The Pittsburgh Penguins have had a nice start to the season, as they have a 10-5-4 record and are third in the Metropolitan Division. When noting that they had low expectations heading into the season, there is no question that fans should be happy with how they have played out of the gate. 

With the Penguins starting the year off so well, they should be open to the idea of adding to their roster. However, with Pittsburgh retooling, they should specifically pursue young players who would help them beyond this season.

Two interesting young players recently entered the rumor mill who would have the potential to be a strong addition to the Penguins' roster. Let's discuss both of them now. 

Brad Lambert, F, Winnipeg Jets 

NHL insider Frank Seravalli reported that the Jets have granted Brad Lambert permission to seek a trade. When noting that Lambert is a former first-round pick and just 21 years old, he stands out as a potential fit for the Penguins. 

Lambert has had trouble cementing himself as a full-time NHL player with the Jets, but he certainly could change that on a team like the Penguins. The young forward has good potential and could become a nice part of Pittsburgh's roster if he takes that next step. 

Pavel Mintyukov, D, Anaheim Ducks 

Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman recently reported that Mintyukov would like a trade from the Ducks if he continues to be scratched. If Mintyukov does become available, the Penguins should make a major push for the young blueliner. 

The Penguins should be looking to improve the left side of their defense. A player like Mintyukov could very well grab their attention, as he is also a former first-round pick who is only 21 years old. He has also already shown promise at the NHL level, as he recorded four goals and 28 points in 63 games during his rookie year in 2023-24. 

The LA Kings are in San Jose to take on the Sharks in a key divisional matchup. 

The Kings are coming off a 2-1 loss against the Washington Capitals as they look to try to leap ahead of Vegas for second in the Pacific. The Sharks are coming off a 3-2 overtime win over the Utah Mammoth, which saw Macklin Celebrini score a hat-trick. 

Projected Kings Lines

Here are the projected lines for the Kings:

Andrei Kuzmenko - Anze Kopitar - Trevor Moore

Kevin Fiala - Quinton Byfield - Adrian Kempe

Warren Foegele - Phillip Danault - Alex Laferriere

Joel Armia - Alex Turcotte - Corey Perry

Mikey Anderson - Brian Dumoulin

Joel Edmundson - Brandt Clarke

Jacob Moverare - Cody Ceci

Anton Forsberg

Phoenix Copley

Projected Sharks Lines

Here are the projected lines for the Sharks: 

Philipp Kurashev - Macklin Celebrini - Will Smith

William Eklund - Alexander Wennberg - Tyler Toffoli

Adam Gaudette - Ty Dellandrea - Collin Graf

Barclay Goodrow - Zack Ostapchuk - Ryan Reaves

Dmitry Orlov - Timothy Liljegren

Mario Ferraro - John Klingberg

Sam Dickinson - Vincent Desharnais

Yaroslav Askarov

Alex Nedeljkovic

Lines and Injuries 

The Kings will be without Darcy Kuemper tonight as he is scratched, so Phoenix Copley will back up Anton Forsberg. Andrei Kuzmenko returns to the lineup after being scratched in the last couple of games, and he will be on the first line alongside Kopitar and Moore. The second line for the Kings has also been altered, with Fiala, Byfield, and Kempe now on it, which could prove deadly for the Kings. The Kings also placed Drew Doughty on injured reserve. The Sharks are missing both Michael Misa and Jeff Skinner due to lower-body injuries. 

Key Factors

The Kings have to be aware of the young guys on this Sharks team. Macklin Celebrini has been one of the best players in the NHL this season, and his connection with Will Smith is something the Kings will have to pay attention to. The Kings, on the other hand, have switched up their entire lineup, and their second line on paper is seemingly their best line heading into tonight's game, so that line will be relied upon. 

The Kings will have to attack the Sharks' defence, as per NHL Edge, which ranks last in the NHL in defensive zone play. If the Kings can be in the offensive zone and generate chances while building momentum, they will score goals and succeed. 

