With their potential
dynasty derailed, the Penguins now have to regroup and figure out how to reach
the Promised Land for the third time in four years.
How the times have changed for
the Pittsburgh Penguins. This time last year, the Penguins
were savoring their second Stanley Cup championship in as many years, the
Washington Capitals had failed to beat them in the playoffs yet again and no
one was questioning the team’s decision-making prowess.
Fast forward to July 2018, and
those rose-colored glasses Penguins fans have been wearing since June ’16 have
been replaced with microscopes all zoomed in on a team that many believe
underachieved last season.
Most fan bases would be pleased
with a season that ended in a second-round playoff exit, but not Pittsburgh
sports fans. This is a city that has seen its teams win two Super Bowls and
three Stanley Cups in the 21st century. Anything less than a championship is
considered a failure.
Not only are the Penguins now
forced to regroup and figure out how to reach the summit again, but now they
have to deal with a rejuvenated Washington Capitals no longer afraid of them
after breaking their playoff curse during their own Stanley Cup run.
This is more or less the same
scenario the Golden State Warriors faced after the Cleveland Cavaliers famously
came back from a 3-1 deficit to win the 2016 NBA Finals. They were also proven
champions who were tasked with finding a way past a suddenly confident rival.
Of course, the Warriors’ solution
was to sign the best scorer in the league. The Penguins don’t seem to be on
that trajectory right now, and in fact seem a little aimless with their offseason
efforts.
Here are the five questions
looming over the Penguins as they prepare for the 2018-19 season.
1. ARE THE
PENGUINS SHOOK?
This question pertains
specifically to the Penguins’ ability to defeat the now-defending Stanley Cup
champion Washington Capitals. That phrase is a nightmare for Penguins fans, and
especially for Penguins fans unfortunate enough to live in
Washington, D.C.
It may sound blasphemous to even
bring this up given the Penguins still historically own the Capitals. The
Penguins lead the all-time regular season series with the Capitals 148-125-16,
the playoff series 40-28 and have beaten the Capitals nine out of the last 11
times the two teams have met in the playoffs.
But it’s quite possible we now
have to throw all those statistics and intangible advantages the Penguins have
had over the Capitals in the Crosby-Ovechkin era out the proverbial window. The
Capitals finally have the Penguins monkey off their back, which means a new age
may be dawning for both franchises.
Fear can’t be quantified in
professional sports, but it can’t be discounted either. The Toronto Raptors’
fear of LeBron James resulted in a Cavaliers sweep during the 2018 postseason,
the Pittsburgh Steelers’ fear of Tom Brady and the New England Patriots has
been palpable over the years and, until recently, the Capitals’ fear of the
Penguins in the playoffs has kept them in check.
With the fear of the Penguins
conquered, both the Metropolitan Division and the Eastern Conference playoffs
may now be the Capitals’ to lose for years to come. That certainly depends on
more than just
2. IS PHIL KESSEL
OK?
Kessel didn’t look quite right
throughout the 2018 playoffs. He only scored one goal in 12 playoff games,
which made little sense considering he had just put up a career-high 92 points during the
regular season. Something was clearly off with him.
The Penguins eventually revealed
that Kessel was playing hurt during the
postseason, but they refused to specify what his injury was or its severity.
Whether something else was going on is anyone’s guess, but taking that public
explanation at face value would certainly explain a lot.
That excuse wasn’t enough to stop
Penguins fans from chastising Kessel for his poor playoff showing and
even going as far as to wonder whether the
team would be better off trading its third-best player. The Penguins were
finally forced to shut down Kessel trade
rumors, meaning unless something changes he will definitely be a Penguin going
into the 2018-19 season.
Penguins fans seem to have
forgotten that Kessel’s arrival in Pittsburgh coincided with two Stanley Cup
championships. He may be a character with an unrivaled love of hot dogs, but the man has
consistently performed for the Penguins during his stint in Pittsburgh. He
deserves at least one more season to prove he’s all good.
Of course, if the 30-year-old
Kessel is more injured than initially believed or just a shell of his former
self, then the Penguins have an expensive stiff on their hands. The chances of
his skills dropping off that precipitously that quickly are minimal, but it’s a
risk the Penguins are taking going into next season.
Whether the Penguins are shook or
not, but that will be a major factor for next season and beyond.
