2024-2025 Season Random Penguins Fodder

[100565]

4th to Vancouver for Podkolzin

Geez. Even with the log jam of forwards the Pens have, I would have done this.

[Pitts]

Cap space is always king when it comes to making trades, especially in the off-season. Pens never had the cap space to take all of Laine's $8.7mill cap hit, for 2 seasons too.

I would have thought Wadell would have retained to get more value back though. Columbus shouldn't be trading 2nd round picks to dump contracts.

All that said, Columbus views the Pens as a rival. I doubt they would have dealt Laine to the Pens with all things being equal.

Glass (2.5M) + Hayes (3.57M) + Grzelcyk (2.75M) = 8.75M in cap space, or, 1 Laine

Obviously, they got 2 more picks out of the situation, but, adding Hayes to Eller and Acciari, plus Lizotte, plus Glass...from a distance seems like adding a bunch of bodies with no regard to being overloaded. I'm not saying I was in favor of adding Laine, especially at full price...just looking at the "what could have been" if money was spent differently. I think if the Penguins gave a better prospect, CBJ would have moved Laine to us, but that's just conjecture.

Laine-Crosby-Rust
Bunting-Malkin-Rakell
DOC-Eller-Puustinen
Beauvillier-Lizotte-Puljujarvi
x-Acciari, Poulin

Could have been the forward group...although, they still would need another LD with little money to invest, otherwise go full Graves in the deep end to hopefully rebound.

Do we still employ Mike Sullivan as coach? He wouldn’t want Laine, too much offense and can finish. I have no doubt Sullivan prefers Hayes over Laine. Hayes can PK

In Sully's defense, defense and Liane do not go together.

[Ericf]

Cap space is always king when it comes to making trades, especially in the off-season. Pens never had the cap space to take all of Laine's $8.7mill cap hit, for 2 seasons too.

I would have thought Wadell would have retained to get more value back though. Columbus shouldn't be trading 2nd round picks to dump contracts.

All that said, Columbus views the Pens as a rival. I doubt they would have dealt Laine to the Pens with all things being equal.

Glass (2.5M) + Hayes (3.57M) + Grzelcyk (2.75M) = 8.75M in cap space, or, 1 Laine

Obviously, they got 2 more picks out of the situation, but, adding Hayes to Eller and Acciari, plus Lizotte, plus Glass...from a distance seems like adding a bunch of bodies with no regard to being overloaded. I'm not saying I was in favor of adding Laine, especially at full price...just looking at the "what could have been" if money was spent differently. I think if the Penguins gave a better prospect, CBJ would have moved Laine to us, but that's just conjecture.

Laine-Crosby-Rust
Bunting-Malkin-Rakell
DOC-Eller-Puustinen
Beauvillier-Lizotte-Puljujarvi
x-Acciari, Poulin

Could have been the forward group...although, they still would need another LD with little money to invest, otherwise go full Graves in the deep end to hopefully rebound.

Do we still employ Mike Sullivan as coach? He wouldn’t want Laine, too much offense and can finish. I have no doubt Sullivan prefers Hayes over Laine. Hayes can PK

In Sully's defense, defense and Liane do not go together.

That’s fine, but he’s a hammer and all he sees are nails. We have a huge scoring problem as well, maybe worse than defense. Not everyone has to be a strong defensive player to be a successful piece of a larger team

[FLPensFan]

DK had a question on his Penguins feed on Friday, asking members to post their forward lines. About 30 people posted and I don't think anyone had the same lineup. Of course, one of his comments was there's what the fans want or think, and then there's what Sullivan will do. Says you can all but guarantee that Eller, Hayes, and Acciari are all in the lineup. Not necessarily in the same piece, but, he also made a short comment wondering if Matt Nieto may just retire, and finally, another comment elsewhere that NOBODY was putting Sam Poulin on the roster (even as a 13th or 14th forward). He commented that when healthy, all Poulin did was score goals consistently for WBS. He has 32 goals in the AHL in 128 games, which translates to 20.5 goals over an 82 game season.

So, the question heading into camp, as I think we've all commented, is how do all these pieces fit together properly, because it again seems like a decent top 6 with just an aimless cash grab of bottom 6 forwards with no true purpose of how they fit together.