If the Kings can get going offensively tonight, they can push the Sharks and walk away with a win. My prediction for tonight's game is a 4-1 Kings win. 

The Providence Bruins announced they have signed Calder Cup champion defenseman Christian Wolanin and forward Shawn Element to Professional Tryouts (PTOs).

Wolanin had 40 points in 58 regular season games before adding 10 points in 17 playoff games with the Abbotsford Canucks last season, playing a major role in the team winning the Calder Cup. 

The 30-year-old was arguably the top available AHL free agent before signing the PTO.

A native of Quebec, Que., he won the Eddie Shore Award as the AHL's Best Defenseman, was named to the league's First All-Star Team and led the league in points by a defenseman in 2022-23. 

A fourth round selection of the Ottawa Senators in 2015, Wolanin is third on the Abbotsford Canucks all-time scoring list. He has 177 points in 238 career AHL games and 23 points in 86 career NHL games. 

Element has one goals, five points and 28 penalty minutes in six games with the ECHL's Maine Mariners this season.

📰 Providence Bruins Sign Christian Wolanin and Shawn Element to PTO, Recall Jacob Perreault from Marinershttps://t.co/nBTzWONixW

— Providence Bruins (@AHLBruins) November 20, 2025

The 25-year-old has 29 goals, 55 points and 263 penalty minutes in 208 career AHL games with the Ontario Reign and Syracuse Crunch.

The New York Rangers are set to play the Colorado Avalanche tonight at 9 PM EST at Ball Arena.

Here’s all you need to know ahead of this matchup: 

Projected Lineup:

Forwards:

Will Cuylle - Mika Zibanejad - Alexis Lafrenière

Artemi Panarin - Vincent Trocheck - J.T. Miller

Jonny Brodzinski - Noah Laba - Conor Sheary

Adam Edström - Sam Carrick - Taylor Raddysh

Defensemen:

Vladislav Gavrikov - Adam Fox

Carson Soucy - Braden Schneider

Scott Morrow - Matthew Robertson

Goaltenders: 

Igor Shesterkin 

Jonathan Quick 

Notable Storylines: 

• Igor Shesterkin is set to start for the Rangers. 
• The Rangers are coming off of a 3-2 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights.
• Will Borgen is day-to-day with an upper-body injury. 
• The Rangers currently hold a 10-9-2 record. 
• The Avalanche are coming off of a 4-1 win over the Islanders.

Mike Sullivan made a significant shake-up to his top-six forward unit ahead of the New York Rangers’ Thursday night matchup against the Colorado Avalanche.

During Thursday’s practice, J.T. Miller was moved to a line with Vincent Trocheck and Artemi Panarin, while Alexis Lafrenière played on a line alongside Mika Zibanejad and Will Cuylle. 

Before the start of the season, Miller and Zibanejad specifically emphasized their desire to play together to Sullivan, who obliged to their request. 

However, the duo hasn’t had the same level of success compared to the second half of last season, and Sullivan felt it was time to split them up with the hopes of elevating his top-six unit.

“We're trying to find some combinations here that give us a more consistent threat offensively,” Sullivan said of his line changes. “Although I think Troch's line has drove a lot of offense, I feel like Mika and J.T., in the last handful of games, haven't been as effective offensively. So sometimes, to effect a little bit of change from a personnel standpoint, can help those guys capture their best games.”

These adjustments also come after Miller voiced his disappointment in himself regarding his offensive struggles to kick off the 2025-26 season. 

Miller has scored just one goal over the last nine games, and he knows that he’s capable of producing at a higher level. 

“At some point you look in the mirror,” Miller said. “Speaking on behalf of myself, I certainly expect a hell of a lot more production than what I have. I've never really gauged my game on points, and I said that a lot. Typically, when I bring my game, the points come. That being said, this year, it seems like nothing's really going in the net. We've got a big enough sample size that 25% of the season is gone, and we're in a lot of 1-goal games. 