3. IS MATT MURRAY OVERRATED?
The answer to this question could
potentially be catastrophic for the Penguins. Pittsburgh gave up longtime
goalie Marc-Andre Fleury to make Murray their goalie of the future, and now
Fleury is content retiring in Las Vegas. The
Penguins better hope they made the right decision by putting their faith in
Murray.
To be fair, it was a no-brainer
sticking with the 24-year-old Murray over the 33-year-old Fleury just in terms
of age and potential. But while Fleury spent the 2017-18 season putting up
career numbers and leading the Golden Knights to the Stanley Cup Finals,
Murray’s season wasn’t quite as productive.
That’s not to say Murray had a
terrible campaign. The two-time Stanley Cup champion spent the year dealing
with both injuries and the death of his father, and thus only played 49 of the
Penguins’ 82 games. He logged a
solid-if-unspectacular .907 save percentage and the Penguins went 27-16 with
him in goal.
But he also showed a propensity
for giving up a worrisome amount of goals in large bunches, with the worst
example coming on Oct. 5 when Murray conceded six
goals to the Chicago Blackhawks during a 10-1 Penguins loss. He
also gave up 12 goals in 12 playoff games for the Penguins last year,
alternating between great and not-so-great performances.
Murray’s erratic play is at least
partially a product of the Penguins’ sub-par defense last season, but it’s
still an issue to keep an eye on next season. If he continues to look shaky,
the Penguins’ hopes of returning to the Stanley Cup Final may be put on ice.
4. IS THE JACK
JOHNSON SIGNING AS BAD AS IT LOOKED?
Remember when the Penguins
cleared a bunch of cap space by trading Conor Sheary and Matt Hunwick to
presumably sign a quality player who could help fix the team’s defensive woes?
And then remember how Penguins GM Jim Rutherford squandered the good will
earned from that move by signing meh defenseman Jack Johnson to
a five-year, $16.25 million deal? Good times.
It’s not so much Johnson himself
that garnered so much criticism from Penguins fans and analysts, as the
31-year-old defenseman could end up being an asset for the struggling Penguins
defense. It’s the amount of money spent on him and the prospect of still paying
him at 36 that sparked a significant amount of fan vitriol.
The signing was so reviled that
even Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto felt comfortable taking light-hearted digs at how the
Steel City was receiving the news. It’s never a good sign when a politician
makes a joke at your expense and it’s actually smart and funny.
It didn’t help that Johnson and
Rutherford’s attempts to defend the signing led to some angry comments from
Columbus Blue Jackets Coach John Tortorella about the two allegedly taking
thinly veiled shots at his organization. Tortorella needed to calm down, but the media circus
didn’t help take the spotlight off Johnson among Pittsburgh fans or media.
Who knows, maybe Johnson will
turn out to be exactly the cog the Penguins desperately needed and will be able
to clog the holes that sunk the Penguins in the playoffs. But that best-case
scenario seems to be a long-shot given his age and injury history.
5. HOW MUCH MAGIC
DO CROSBY AND MALKIN HAVE LEFT?
Yes, Penguins fans, this has to
be brought up now that Sidney Crosby is 30 and Evgeni Malkin is 31. While there
are no tangible reasons to believe that either superstar will lose a step this
year, the two have enough mileage on their bodies to make it worth at least
beginning to wonder just how much they have left in the tank.
The Penguins drafted Malkin in
2004 and selected Crosby a year later, and the two quickly became the
cornerstones of a new era of Penguins hockey. With Crosby as Batman and Malkin
as a more-than-willing Robin, the duo have led the Penguins to four Stanley
Cups and three wins, cementing their places forever in Penguins lore.
Crosby has played 864
career games, and came dangerously close to having his already-legendary career
derailed by concussions on multiple occasions. The man is still the best player
in hockey until otherwise indicated, but it’s possible that next year will be
when younger talent like Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews surpass him in the
NHL’s hierarchy of greatness.
Malkin has logged a
comparatively less troubling 784 career games and has a less harrowing injury
history than his running mate Crosby. He did miss some time in the playoffs
this year though, and it’s quite possible that all the hits Malkin has taken
and dished over the years may catch up with him.
Of course, we’re talking about
two three-time Stanley Cup winners who theoretically know what it takes to keep
their bodies in championship-caliber shape for years to come. That’s what the
Penguins better hope continues to be the case, or else they have bigger
problems to address going forward than just how to take down the Capitals.
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