Crosby, Malkin, Rust, Bunting, Rakell, DOC, Beauvillier, Eller, Glass, Hayes, Acciari, Lizotte, Puljujarvi, Puustinen, Poulin, Gruden...that's 16 guys that likely deserve to be playing on an NHL roster, and, it's kind of a shame that where this team is, they'll likely risk losing a Poulin, Puustinen, Gruden or Puljujarvi on waivers to keep playing Acciari, Eller, and Hayes. I don't even think Acciari, Eller, or Hayes have to be the better player to earn a spot in a Sullivan world.

Continue to be interested in how this all shakes out next month, because at the stage this team is in, potential should trump "he plays slightly better for a guy 10-15 years older than X."

[Ericf]

DK had a question on his Penguins feed on Friday, asking members to post their forward lines. About 30 people posted and I don't think anyone had the same lineup. Of course, one of his comments was there's what the fans want or think, and then there's what Sullivan will do. Says you can all but guarantee that Eller, Hayes, and Acciari are all in the lineup. Not necessarily in the same piece, but, he also made a short comment wondering if Matt Nieto may just retire, and finally, another comment elsewhere that NOBODY was putting Sam Poulin on the roster (even as a 13th or 14th forward). He commented that when healthy, all Poulin did was score goals consistently for WBS. He has 32 goals in the AHL in 128 games, which translates to 20.5 goals over an 82 game season.

So, the question heading into camp, as I think we've all commented, is how do all these pieces fit together properly, because it again seems like a decent top 6 with just an aimless cash grab of bottom 6 forwards with no true purpose of how they fit together.

Crosby, Malkin, Rust, Bunting, Rakell, DOC, Beauvillier, Eller, Glass, Hayes, Acciari, Lizotte, Puljujarvi, Puustinen, Poulin, Gruden...that's 16 guys that likely deserve to be playing on an NHL roster, and, it's kind of a shame that where this team is, they'll likely risk losing a Poulin, Puustinen, Gruden or Puljujarvi on waivers to keep playing Acciari, Eller, and Hayes. I don't even think Acciari, Eller, or Hayes have to be the better player to earn a spot in a Sullivan world.

Continue to be interested in how this all shakes out next month, because at the stage this team is in, potential should trump "he plays slightly better for a guy 10-15 years older than X."

Totally agree about the last line. Unfortunately the coach, who should have been fired, is mostly interested in playing players who don’t make as many mistakes (think vets) than players who might actually make some plays. Think low event hockey. So DK has that right. It’s very sad. I was hopeful when Dubas said he wanted a younger hungrier team, but I guess by younger he meant aged 32 instead of 36 lol

[BigMcK]

How long of a leash does Sullivan have before being replaced? 4ft, 10ft, 20ft, 40ft, he's here to stay and Dubas goes first?

When the season starts, and if Crosby hasn't signed an extension due to poor standings, does the leash for either, or both, suddenly drop to a 1ft length?

I can see Sully being replaced if within the first 20 - 30 games and the Penguins are taking on water.

[FLPensFan]

How long of a leash does Sullivan have before being replaced? 4ft, 10ft, 20ft, 40ft, he's here to stay and Dubas goes first?

When the season starts, and if Crosby hasn't signed an extension due to poor standings, does the leash for either, or both, suddenly drop to a 1ft length?

I can see Sully being replaced if within the first 20 - 30 games and the Penguins are taking on water.

What I would watch for regarding Sullivan, and the potential to be fired in-season:

1) PP shows little to no improvement by the end of November
2) Team record at the end of November
3) Little use of young guys in the lineup

Last year, the Penguins were 13th out of 16 teams in the East after Thanksgiving, 5 points out of a Wild Card spot with a 9-10 record, 18 points. At the end of November, they moved up to 12th, 11-10-1, 23 points, 2 points out of WC 2 spot. Barely above 500 22 games into the season.

This year, the first 2 months of the season are pretty rough. 10 games in October, only 3 are home games, and they have 2 back to backs. In November, they play 14 games, and while 9 of them are at home, they have 4 back to backs.

Just looking on paper who I think the better team is, and not using ties. In October, I'd roughly guess they go around 4-6, beating the likes of Montreal, Buffalo, Detroit, and Calgary.

In November, I'd roughly guess they go 5-9, with wins against Montreal, Islanders, Columbus, San Jose, and Calgary.