Rangers' Penalty-Kill Struggles And J.T. Miller's Harsh Criticism Of Himself Headline Loss To Golden Knights The New York <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-rangers">Rangers</a> started their three-game road trip on a sour note, losing 3-2 to the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday night.&nbsp;

“If I can raise my personal standard and lead the team a little bit better production-wise, I think our outcome in these games are going to change. So it's making me frustrated. It's hard to control that…Trust me, it's on my mind, but same time, come a long way, in a sense, of not getting wrapped up in that s–t.”

In the middle of the Rangers’ game against the Golden Knights on Tuesday night, Sullivan elevated Jonny Brodzinski to the line with Miller and Zibanejad, moving Cuylle to the third line alongside Noah Laba and Conor Sheary. 

Sullivan admitted he made those changes because he wasn’t satisfied with what the Miller-Zibanejad-Cuylle line was giving him offensively.

“I made a switch to Mika's line just because I didn't think they were getting much, so I was trying to effect a little bit of change,” Sullivan said.

You should expect to see these newly established top-six line combinations tonight in Colorado.

The Buffalo Sabres apparently believed that they had found the winning formula after a pair of victories over Detroit and Edmonton, but must have forgotten that they had lost eight of the previous nine games and were at the bottom of the Eastern Conference. The Sabres stunning lack of consistency was on display in a 6-2 loss to the NHL bottom-dwelling Calgary Flames on Wednesday.

The Sabres allowed the Flames to take an early 2-0 lead before rallying in the middle frame with goals from Mattias Samuelsson and Tage Thompson. Calgary, who had lost 5-2 in Chicago on Tuesday and started backup goalie Devin Cooley in the second of back-to-back games, retook the lead early in the third on a Morgan Frost goal and proceeded to pull away with a pair of goals from Mikael Backlund and Joel Farabee 2:16 apart. 

After the game, Thompson was at a loss to explain the club’s inability to rise to the occasion against teams like Calgary and St. Louis on home ice, who are both at the bottom of the Western Conference standings.  

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 "I thought all game we were pretty sloppy with the puck when we did have it, especially through the neutral zone, trying to force stuff," Thompson said. "I think get a little too high on ourselves after a couple wins. I think we're better than we are. Instead of remembering what got us those wins. I thought the other game against Edmonton, we were really hard to play against. I thought today we were really easy, really light on the puck and anytime you're doing that and you're going to lose games."

Head coach Lindy Ruff was unsparing in his critique of the club, saying that his club had an opportunity early in the game to outwork the other team, but the opposite occurred and that the Sabres just wanted things to be easy. 

"In the third period, we got beat to the net. Two goals around net front. We weren't strong enough. Our power play could have changed the direction of the game. They weren't good enough. Execution. Their puck movement wasn't good enough," Ruff said.  "We lost too many battles. I mean, as a group, there wasn't a lot of players to like in the game. If you want to break down every goal, somebody got outmuscled somewhere. Somebody got a beat back up ice."

Buffalo continues their four-game homestand on Friday against Connor Bedard and the Chicago Blackhawks. 

Follow Michael on X, Instagram  @MikeInBuffalo

The NHL’s 2025-26 regular season continues to unfold, as does our weekly look at the Hot Seat Radar.

The radar focuses on NHL figures facing increased pressure, whether their jobs are at risk or not. For some, they may not be going anywhere, but they could still be feeling the heat to see improved results before a more significant problem arises.

When it comes to the hot seat, cooling down is a good thing. It means they're under less pressure to improve their situation. Of course, warming up means there's less time to turn things around.

We've talked about Buffalo Sabres GM Kevyn Adams and coach Lindy Ruff in each of the last two weeks, so this time, we're revisiting Craig Berube's situation before looking at Alberta rivals.

Cooling Down: Craig Berube, Coach, Toronto Maple Leafs

With the Maple Leafs off to a 9-9-2 start, Leafs analysts and fans have begun to question Berube's methods.

