Episode 34 - Plight of the Penguins with Josh Yohe from The Athletic

The struggles of the Pittsburgh Penguins take center stage as Josh Yohe joins Vic and Neil on a packed episode. Very few areas go untouched from the recent road trip to the front office, to head coach Mike Sullivan and superstar Sidney Crosby to the current dilemma in goal.

Along with "Three Things You Need to Pay Attention To," Neil explains part of the mindset of what a GM considers when deciding whether to keep a player with the big club or send him back to juniors in order to save a year on their entry-level contract.

Steven Stamkos return to Tampa as a Nashville Predator brings back memories to 1997 when Neil could not reach a contract agreement with Mark Messier and saw his captain sign in Vancouver.

The episode concludes with the "Human Side of the Story" and a look back to the life of hockey ambassador Bill Hay.

IN THIS EPISODE:

• [01:00] - The Winnipeg Jets burst from the gate as just the ninth team in NHL history to start 8-0-0.
• [03:06] - The struggles of the Edmonton Oilers overall play with Zach Hyman coming under particular scrutiny.
• [05:36] - Mark Stone the surprise scoring leader entering the last week of October.
• [07:22] - Josh Yohe from the Athletic joins the show and quickly takes the Penguins defensive play to task.
• [08:15] - Vic piles on asking Josh about the roaming, defense-void play of Erik Karlsson.
• [10:13] - Neil queries about Mike Sullivan's future as head coach and the overall plan of the Penguins leadership group.
• [14:20] - Discussion about Sidney Crosby taking lesser money to stay in Pittsburgh with the aim of freeing up money so the team can rebuild sooner.
• [15:47] - Vic follows up with the financial quandary of the Pens with very little cap space coupled with bad contracts the team has on its books.
• [18:35] - The goaltending saga is discussed with high-priced Tristan Jarry now the third wheel in net on the eve of multiple Penguins Stanley Cup winner Marc-Andre Fleury returning to Pittsburgh for the final time in the uniform of the Minnesota Wild.
• [22:30] - Remembering the one-year anniversary of the tragic passing of Adam Johnson from a skate cut while playing in Europe and the safety measures since taken by minor and youth leagues regarding neck protection.
• [25:15] - The N.Y. Rangers extend Alexis Lafreniere while the future of RFA Kaapo Kakko is in question
• [27:50] - Aleksei Kolosov makes his debut in the Philadelphia net, perhaps adding some much-needed depth in the Flyer goal.
• [29:24] - The surprising offensive outburst in Colorado by Ross Colton
• [31:40] - The significance of the nine-game mark for general managers and the challenge of keeping a junior player up at the NHL level or sending them back to junior so a year of the entry-level contract is not wasted.
• [34:00] - Former Lightning captain Steven Stamkos returns to Tampa for the first time after failing to re-up his contract.
• [36:18] - The Human Side of the Story pays tribute to hockey ambassador Bill Hay.

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgBj1LV0-DMfBhcRPSJZLjA

X: https://twitter.com/NHLWraparound

Neil Smith: https://twitter.com/NYCNeil

Vic Morren: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vic-morren-7038737/

NHL Wraparound Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/nhlwraparound/

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