That would give them a 9-15 record, 18 points at the end of November...worse than last year's pace, which the team thought they got off to a bad start. Is 9-15 bad enough to get Sullivan fired. I doubt it. Last year, 18 points at the end of November would have had them in a 3 way tie for 4th worst overall. Edmonton had 19 points at the end of November. They fired their coach, and made the Cup finals. I don't think Pittsburgh has the same aspirations.

[BigMcK]

How long of a leash does Sullivan have before being replaced? 4ft, 10ft, 20ft, 40ft, he's here to stay and Dubas goes first?

When the season starts, and if Crosby hasn't signed an extension due to poor standings, does the leash for either, or both, suddenly drop to a 1ft length?

I can see Sully being replaced if within the first 20 - 30 games and the Penguins are taking on water.

What I would watch for regarding Sullivan, and the potential to be fired in-season:

1) PP shows little to no improvement by the end of November
2) Team record at the end of November
3) Little use of young guys in the lineup

Last year, the Penguins were 13th out of 16 teams in the East after Thanksgiving, 5 points out of a Wild Card spot with a 9-10 record, 18 points. At the end of November, they moved up to 12th, 11-10-1, 23 points, 2 points out of WC 2 spot. Barely above 500 22 games into the season.

This year, the first 2 months of the season are pretty rough. 10 games in October, only 3 are home games, and they have 2 back to backs. In November, they play 14 games, and while 9 of them are at home, they have 4 back to backs.

Just looking on paper who I think the better team is, and not using ties. In October, I'd roughly guess they go around 4-6, beating the likes of Montreal, Buffalo, Detroit, and Calgary.

In November, I'd roughly guess they go 5-9, with wins against Montreal, Islanders, Columbus, San Jose, and Calgary.

That would give them a 9-15 record, 18 points at the end of November...worse than last year's pace, which the team thought they got off to a bad start. Is 9-15 bad enough to get Sullivan fired. I doubt it. Last year, 18 points at the end of November would have had them in a 3 way tie for 4th worst overall. Edmonton had 19 points at the end of November. They fired their coach, and made the Cup finals. I don't think Pittsburgh has the same aspirations.

Excellent reply as usual. If the season plays out per plan, (call it the great tank job), Sully is relieved of duty for being a good soldier who stuck with the plan, Dubas gets two years to execute his plan of moving up in the 25/26 draft, and in 26/27 the roster is filled with talent and the core three are rafter jersey players. God willing, us older fans get to witness Penguins hockey 4.0.

[Puck-Lurker]

DK had a question on his Penguins feed on Friday, asking members to post their forward lines. About 30 people posted and I don't think anyone had the same lineup. Of course, one of his comments was there's what the fans want or think, and then there's what Sullivan will do. Says you can all but guarantee that Eller, Hayes, and Acciari are all in the lineup. Not necessarily in the same piece, but, he also made a short comment wondering if Matt Nieto may just retire, and finally, another comment elsewhere that NOBODY was putting Sam Poulin on the roster (even as a 13th or 14th forward). He commented that when healthy, all Poulin did was score goals consistently for WBS. He has 32 goals in the AHL in 128 games, which translates to 20.5 goals over an 82 game season.

So, the question heading into camp, as I think we've all commented, is how do all these pieces fit together properly, because it again seems like a decent top 6 with just an aimless cash grab of bottom 6 forwards with no true purpose of how they fit together.

Crosby, Malkin, Rust, Bunting, Rakell, DOC, Beauvillier, Eller, Glass, Hayes, Acciari, Lizotte, Puljujarvi, Puustinen, Poulin, Gruden...that's 16 guys that likely deserve to be playing on an NHL roster, and, it's kind of a shame that where this team is, they'll likely risk losing a Poulin, Puustinen, Gruden or Puljujarvi on waivers to keep playing Acciari, Eller, and Hayes. I don't even think Acciari, Eller, or Hayes have to be the better player to earn a spot in a Sullivan world.

Continue to be interested in how this all shakes out next month, because at the stage this team is in, potential should trump "he plays slightly better for a guy 10-15 years older than X."

Yep. All true. Although, Eller will earn a spot on this team unless he falls off a cliff.

Something I'm not sure gets any attention - at all - is that not one guy KD picked up has a protected contract. No 35+, no NTCs, no NMCs. And they all have 1 or 2 years left on the contract. They can be moved if need be and they can be buried. I'm really curious how this year's grab bag works out.