GM Brad Treliving isn't thinking about a change.

"Yeah, I've got all the faith in our coach right now," Treliving told reporters on Monday, according to The Hockey News' David Alter. "Listen, when you go through things like this, understandably, everything gets talked about and looked about. My job right now is to support our coach, support his message and support our group, and push the group."

Berube is the same coach who steered the Leafs to the best record in the Atlantic Division last season. This is a very competent bench boss.

Unfortunately, the injury bug has taken a huge bite out of the Maple Leafs’ roster, as veterans Auston Matthews, Matthew Knies, Chris Tanev, Anthony Stolarz, Nicolas Roy and Brando Carlo all are currently on the sidelines. But that can’t be an excuse – at least, when it comes to Toronto sitting in second-last place in the Atlantic and Eastern Conference. 

From this writer’s perspective, Berube’s job is still safe. Now, he can’t afford another five-game losing streak, but given that the Leafs’ next six games include two games against the Columbus Blue Jackets and games against the disappointing Washington Capitals and Florida Panthers, that shouldn’t be a problem.

Do The Maple Leafs Have 'Too Much Vanilla' Or Not Enough Marner?Toronto Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving said the solution to dealing with the team's bad start is not to point fingers and dig in together. But they seriously need Marner's two-way play right now.

Cooling Down: Ryan Huska, Coach, Calgary Flames

Huska was firmly on the hot seat coming out of the gate, as the Flames quickly fell into the bottom of the Pacific Division and league with abysmal performances left, right and center that led to an eight-game losing streak.

However, with four wins in its past nine games, Calgary has made modest improvements and is on the precipice of climbing out of the Western Conference basement and past the Nashville Predators and St. Louis Blues.

Calgary’s latest win – a 6-2 romp over the lowly Buffalo Sabres – took some of the heat off of Huska. And some of that heat got transferred back to the Sabres' Adams and Ruff.

If the Flames aren't going to make the playoffs, they at least need their young players and their trade bait to put up some points. That wasn't really happening in October. But in the past week, Matt Coronato has five points in four games, and Frost has four points. Pending UFA defenseman Rasmus Andersson is showing how valuable he could be for another squad with two goals and six points in four games.

The management and coaching game is a zero-sum business, so while the Flames have to be feeling slightly more competitive with their performance in November, it will only take another three- or four-game losing skid to warm up Huska's seat yet again. Calgary isn’t likely to make a surge in the standings, so Huska could find himself in the pressure cooker in short order.

Warming Up: Kris Knoblauch, Coach, Edmonton Oilers

The Oilers have been one of the bigger disappointments in the league this season with a 9-9-4 record. But it isn’t just that Edmonton is struggling that puts Knoblauch on the Hot Seat Radar for the first time this season. It’s how the Oilers are losing that increases the pressure on Knoblauch to turn things around before any questions about his job arise. 

Edmonton has lost six of its last nine games – including five in regulation – being outscored 40-26 in that span.

In this past week, the Oilers lost three of four games: 5-4 to Columbus, 5-1 to Buffalo and 7-4 to Washington.

We’re not telling you Knoblauch will be fired anytime soon, but if the Oilers want to try to get back to the Stanley Cup final, Knoblauch has to address the defense first and foremost.

Yes, the team's save percentage of .857 is quite poor. But the Oilers likely won't get an upgrade in net in the trade market. The solution has to come from within the dressing room.

The Oilers have the eighth-most expected goals against this season at 68.72, according to naturalstattrick.com, and the most actual goals against, with 80. So even though they're allowing the sixth-fewest shots against per game, they need to reduce the quality of chances against.

Edmonton is not where it was two years ago when the team fired coach Jay Woodcroft following a 3-9-1 start. The league's increased parity this season plays a part in the team sitting fifth in the Pacific Division.

But if the losing continues for the Oilers, Knoblauch’s job security will eventually come into question.

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