Talk about a choke-job. The Pens had the hated Flyers beaten in the Stadium Series Saturday night outdoors in the so-called City of Brotherly Love. If blowing a two-goal lead in the final minutes wasn’t bad enough, they let the Flyers score in OT to win in front of nearly 70,000 fans. This was a bad loss and a very costly loss. As of today, the Pens are on the outside looking in to make the playoffs. They need every point they can get. This one will sting for a while, and it should.
• This loss was on goalie Matt Murray. He flat out blew it, and he was man enough to take the blame afterwards. Does anyone have confidence that Murray can backstop the Penguins to another Stanley Cup? I don’t, and I’m guessing I’m not alone. If Murray doesn’t get it together soon, the Pens won’t even make the playoffs.
• If the loss to the Flyers wasn’t bad enough, the Pens also lost defensemen Kris Letang and Brian Dumoulin to injuries. If both are out a long time, and that is very possible, the Pens are in big trouble. It could also force GM Jim Rutherford to make a move before Monday’s trade deadline.
• IUP’s basketball teams were rolling until they got to Cal over the weekend. The men won, but didn’t exactly play their best game. They’ll take it. The women ended up losing to the Vulcans for the second time this season. That should make the upcoming PSAC Tournament, which will be held at IUP, even more interesting.
• Get ready to put your Le’Veon Bell and Antonio Brown jerseys on Ebay or Craigslist. They’re pretty much worthless after the Steelers said they will try to trade Brown and won’t put any tag on Bell. Brown has forced his way out of town with his ridiculous antics, yet the Steelers say they expect great value in return from any team that wants to acquire AB. GM Kevin Colbert even said the Steelers have been approached by three teams who have talked trade with them. I do believe there will be a team or two that has serious interest in Brown. I’m just not sure the Steelers will get a first round pick for Brown, even though I think he is worth far more than a first. As for Bell, he too can’t leave town fast enough. He’s gone, which means the Steelers will get a third round pick for losing him. Unfortunately, it won’t come until the 2020 draft.
• The Pirates won their opening spring training game. Guess Bob Nutting and Neal Huntington were right when they said this club is really hungry and could surprise.
• The Duke-Carolina game at Cameron Indoor Stadium the other night wasn’t what I expected. I thought Duke would win the game on their home court. I never expected them to get blown out. Losing Zion Williamson, who will almost certainly be the top pick in this year’s NBA Draft, to injury in the game’s first minute sure didn’t help Duke. Still, with all their talent I expected the rest of the Blue Devils to rally and make it a game. They didn’t. Most experts have Duke as a prohibitive favorite to win it all in March. Now, with or without Williamson, who knows?
• Will Williamson sign a shoe deal with Nike after having one of their shoes come apart that led to his injury? That could be the 100 million dollar question. It’s already been speculated that Williamson would get that much on a shoe deal. Will Nike get his signature when he goes pro, or will the other shoe companies take advantage of his setback to make their pitch once he declares for the NBA Draft? The shoe business is a dirty business. Getting Williamson to sign a shoe contact could make for a really good book.
• Just a few weeks ago New England Patriots’ owner Robert Kraft was hoisting the Lombardi Trophy. Now, he’s making headlines for soliciting prostitutes in Florida. Whether he’s guilty or not, this is not the kind of news that’s good for Kraft or the NFL. The league suspended Colts’ owner Jim Irsay in the past. Kraft could also find himself suspended by the league. There are no winners in this story, no matter what ends up happening.