[KG]

Edmonton doesn't match both offer-sheets on Broberg and Holloway. Not sure what the rush was to trade Ceci in that case. Who knows.

Good for St Louis.

Blues added this trade looks like as a sweetener so Edmonton wouldn't match maybe? Shenanigans. Not a fan.

[FLPensFan]

Edmonton doesn't match both offer-sheets on Broberg and Holloway. Not sure what the rush was to trade Ceci in that case. Who knows.

Good for St Louis.

From what I read online, Edmonton was possibly trying to work out a trade with St. Louis. Edmonton brought in 2 potential replacements (Podkolzin and Emberson), cleared the cap space to keep both players, and then discussed with STL the idea of trading.

And actually, it looks like that DID HAPPEN. I see now that, after Broberg and Holloway weren't matched, STL traded Paul Fischer (19 year old 5th round pick) and a 2028 3rd round pick for future considerations.

So, if I had to guess at the conversations, they maybe went something like this:
-EDM: Look, we cleared the cap space. We can match both, but it will be tight for us. Rather than go through more iterations on our side, we are willing to not match on either contract if you kick in a bit more.
-STL: Sure, how about taking a contract off our hands, and we add in another 3rd round pick
-EDM: Done

So, Edmonton loses Holloway and Broberg, and receives Fischer, a 2025 2nd, a 2025 3rd, and a 2028 3rd. Short term, this still makes Edmonton worse. Broberg came on really strong late in the season and in the playoffs. Up to that point, he wasn't doing very well in Edmonton. Holloway was pretty much the same. Playing mainly 4th line minutes, he had 6 goals in 38 games, but had 5 goals in the playoffs this year.

In a vacuum, I would have kept Broberg and let Holloway go. However, when you also add in the fact that Edmonton also traded away Ryan McLeod, then maybe I wouldn't have let Holloway go. Holloway was further behind in his development than McLeod, and Matthew Savoie, who they got for McLeod, is further behind in his development than Holloway.

McDavid and Draisaitl should be planning their moves away from this franchise. LOL

[FLPensFan]

Ryan Johansen on waivers for the purpose of terminating his contract. Flyers state termination is due to a "material breach" of his contract by Johansen. My understanding is that the "material breach" is that Johansen was hurt when acquired by the Flyers (along with a 1st and 50% retained salary) in the Sean Walker deal. Johansen never played a game for the Flyers, and at end of season was saying he's still too injured to play and refused to go to AHL Lehigh Valley.

Fast forward to this summer, where it appears Johansen was still sticking with his too hurt to play story, while former teammate Cam Atkinson filmed Johansen at his wedding, dancing and lifting his bride up into the air.

Seems Philly was none too pleased they had cap issues from a guy who claims he's hurt, dancing around and lifting people in the air.

[Puck-Lurker]

Ryan Johansen on waivers for the purpose of terminating his contract. Flyers state termination is due to a "material breach" of his contract by Johansen. My understanding is that the "material breach" is that Johansen was hurt when acquired by the Flyers (along with a 1st and 50% retained salary) in the Sean Walker deal. Johansen never played a game for the Flyers, and at end of season was saying he's still too injured to play and refused to go to AHL Lehigh Valley.

Fast forward to this summer, where it appears Johansen was still sticking with his too hurt to play story, while former teammate Cam Atkinson filmed Johansen at his wedding, dancing and lifting his bride up into the air.

Seems Philly was none too pleased they had cap issues from a guy who claims he's hurt, dancing around and lifting people in the air.

If there's truth to that, he should never get another job in the NHL.

[Coffey Break]

Any chance the Penguins can claim material breach on the Ryan Graves contract?

[FLPensFan]

Any chance the Penguins can claim material breach on the Ryan Graves contract?

"The player lied when signing his contract with the Penguins. Said player stated they could please defense, when in reality, they cannot."

[FLPensFan]

Saw an article by the STL Blues reporter that the acquisitions of Holloway and Broberg may knock two former Penguins out of the lineup. Blues writer Jeremy Rutherford had projected lines with Kapanen as an extra forward, and commented that the Blues have too many defensemen, and with Broberg added POJ might be in jeopardy of not making the team. If he does make it, Rutherford's projection had him sitting as an extra d-man as well.

