With the NHL season now less than a month away, it’s time
to look at what each team has done this summer and what to watch for in the
year to come. Today, I focus on the Pittsburgh Penguins.
LAST SEASON:
47-29-6 record (100 points), second in the Metropolitan Division (lost to
Washington in the second round of the playoffs, beat Philadelphia in the first
round)
REMAINING CAP SPACE:
$1.02MM per
CapFriendly
KEY ADDITIONS:
F Matt Cullen (free
agent, Minnesota), F Derek Grant (free
agent, Anaheim), F Jimmy Hayes(free
agent, New Jersey), D Jack Johnson (free
agent, Columbus)
KEY DEPARTURES:
D Matt Hunwick (trade
with Buffalo), F Tom Kuhnhackl (free
agent, NY Islanders), F Carter Rowney (free
agent, Anaheim), F Conor Sheary (trade
with Buffalo)
PLAYER TO WATCH:
F Derick
Brassard – In an effort to strengthen their depth down the
middle leading up to the deadline, Pittsburgh swung a three-way trade to bring
Brassard in. In doing so, they gave themselves a legitimate top-six
center on the third line which they hoped would really bolster their attack.
Unfortunately for them, that didn’t go as planned as Brassard struggled
with his reduced role.
There is certainly cause for optimism to think that a full
training camp and regular season would help in this regard but they do have
another option that they’re going to try, moving him to the wing. Doing
so would allow him to play in the top six like he has been accustomed to.
Teams are certainly going to be keeping close tabs on him as
Brassard is slated to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the
season. If he fares well on the wing, the extra versatility will
certainly strengthen his case on the open market and he’ll give the Penguins
another prominent offensive weapon.
On the flip side, if he struggles, he could conceivably
become a trade candidate by the deadline as salary cap space will once again be
at a premium. GM Jim Rutherford likes to try to make a big addition each
season and if Brassard isn’t getting the job done, it’s certainly possible that
he’d be part of a return going the other way or flipped to create the cap space
to make that addition. Suffice it to say, there’s a lot at stake for
Brassard heading into 2018-19.
KEY STORYLINE:
For the last few years, Pittsburgh has been tweaking their defense corps but
now, with all of their top-six options locked up for at least two seasons (five
of them for three or more), there is now the potential for a bit more stability
at that position.
The addition of Johnson and extension for Jamie
Oleksiak gives them a third pairing that can log more ice time
than a typical number three unit if need be which should allow them to scale
back minutes for someone like Kris Letang if
they so desire. It also gives them a bit more insurance in case of
injuries.
While their offense justifiably gets most of the attention,
the back end has had some incremental improvements. However, it still
remains a question mark. Is this group good enough to get the job done or
will Rutherford need to continue to make changes?
OVERALL OUTLOOK:
The Penguins have been contenders for quite a while now and they should be one
once again with the majority of their roster from last year returning for
another season. The Metropolitan Division projects to be quite tight once
again so they may not walk away with first place but they’ll undoubtedly be in
the mix once the postseason arrives.
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