Pretty quiet this time of year. Training camp is only 3 1/2 weeks away. Not much going on in the league, and the Pens aren't going to make any more moves before training camp. The biggest question is what 13 or 14 forwards start the season on the roster. And where is everybody going to play? ZAR is the only guy who can be sent down without waivers. Hayes they took a flyer on with a 2 way contract, but he still has to clear waivers. The other big question is who plays RW with Crosby, and where's that leave everybody else to slot in. A bit from around the net the last few days.
Cody Tucker is a new writer for DK, and has been doing a prospectus on each player. A lot of it is predictable, but he did glean some insight on a few issues. His article on Alex Grant is the first place I've seen Grant say he can play either wing. He was bullish on ZAR.
https://www.dkpittsburghsports.com/2018 ... -penguins/“He’s a good 200-foot player,” Mike Sullivan said of Aston-Reese in late March when he and Dominik Simon were returning from injury. “We can utilize him in a lot of situations. We thought he was really improving with each game that he played.”
If Sullivan could construct the perfect hockey mentality, coupled with size, Aston-Reese would likely be his prototype. The coach loves his sayings: “Play Penguins hockey.” “Do things the right way.” And, of course, “200-foot player.” That is Aston-Reese in a nutshell. When he’s on the ice, anyway. Sullivan’s man-crush is warranted. He likes Aston-Reese’s natural strength, puck possession and instincts.
Aston-Reese is not the fastest guy, nor does he possess the scariest shot in the room, but he could be the toughest, physically. He registered 55 hits during the regular season and blocked six shots. In just nine postseason games, he landed 19 hits and blocked another half-dozen opportunities. Because Aston-Reese didn’t play in 25 regular season games, he is still considered a rookie heading into this season. Still, at his average over a full season he would’ve been fifth in the NHL in hits
His best, and most enlightening, article was on Sprong. He pointed out some things which I've never heard discussed on here. He has pretty damning evidence to support his case. He has to make the team because they bungled his ELC and didn't let it slide. Tucker sees him as a true wild card, but it doesn't sound like he's sold on him.
https://www.dkpittsburghsports.com/2018 ... -penguins/Despite putting up 65 points (32 goals, 33 assists) in 65 games last season to lead Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, the organization’s top prospect received only an eight-game audition with the big club. During that stint, Sprong scored twice in one game — a crucial 4-0 blanking of the Islanders in Brooklyn — and added an assist. He was shut out in the other seven, including four as a top-line winger next to Sidney Crosby. To make matters worse, the captain was also held off the stat sheet in five-on-five play, though he did score two goals and assisted on six more on the Sprong-less power play.
“People are always going to say I’m not the 200-foot player that everyone wants,” Sprong said last April when he was called up to the Black Aces, a reserve of sorts, during the Penguins’ playoff run. “But I think I made it a long way. At the end of the day, I’m an offensive player, and I thought I made big strides in my defensive side. I think the coaching staff trusts me as the season went on.”
It’s debatable if the coaches really feel that way. Or the players, for that matter.
Last January, as Sprong cleaned out his locker after receiving word that he was being demoted again, his teammates spoke about the “Penguins way” of doing things. Puck support, backchecking, zone breakouts and situational awareness were just a few examples. They reiterated that skill alone won’t get the job done at this level.
Sprong is a natural goal-scorer. A classic triggerman. That beautiful, explosive release is legit. But it’s the intangibles that have delayed a promotion. Most point to his lapses on the defensive end and, while there is concern in that department, as with most young players, Sprong has also been a liability on offense. If Crosby isn’t scoring, there’s a problem, and Sullivan’s main issue with Sprong — even more than the defensive lapses — is his tendency to get lost in the offensive zone. In his final NHL game Jan. 17 in Anaheim, Sprong played a season-low 8:33. He had one shot on goal and a giveaway. He was on the Penguins’ top line that night.
This performance was likely the final straw.
On an odd-man rush early in the first period, he got bunched up next to fellow rookie Dominik Simon and Crosby as they entered the zone together on the right side. With the period winding down, Crosby was a one-man show, keeping the play alive and looking for an opening. Sprong, No. 41, was seemingly in quicksand, out of position and not looking very eager to get open:
He follows it up with some pretty damning video, along with a video of a play that got him scratched in WBS. It is the first time I've seen anybody suggest Sprong's game in the offensive zone was more the coaching staff's problem than his defensive game. This from him in his comments section.
I really focused on the Ducks game last year. That was his last NHL game. He just seemed to float around in the offensive zone, focusing too much on the puck and not where he needed to be. If Sid can’t rely on you being in position, you can’t be on his line. He had a couple of noticeable mental lapses and I think that was kind of the final straw. Something just wasn’t clicking for him.
I agree that with the threat of demotion all but eliminated could help. As far as his numbers go … there’s not a calculator or genius in the world that could figure that out, I believe. He has the skills to be a big time scorer. He just hasn’t proven it in his NHL stints yet. “Yet.”
Jonathan Bombulie took a look at who is most likely to end up on Sid's wing. He lists all the possibilites, including Rust and Hornqvist. Here's a look at his feelings on Simon and Sprong.
https://triblive.com/sports/penguins/13 ... -on-sidneyDominik Simon
A crafty winger with a history of playing with top players, Simon’s style meshes well with Crosby. The pair reportedly trained together in Nova Scotia in the offseason. Their numbers playing together at five on five last season (60.6 shot-attempt percentage, 13-8 scoring advantage) were the best among the top candidates. On the other hand, Simon wasn’t consistent in his first NHL trial last season, especially in the playoffs. If Simon, a lefty, plays on the right wing, it creates a righty logjam further down the lineup card.
Daniel Sprong
Sprong has massive natural goal-scoring talent. He was on Crosby’s line during the captain’s most dominant offensive performance of the regular season, a 4-0 win over the Islanders on Jan. 5. Sprong, though, isn’t good defensively, which could make Crosby spend too much of his time worrying about being the responsible one on the line.
THE PREDICTION
B. Dominik Simon
It’s one of the greatest conundrums related to Crosby’s game. On one hand, he’s willing and able to elevate lesser talents on his wings, which creates dangerous balance on the team’s other lines. On the other hand, doesn’t one of the greatest players in the history of the game deserve as much talent on his wings as a team can possibly provide? Ultimately, Crosby and Guentzel need a third wheel who can play a smart game and do the little things right. Simon fits that description better than Hornqvist or Sprong. Also, the numbers Crosby and Simon put up together in 244 five-on-five minutes last year were really strong. Sullivan knows that.
So there's a couple of opinions from a couple of local writers. FWIW.