[Puck-Lurker]

Any chance the Penguins can claim material breach on the Ryan Graves contract?

Not sure "sucks at hockey" is actually a breach of contract.

[Sams_Dog]

Ryan Johansen on waivers for the purpose of terminating his contract. Flyers state termination is due to a "material breach" of his contract by Johansen. My understanding is that the "material breach" is that Johansen was hurt when acquired by the Flyers (along with a 1st and 50% retained salary) in the Sean Walker deal. Johansen never played a game for the Flyers, and at end of season was saying he's still too injured to play and refused to go to AHL Lehigh Valley.

Fast forward to this summer, where it appears Johansen was still sticking with his too hurt to play story, while former teammate Cam Atkinson filmed Johansen at his wedding, dancing and lifting his bride up into the air.

Seems Philly was none too pleased they had cap issues from a guy who claims he's hurt, dancing around and lifting people in the air.

If there's truth to that, he should never get another job in the NHL.

That's sketchy for Johanssen to do that for sure. But I'm betting he just really doesn't want to play for Tortorella who made him a whipping boy in Columbus. Have to wonder why the Flyers traded for him in the first place knowing that the two don't get along at all. Maybe they wanted to flip him. But he flipped them one instead.

[Sams_Dog]

Has anyone heard anything about who will be handling the Pens radio play-by-play this year? I know Getoff will be on TV with Bourque, Coby, and Rupp rotating on color. I assume Bourque will handle the bulk of radio color.

[KG]

Saw an article by the STL Blues reporter that the acquisitions of Holloway and Broberg may knock two former Penguins out of the lineup. Blues writer Jeremy Rutherford had projected lines with Kapanen as an extra forward, and commented that the Blues have too many defensemen, and with Broberg added POJ might be in jeopardy of not making the team. If he does make it, Rutherford's projection had him sitting as an extra d-man as well.

Blues reporter Andy Strickland reported that there were at least 2 other teams that were interested in sending an offer-sheets to Broberg. Good to hear. Maybe we will see some more offer-sheets before the off season ends.

[FLPensFan]

Saw an article by the STL Blues reporter that the acquisitions of Holloway and Broberg may knock two former Penguins out of the lineup. Blues writer Jeremy Rutherford had projected lines with Kapanen as an extra forward, and commented that the Blues have too many defensemen, and with Broberg added POJ might be in jeopardy of not making the team. If he does make it, Rutherford's projection had him sitting as an extra d-man as well.

Blues reporter Andy Strickland reported that there were at least 2 other teams that were interested in sending an offer-sheets to Broberg. Good to hear. Maybe we will see some more offer-sheets before the off season ends.

There really aren't too many

Swayman, Raymond, Seider, Sillinger, Kaliyev, Mercer, Perfetti, Jarvis, Krebs and Harley are probably the only players out there potentially worth an offer sheet.

The Penguins do not have their 2nd round pick in 2025, so that eliminates them from a lot of options.

[Skatingpen]

[FLPensFan]

Looking up some reports on him, he was once seen as a top prospect for San Jose. He's got about 70 NHL games under his belt, but injuries have been an issue for him. He played a full 56 game NHL season during COVID, and was often paired with Karlsson.

Seems like a guy who, if he is past his injuries, would be a good add, and, if he hasn't lost his form...maybe he goes to the AHL this season, but could be a potential MP replacement next year. I think that's best case scenario, and I'm not saying he's anywhere near the level of Pettersson. Just that, if the Penguins don't reach a deal and end up moving Pettersson, then maybe we see Grzelcyk-Letang, Knyzhov-Karlsson next year, with Graves or Pickering on the 3rd pairing.

Scouting Report:
The Russian defenseman arrived in North America during his formative years as a teenager before returning overseas. The late-blooming rearguard is capable of holding down a regular job in the NHL, when healthy. He is at his best when he keeps things simple and may be best on a pairing with an offensive-minded partner. He moves the puck well and has NHL size, though he is still learning how to use it effectively. Injuries can be an issue for him.

Here's an article from 2 years ago on Knyzhov: https://www.fearthefin.com/nikolai-knyz ... s-ranking/

[KG]

Worth a shot. Quinn knows him from the SJ days too, obviously. Quinn, our new PP and d man whisperer

[Antonio]

I am still surprised they couldn't move Jarry in a beneficial deal for us. Maybe they didn't really try? Who knows.