rounder unless Jokinen appears in at least half of the Penguins' playoff games this spring and they win the Stanley Cup, in which case it becomes a sixth-rounder.

Jokinen was on waivers last week, but went unclaimed.

Jokinen, who turned 30 two days ago, has six goals and five assists in 33 games this season.

His most productive season was 2009-10, when he had 30 goals and 35 assists.

Although the Penguins were believed to be in the market for a fourth-line forward today, there's no guarantee Jokinen will be used there.

He is versatile and skilled and a good faceoff man, going 168-115 this season.

Those qualities are of particular value to the Penguins since there is no word on when injured center Sidney Crosby will return to the lineup.

Jokinen also has a history of scoring in shootouts, although there are none of those during the playoffs.

He is not a classic rental player, because he has one year -- with a cap hit of $3 million -- remaining on his contract.

The Hurricanes will assume responsibility for some of Jokinen's salary in both this season and 2013-14, although precisely how much wasn't immediately known.

Post Gazette LOADED: 04.04.2013

667913 Pittsburgh Penguins

Penguins Notebook: Jokinen deal adds depth at forward

April 4, 2013 12:32 am

By Dave Molinari / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

NEW YORK -- If Sidney Crosby were healthy, there's little chance Jussi Jokinen would be on the Penguins' payroll today.

But it turns out that Jokinen, acquired from Carolina Wednesday for a conditional draft choice, won't just be taking Crosby's place on the roster. He will be moving into Crosby's spot on the No. 1 line, between Chris Kunitz and Pascal Dupuis.

Which doesn't mean Jokinen sees himself trying to fill the entire void created when Crosby was forced out by a broken jaw.

"I don't think I can try to be a player like Sidney Crosby," he said. "There's only one Sidney Crosby in the world."

Jokinen, however, has no problem with temporarily moving into Crosby's spot.

"Obviously, [Kunitz and Dupuis] are two pretty good hockey players," he said.

Putting Jokinen, who is scheduled to join the team today, in the middle will allow the Penguins to shift Tyler Kennedy back to right wing, a position for which general manager Ray Shero believes he is "better suited."

Jokinen, who turned 30 Monday, put up 30 goals and 35 assists in 2009-10, but has managed just six goals and five assists in 33 games this season.

The Hurricanes put him on waivers last week, but he went unclaimed, at least in part because of his $3 million salary-cap hit, which runs through next season.

Carolina agreed to pick up a portion of his salary for what remains of this season and all 2013-14, although neither team would divulge precisely how much. The Hurricanes couldn't have done that if the Penguins, or any other club, had claimed him on waivers.

"The price to get him is worth it," Shero said.

Actually, the Penguins won't pay any price at all if they don't have serious success this spring.

They won't have to give Carolina anything unless they reach the Stanley Cup final and Jokinen appears in at least 25 percent of their playoff games, in which case the Hurricanes would get a seventh-round draft pick. That choice will be upgraded to a sixth-rounder if the Penguins win the Stanley Cup and Jokinen appears in at least half of their postseason games.

The Penguins initially inquired about Jokinen several weeks ago with his ability to work in any forward position the primary attraction.

"He's a versatile guy," Shero said. "Depth is important at this point."

Coach Dan Bylsma said that when Crosby comes back, "you could see [Jokinen] being a guy playing on a fourth line and fill[ing] specific roles on your team, be it faceoffs, be it on the power play. A faceoff guy on the fourth line, as well.

"There are various roles he could fill at that point in time where you get everybody healthy. He's not just a guy who's here for one specific thing, then out of the lineup."

Jokinen played with Brandon Sutter in Carolina and Brenden Morrow in Dallas, so he won't be walking into a locker room full of strangers.

Not that fitting in figures to be much of an issue, anyway.

"He's pretty quiet, for the most part, but a great guy," Sutter said. "He gets along with everyone. No concern there."

Facing a different lineup

The New York Rangers team the Penguins faced at Madison Square Garden Wednesday night was a lot different than it would have been 24 hours earlier.

New York acquired rugged forward Ryane Clowe from San Jose Tuesday night, then dealt winger Marian Gaborik to Columbus shortly before the trade deadline Wednesday afternoon.

Both moves might have seemed a bit perplexing, given that the Rangers entered the game averaging a league-low 2.26 goals per game and that Clowe did not have a goal in 28 games with the Sharks this season and Gaborik was one of New York's few big-time offensive talents.

Gaborik's game did not mesh with coach John Tortorella's style, however, and New York was looking to add the rugged edge Clowe can provide. In addition to Clowe, forward Derick Brassard, and defenseman John Moore, both acquired in the Gaborik deal, were in the lineup.

"They're changing pitchers on the fly here on you," Bylsma said a few hours before the game. "At our meeting this morning, in terms of what to be ready for, a good portion was about Gaborik."

Tip-ins

Penguins defenseman Mark Eaton missed the game because of illness. ... The Penguins and Rangers are involved in a relatively rare home-and-home series, with the rematch scheduled Friday night at Consol Energy Center. ... The Penguins traded minor league goaltender Patrick Killeen to Columbus for considerations.

Season and career statistics for newly acquired Jussi Jokinen, a 30-year-old left winger acquired from Carolina:

Category ... 2013 ... Career

Games ... 33 ... 569

Goals ... 6 ... 121

Points ... 11 ... 346

Plus/minus ... --8 ... --11

Post Gazette LOADED: 04.04.2013

667914 Pittsburgh Penguins

Hungry newcomers lead desperate Rangers past Penguins, 6-1

April 4, 2013 12:32 am

By Dave Molinari / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

NEW YORK -- This is, at least for the moment, not much more than a hiccup.

