Wednesday, 11 April 2012 09:17

Written by Seth Rorabaugh

Pirates/NHL

-"You don't want to get in a match where you're trading penalties. If we can be disciplined that way and give them two or three [power-play chances] a game, we'll do well." - Penguins assistant coach Tony Granato on the Flyers.

-"He likes playing against the Penguins, I think." - Evgeni Malkin on former teammate Maxime Talbot (above).

-Welcome back Sidney Crosby and Malkin... to the playoffs.

-A rally will be held at the Allgheny County Courthouse today at noon.

-Dan Bylsma speaks:

-Sidney Crosby speaks:

-Brooks Orpik speaks:

-"I'm sure there will be a lot of blood. It's going to be a battle. It's going to be a chess match. The emotion is going to be there. The intensity is going to be there. Everything is going to be there. They dislike us just as much as we dislike them." - Flyers forward Scott Hartnell.

-"He's been one of the best goalies in the league; he's been our leader for a couple of months now. Everybody is pretty confident." - Talbot on Flyers goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov.

-“First of all, I don’t think I’m public enemy No. 1. I think Lavy is right now. At least that’s what I saw last game.” - Flyers forward and former Penguins captain Jaromir Jagr (right) on head coach Peter Laviolette.

-The NHL released its list of officials for the first round.

-"They got a lottery. They won a (expletive) lottery and they got the best player in the game. Is that available to me? Should we do that? Should we ask the League to have a lottery this year, and maybe we pick first?. The Pittsburgh model? My (expletive)." - Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke on the Penguins.

-Predators defenseman and former Penguin Hal Gill will be a game-time decision for tonight's Game 1 against the Red Wings due to a "lower-body" ailment.-Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguin coach John Hynes (right) piped in artificial crowd noise for practice yesterday.

-The NHL held the draft lottery for the 14 non-playoff teams:

1.) Oilers
2.) Blue Jackets
3.) Canadiens
4.) Islanders
5.) Maple Leafs
6.) Ducks
7.) Wild
8.) Hurricanes
9.) Jets
10.) Lightning
11.) Capitals-**
12.) Sabres
13.) Stars
14.) Flames

**-Acquired from the Avalanche.

-The Oilers will have the top overall pick in the draft for the third consecutive year.

-Stars defenseman and former Penguin Alex Goligoski and Sabres forward Nathan Gerbe will play for the United States in next month's IIHF World Championships

Pirates/MLB

-Kevin Correia and the Pirates lose a pitching duel to Clayton Kershaw and the Dodgers, 2-1.

-Highlights:

-The minor league report.

-Former Pirates pitcher Paul Maholm was knocked around in his debut with the Cubs, a 7-4 loss to the Brewers.

-With third baseman David Wright dealing with a finger injury, former Pirate Ronny Cedeno takes over as the Mets' third baseman.

-The Marlins suspended manager Ozzie Guillen five games for his pro-Castro comments.

-The Braves activated third baseman Chipper Jones from the disabled list.

College Basketball

-Duquesne hires former Long Island coach Jim Ferry.

-Former Duquesne guard T.J. McConnell transfers to Arizona.

-Freshmen guard Brandon Herman and forward Darren Washington will transfer from Robert Morris.

Steelers/NFL

-The Steelers signed former Chiefs tight end Leonard Pope (right). He played for new offensive coordinator Todd Haley in Arizona and Kansas City.

-Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez and wide receiver Santonio Holmes got a start on their offseason workouts.

-The Panthers signed wide receiver Steve Smith to a three-year contract extension.

-Dolphins linebacker and Penn State product Cameron Wake skips an OTA due to a contract dispute.

College Football

-Tino Sunseri remains Pitt's starting quarterback.

-Bill O'Brien wants to keep things open at Penn State.

(Photos: Malkin/Talbot-Richard Wolowicz/Getty Images; Jagr-Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images; Pope-Jamie Squire/Getty Images)