The Latest Breaking News from Kris Letang

PITTSBURGH — The Penguins remained within striking distance of a playoff spot by defeating the Marc-Andre Fleury and the Minnesota Wild, 4-1, at PPG Paints Arena.

PITTSBURGH — The Penguins this calendar year have had few convincing wins, the rare complete game in which they actually displayed focus and fire from wire to wire.

PITTSBURGH — Once the Penguins start providing reasons to believe there might still be a Stanley Cup contender in there somewhere, they always deliver a dud like this.

PITTSBURGH — Kris Letang scored a power-play goal 1:38 into overtime Sunday to give the Penguins an emotional 3-2 win over the New York Rangers at PPG Paints Arena.

I don't write this as a criticism. It's more of a wondering.

TAMPA, Fla. — The Penguins would be forgiven if they were emotionally drained after the last few days, with trade winds swirling and a flurry of roster moves.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Penguins might not have started strong Tuesday. But they were the better team when it mattered to win their third straight game.

PITTSBURGH — Tristan Jarry’s return to the crease was supposed to stabilize the Penguins. But the poor play of their No. 1 netminder cost them dearly in a pair of losses.

When LeBron James broke the NBA’s all-time scoring record Tuesday, I couldn’t help but think of Sidney Crosby. Their stories have played out so similarly.

PITTSBURGH — In their first game in 10 days, the Penguins were absolutely dominated by Nathan MacKinnon and the defending Stanley Cup champs at PPG Paints Arena.

I should have learned a long time ago not to write off the Penguins' chances of winning a championship without any one player but Sidney Crosby. Before and during the 2017 playoffs, I predicted three different times they couldn't win the Stanley Cup without an injured Kris Letang. Of course,…