April 25, 2015

Column: Penguins could still fly … with wings

BY DEJAN KOVACEVIC NEW YORK — “This team is going to be good. I mean good.” No one wants to hear that tonight. Not after the Penguins’ lone defensive lapse of overtime cost them a 2-1 loss to the Rangers at Madison Square Garden, as well as this Stanley Cup playoff series in five games

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344 Comments Newest to oldest

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unipress_546edb9ca03c7
4-25-2015, 12:37 am
Great column as usual. So we can expect LaPierre resigned? Believe he is an UFA.

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ziggygreece
4-25-2015, 12:40 am
Awesome article and you are always on point. Safe travels back to pittsburgh Dejan. Thanks a million.

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[email protected]
4-25-2015, 12:42 am
DK when you talk about adding speed on the wings do you think it'll be a big name player or a couple young guys?

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Michael Matheson
4-25-2015, 5:10 pm
With no draft picks to trade and not a lot of money.. I am thinking young guys. Remember the price for free agents last year, it might be worse this year.

sanders4
4-25-2015, 12:43 am
great article again with great points throughout! Do you think that 40 will be re signed? and more importantly do you think that 58 or 9 (probably unlikely) will be ready to play in the fall? I'm pessimistic about both to be brutally honest

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jalopenobaker
4-25-2015, 12:43 am
I think they should change the name of the team, as penquins have no useful wings. How many different wingers have played with Crosby over the years?

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Deeeeee
4-26-2015, 1:11 am
That's not true. Penguins use their wings for swimming and they swim very fast.

Daniel DeCaria
4-25-2015, 12:43 am
Now this is an informed outlook on the future instead of Rossi's sensationalist swill. Good on ya DK, couldn't agree more, this team is close. Hand the blue-line keys to the youth, get healthy, and be prudent with the cap space. Sky is the limit!

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swordfish231
4-25-2015, 12:50 am
Was going to write basically the same thing.

6Lombardis
4-25-2015, 12:57 am
Yes!

Derek
4-25-2015, 12:43 am
Matt Belesky - LW, Anaheim

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Daniel DeCaria
4-25-2015, 12:47 am
Was just tossing his name around earlier tonight. Great minds think alike!

lloydus2215137
4-25-2015, 12:46 am
fantastic.

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nalewis93
4-25-2015, 12:47 am
What can they afford to trade? Draft picks seems risky considering how many they've traded

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Jay P.
4-25-2015, 12:47 am
Perfect. You're right. This stings. However I am more focused on the positives and excited for what next season may bring. Health will be restored on the blue line and the dead weight will be removed.

Sometimes when eliminated its hard to think of positives. One or two bounces go our way and the Presidents Trophy winning rangers are the ones with frowns in the handshake line.

Malkin clearly wasn't healthy. Minor or not no one knows how much he was effected by whatever was bothering him. Was great to see him not use that as an excuse. I don't see this as the mentally weak team it showed to be at times in the past. Never saw any quit. Never saw any lack of hustle.

Last but not least I feel I need to apologize to Fleury. I had my doubts about the guy. Had my doubts about signing him to an extension. I remember his playoff implosions however last season and this postseason he showed me his dedication to improving. Simply put he was a beast.

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thebulky1cometh
4-25-2015, 1:00 am
Points that prove they are indeed a mentally weak team:
1. No comebacks when trailing after 2
2. Frustration/undisciplined penalties against NYR
3. Couldn't beat Flyers
4. See just about any home game during the final 3 weeks of the regular season

I'm not attacking your opinion, I just want to get a little debate going.

Jay P.
4-25-2015, 1:23 am
No worries man. I appreciate your feedback. Debating is a good thing. The reason I don't think they are mentally weak is because they were never out of any of these playoff games. Sure there were some players who lacked discipline and cost the team. Sure they were dreadful against the Flyers. But to be in every game against what people think is the best team in the league speaks for itself. There's players that need to go and will. Malkin will regain health and our blue line will come back. Just saying this isn't one of those losses that has you second guessing the future. Fleury was fantastic. Rest of team will follow suit.

cherokee23
4-25-2015, 7:35 am
I agree with JayP

justin
4-25-2015, 1:14 pm
The lack of offense is why they never came back from down 2. Not a "mental toughness" issue.

7sforallmankind
4-25-2015, 12:48 am
sad this season ended but already looking forward to the changes and the upcoming season : )

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pittsportsfan
4-25-2015, 12:48 am
thank you for requesting sanity from fans.

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Marc
4-25-2015, 4:49 am
Who is filling the two top 6 winger holes? Kapanen is a reach at best. Bennett has been all but given up on. No other forward in our system even reasonably projects to be a top 6 guy. Free agency you pay big costs for mediocre talent.

This isn't getting fixed in one season. Ownership needs to understand that.

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Hail2Pitt
4-25-2015, 2:58 am
I don't see Kapanen as a reach. He looked good in camp. He's played professionally in Finland. He's now stepped in at WBS and performed.

