Dan’s Daily: Trade Demands Fizzling; Penguins Clean Up

The Pittsburgh Penguins played a professional, clean game Saturday, which might not normally make headlines, but after the last 10 periods, the choir of angels sang, and the rainbox arched the arena. The Penguins beat the Dallas Stars in a shootout, but it was how they got there that was the story, and we've got the inside analysis. Elsewhere in the Daily, the fallout is just beginning in New York, where super goalie Igor Shesterkin is out for the year.

Also, the NHL trade rumors are beginning to turn from interested teams to staying put as the players who have demanded out confront the possibility that no trade is coming. But leave it to Montreal, which tried to change that for Dylan Larkin Saturday. Those glorious hockey-loving fans chanted, "We Want Larkin!" as the Montreal Canadiens beat the Detroit Red Wings.

I didn't write about this last night. I gave it only a passing reference, but the win over Dallas cannot be overstated. This season was beginning to teeter, and another bad loss or two and they would have been in the swamp. The Penguins are far from out of the woods, but simply not beating themselves to a pulp worked wonders.

But they always play well against the larger Dallas team that doesn't play a fast brand of hockey. They've got Chicago, Colorado, Vegas, and Utah on the docket next…

If anybody wants to grab dinner at Herbs and Rye in Vegas, or Bautista's Hole in the Wall, I'm in.

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: Dan made a mistake Saturday and checked the wrong button, so this story was behind the paywall for a bit, but I wanted to make it a free PHN+ preview. It's free now—our weekly Penguins insider column. The conversations we have in the room, the chats away from the media scrums, and the vibes were getting. This week, we followed up on our deep conversation with Ville Koivunen from last season, and Evgeni Malkin interrupted a conversation to declare who he wants to play with, which is definitely a PHN exclusive. Check it out—the Penguins Room feature .

I hope many of you will come back to PHN+ now that the tech side is settled.

To the game, you can get the game synopsis and the goals breakdown here . In the report card, we dug into the Xs and Os of the contest, as well as the sad, but one immutable fact as coach Dan Muse made a couple of lineup tweaks that paid big…BIG dividends in the Penguins' win .

We also talked with Spencer Stastney after the game. Boy, he's a talker. And our postgame video. Now more concise!

NHL Trade Talk, News, & National Hockey Now

Montreal Hockey Now: We want Larkin! The fans chanted, and even Larkin was a little taken aback by the fans. What's the reality of the Montreal Canadiens' trade pursuit of Larkin?

HNIC: The Hockey Night in Canada Headlines Segment. Elliotte Friedman poo-pooed immediate speculation that the Rangers could chase Connor Hellebuyck following Igor Shesterkin's season-ending injury. Friedman also raised the possibility that a few players will remain with their teams, especially Alexander Nikishin .

NHLtraderumors.me: Friedman reported Detroit is still trying to keep Simon Edvinsson, but if they do trade him, perhaps that's the way they get the young center they want. There are four potential targets if Detroit can trade Edvinsson for a young pivot .

Philly Hockey Now: It's the middle of October, and the Philadelphia Flyers are getting worse, not better. Another–yes, another–bad loss, this time to the Boston Bruins. Our Will James has the locker room reactions and analysis from Boston. Those lovable Philly Flyers are frustrated.

Boston Hockey Now: The flip side is that the Boston Bruins are figuring it out. Jack Studley was there with good coverage of the Bruins' win .

Those two, Jack and Will, are going to be staples in this business for a long time. They're good and getting better. I'm proud to have them on the team.

Chicago Hockey Now: Frank Nazar is in timeout after his ugly hit on Bo Horvat drew a couple of game suspensions. Nazar faced the music and said he texted Horvat, too. It was a bad look for the Chicago Blackhawks forward.