The challenge for the Penguins will be to prevent it from turning into a hemorrhage.

Their 6-1 loss against the New York Rangers Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden was their second lopsided defeat in as many nights. And while this isn't the first time the Penguins have lost consecutive games this season, it is the first time they've done so after winning 15 in a row.

The momentum they built while charging through March without a defeat has dissipated, and the reality of having to compete without the likes of Sidney Crosby, Paul Martin and Kris Letang in their lineup seems to be setting in.

Hard.

Although the Penguins, as currently constituted, hardly are devoid of skill, the holes the injuries to those three have left in their lineup make the Penguins look far more vulnerable than they did just a few days ago. Still, the most troubling thing is not that they've lost the past two games, but how it has happened.

"They beat us [in] battles," left winger Matt Cooke said. "That's unacceptable.

"Obviously, we know the right way to win and the way we did win. For the last two games, we haven't been even close to that level, that execution. And that needs to change."

Coach Dan Bylsma didn't pull goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, perhaps because he recognized early that most of the 18 guys in front of Fleury were the ones who deserved to be replaced.

The Penguins played with no hint of desperation, while the Rangers fought with the fury of a team in genuine peril of sitting out the Stanley Cup playoffs. Which, not coincidentally, they are.

The Rangers, who never led in three previous games against the Penguins this season -- all three-goal defeats -- never trailed Wednesday night.

Or were in real danger of falling behind, at least after the initial few minutes.

New York took control of the game in the first period, building a 3-0 lead after Chris Kunitz and Jarome Iginla of the Penguins hit goalposts on an early power play.

Brian Boyle put New York in front to stay on a power play at 10:01, when a Brad Richards shot from just inside the blue line deflected off him and past Fleury while Kunitz was serving a slashing minor.

Ryan McDonagh gave the Rangers a two-goal cushion by beating Fleury from above the right hash at 12:19 and Ryane Clowe, acquired from San Jose in a trade Tuesday night, made it 3-0 two minutes later.

Clowe, who did not have a goal in 28 games this season with the Sharks, collected the puck after teammate Derek Stepan knocked Penguins defenseman Brooks Orpik off it, then threw a backhander by Fleury from the left side of the crease.

The Rangers' rampage continued early in the second, when Derick Brassard, acquired earlier in the day in the trade that sent Marian Gaborik to Columbus, scored on a backhander from the right hash to swell New York's advantage to four.

The Penguins finally broke through at 2:27, as Pascal Dupuis beat Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist from the inner edge of the left circle for his 18th of the season. Robert Bortuzzo and Brenden Morrow got assists.

If Dupuis' goal gave the Penguins a boost, it didn't last for long, because Clowe struck again on a power play at 11:52 to restore New York's four-goal advantage.

Defenseman John Moore, who went to New York in the deal that made Brassard a Rangers player, made it 6-1 at 9:47 of the third.

Moore's goal came at even-strength, but manpower wasn't a key variable at any point. New York had its way five-on-five, on the power play and while short-handed.

"The Rangers were very desperate, hungry," Iginla said. "We didn't match it."

The Penguins seem to understand that that must change. And that they can't count on any miracle recoveries by injured teammates to make it happen.

"It's going to have to be the guys in this locker room," Dupuis said. "Sid's not going to come back Friday, and [Letang] and Paul Martin are not going to be here.

"It's the guys who are in here. It has nothing to do with the skill level or whatever you want to talk about. It has to do with battle level, and wanting it more."

A lot more, it seems, than the Penguins have in the past two games.

Post Gazette LOADED: 04.04.2013

667915 San Jose Sharks

Hockeytown 2.0: San Jose a top spot for the icy winter sport

By Mark Emmons

Posted: 04/03/2013 04:08:51 PM PDT

Updated: 04/03/2013 05:37:00 PM PDT

When Sharks star Patrick Marleau arrived in 1997 as a 17-year-old rookie, it never dawned on him that San Jose still was relatively new to hockey.

"Maybe it was because the fans always were here and so supportive," Marleau recalled. "Everybody always seemed to like the sport."

Now, as girls' and women's players from around the country have descended this week upon the Bay Area for marquee tournaments, there's no denying what Marleau sensed way back then. Yes, the nickname of Hockeytown already is claimed by Detroit. But San Jose quietly has become a strong hockey town in its own right -- even with our flip-flops weather, swaying palm trees and lack of long history with the wintry game.

And it goes beyond the fact that the popular Sharks are riding a 128-game sellout streak as spectators have made HP Pavilion one of the NHL's loudest arenas. The Bay Area now is home to the country's largest number of adult-league players. Demand for ice time is so high throughout the region that there are plans to add two more rinks to the sprawling Sharks Ice complex in San Jose.

Those facilities help explain why this week about 2,200 players are in San Jose, Fremont and Oakland for the USA Hockey Girls' and Women's National Championships. The events, the biggest ever hosted by the Bay Area, are the latest examples of how the game has established a strong toehold in a sun-kissed locale that can seem so out of place with the icy sport.

"We really

are a poster child for the nontraditional hockey market," said Jon Gustafson, general manager of Sharks Ice Properties, which manages three local recreational venues. "The city just fell in love with the Sharks, and the sport started to grow from there."

Hockey also has become an engine for the local economy. In addition to the "thwack" of slap shots, you might be hearing the sound of cash registers ringing. All those players and their families are filling up hotel rooms and restaurants.

But even those visiting for the first time are aware that the game has bloomed in the Bay Area.

"When you're in our world, you know where there's strong interest in hockey," said Glenn Patrick, coach of the Keweenaw Storm girls' team from the rural Upper Peninsula of Michigan. "So people know all about San Jose and how it supports the sport."