Scott
4-25-2015, 7:46 am
Spot on Marc. They should have had that can't fix it in one year strategy this year.
* can't make that Winnik trade, not at that price 2&4
* I'm ok with Perron trade as bad as he played he's top 6 now. Remember Neal struggled when he first got here too.
* Greiss was not necessary
* Spalling contract is insane
* cap fiasco at end of season was avoidable sure you couldn't know 58 and 10 getting but you have to plan for it.

sadams2363
4-25-2015, 8:21 am
Our GM is the same guy who signed Semin to that great contract in Carolina. The only thing more dangerous than this GM with no money to spend is this GM WITH money to spend.

Carmen
4-25-2015, 8:39 am
Agree with Scott regarding Perron and Neal comparison. I could see him scoring 20-25 Goals next year. Also on Spalling contract. Have to cut loose 4 and either 14 or 12.

JTM09
4-25-2015, 12:51 am
Lovejoy on for 10 of 11 .....LOL

Please get rid of him and Spaling too.

Let's not forget that Morehouse is a media spin machine. I don't trust him or his pal the Clintons as far as I could throw them.

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tfftroy
4-25-2015, 12:51 am
Man, you really could have kept writing and I would have had no problems reading more. Great. Great article DK. And Sid's take on the season is very realistic. We like to talk about not having excuses, but 343 man games lost (comprised of some of the best players on the team) isn't an excuse. If my boss comes in and takes my laptop away and yet still wants me to do my job, I simply couldn't. And it wouldn't be an excuse. That's a legitimate problem. That's what happened to this team and this season. They didn't have a clear identity going into the playoffs with all the different personnel and still managed to play very well against the Rangers. Anyone who calls for more sweeping change simply didn't really watch the whole season unfold.

Well done sir.

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Emerson
4-25-2015, 12:52 am
DK: My only problem here is the fact that this is a very shallow FA year in regards to wingers. St Louis, Erik Cole, Drew Stafford, Justin Williams are probably the best 4 out there, there might be some gems that I haven't seen this season well enough say their name.

So what are you going to do? Trade off some of the young D we have for wingers? might be possible, but when you look we've trade a lot of that depth over years as well. Draft this year is pretty much gone, it is what it is.

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mjames223
4-25-2015, 1:02 am
I would love to add Williams that would be a great start....if they add one legit too 6 and two really good 3rd liners on a tk and cookie 09 level this team will be on another level. i still have faith in Perron figuring it out. they would have him duper and kaspenan to fill the other 2 spots not bad.

kteemac
4-25-2015, 5:06 am
I wouldn't try for any of those 4 -- average age is 34 (and if you remove the relative spring chicken of Stafford at age 29, it jumps to 36). Our team is already too old, we don't need to make it worse. I'd take a look at Michael Frolik, Matt Beleskey, and maybe Shawn Matthias.

Emerson
4-25-2015, 1:31 am
Perron isn't going anywhere, who is going to take him and what bag of pucks will he get back? Not even worth shopping, we just have to hope he can figure it out. The forwards had to play too much D for Perron to be anywhere close to be effective, to cover for what was there on the backend. If Perron doesn't perform next year you don't renew his contract.

Kaspenan will be interesting to say the least. Hope he can make the jump next year.

mjames223
4-25-2015, 1:58 am
you could easily trade Perron if you wanted to...he is a young winger who can score. with that said I don't think we will or should try to trade him he has all that talent he will figure it out next year, we just need more depth. should be a fun off-season.

mjames223
4-25-2015, 2:50 am
Williams will only be 33 next year, not young but he is for sure a too 6...Stafford would be ideal, the other three you mentioned frolik

mjames223
4-25-2015, 2:54 am
frolik wouldn't be bad but belesky has had one year where he hit 20 goals every other year he has been a botom six grinder type...not sure if I trust him to contribute in the top 6...and mathias doesn't exactly light it up either. plus it sounds like their teams want to resign them.

mjames223
4-25-2015, 3:01 am
what about vermette? he is 31 I think but guy can play and won't cost too much.

Bettis36
4-25-2015, 12:52 am
Good column. This team is looooong overdue for a little luck. Two players in FA I'd love to get are Frolik and Soderberg. I trade Sutter and his 50 games of mush every year. Scrape Spaling off too. 2.2 mil for a dime-a- dozen player. Buyout Scuds is a big priority. He's just plain awful. Downie won't be back and thank God for that. I don't get the love for that dumb penalty magnet.

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andy4771
4-25-2015, 12:53 am
Great work DK. Fix "Center is Crosby...and *Lapierre*.

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PittsportsfaninATL
4-25-2015, 12:54 am
Good stuff, I can't wait to see all these young blue liners next year. If we are at full strength on Defense, is Lovejoy even in that situation he was in tonight? He played somewhat out of the context for which was intended when the trade was made.

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mjames223
4-25-2015, 12:54 am
dk you sound pretty sure of the buyouts coming, have you heard that from someone inside or is it just what you would do? I personally think it makes all the sense in the world, but what seems to make sense doesn't always happen ie signing Nick spaling last off-season

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Scott Hey Hey
4-25-2015, 2:50 am
Spaling was included with Hornqvist in the Neal trade, they didn't go out and sign him as a FA pickup.

Dejan Kovacevic
4-25-2015, 4:22 am
Already reported on that in detail here.

Column: Penguins could still fly … with wings

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