Glass Half Full??

Tender Rip

Wears long pants
Feb 12, 2007
17,972
5,171
Shanghai, China
So, in the spirit of accommodating the many Pens fans who - not without reason - find the discussions on this forum far too negative for where we are at, here's an attempt at looking at the bright side.

You will notice that this hardened, multi-year Bylsma-critic will simply eschew that topic in the following.

1: We are 4-1-0 on the young season without even once having any of the top two lines go like they should be capable of.
2: We are 4-1-0 while playing without our Norris contending nr.1 D-man as well as being deprived of our best winger, a 40 goal All Star.
3: Our only loss so far was when we played our backup, who had a lousy first NHL game while our PK took a night off and key players such as 87 and 44 were horrible.
4: Our captain has played two very poor games by his standard out of five, has seen both his wingers play way below par.... yet leads the NHL in points.
5: Our other super star has been deprived of his number 1 side kick, has seen a revolving door on his wings, had his minutes and role mishandled greatly, and while being snake bitten, has gotten to a PPG average while showing steady improvement in one of his past weaknesses (faceoffs) and has had only one game where anyone could accuse him of playing less than great defensively.
6: On defense the number 5 D-man most here wants to trade (me too, certainly) in order to find a hard nosed forward/cap space, has five points in five games and leads the team with +7. Seems like he should be a decent trade pawn.... The other D-man we could desire to trade is our number 4 arguably, despite being 2nd in ice time among our D-men and leading us in both hits and blocked shots, as per usual. With his resume and style, most likely a good trade pawn also.
7: We have gotten our results and offense so far without having sorted out our offensive zone entries and getting barely any cycling of the puck outside of short bursts.
8: Our much (justly) maligned number 1 goalie has looked very good and can hardly be deemed culpable on any one goal he has allowed in his four starts so far, all wins.
9: We are yet to actually unleash any of our best and most 'prime time ready' youngsters in Beau Bennett and Simon Despres.
10: Kunitz and Dupuis can hardly play much worse than they are.
11: Our biggest duds, Gladams, have actually looked more than NHL worthy so far - indeed they have been key contributors.
12: Previously underused players such as Vitale and Jeffrey have both largely been used right, and now even gets to showcase the PK ability we all knew they had.
13: Outside of two, maybe three teams in the league, every other GM and coach would look at our roster with naked envy.


So, it is a long season ahead. We have the foundation for success and the assets with which to adjust/upgrade our lineup in the areas where it would be useful now AND long term. Personally I think it SHOULD be extremely possible for a competent GM, which despite a few misgivings I believe we have, to re-tool slightly with significant resulting benefits.

Next time we get an indication if the club has an inkling which direction it should be going in will be upon us shortly with the returns of Letang and Neal causing some decisions to be made roster wise.

NB: My moratorium on (rabid) Disco criticism ends with October.
 

Don'tcry4mejanhrdina

Registered User
Aug 4, 2003
11,329
2,091
This space.
Get out of here with that. We demand perfection! Crosby would have at least 15 points now if he had real wingers, because every other star in the league scores on every scoring chance they have.
 

Ogrezilla

Nerf Herder
Jul 5, 2009
75,534
22,049
Pittsburgh
This is a very good hockey team for sure. I expect to win the Metro division with a double digit cushion in the standings.
 

ColePens

RIP Fugu Buffaloed & parabola
Mar 27, 2008
107,022
67,647
Pittsburgh
Nobody can argue the positives this team has. I think the truth lies with expectations. We have two the best players in the world and some additional parts that are top of the league. Expectations since 2009 have been to win a 2nd Stanley Cup.

I think IF we put things into perspective - we are a damn good team with playoffs almost guaranteed. That's pretty damn amazing. But this is the City of Champions. It's not bad to have expectations through the roof. That's what separates our city from pretty much any other city. We expect and demand our teams to reach the highest level.

So if I sit back and just try to enjoy hockey, I love this team. We have reason to tune in every night. And as much as we hate Bylsma, he's a good coach. Not a great coach, a good coach. But I think we all know it's going to end the same way. Alllllll these expectations and another disappointment.

So I think you make some great points, but ultimately the goal at the end of the season isn't to have a great season, it's to come home with Lord Stanley. That's the only way it doesn't end in disappointment.
 

Til the End of Time

Registered User
May 18, 2003
7,853
1
Santa Monica, CA
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there are definitely a lot of positives, but the real frustrating thing is the flaws of this team are very obvious and correctable-- fleury, bylsma, glass/adams, dupuis on sids hip... etc.

the team has the potential to be great yet it seems like the coaching staff/management are oblivious to the clear-as-day problems. or if not oblivious, then unwilling to make the "unpopular" but right moves to make the team better.
 

Gallatin

A Banksy of Goonism
Mar 4, 2010
2,951
541
Pittsburgh
Nobody can argue the positives this team has. I think the truth lies with expectations. We have two the best players in the world and some additional parts that are top of the league. Expectations since 2009 have been to win a 2nd Stanley Cup.

I think IF we put things into perspective - we are a damn good team with playoffs almost guaranteed. That's pretty damn amazing. But this is the City of Champions. It's not bad to have expectations through the roof. That's what separates our city from pretty much any other city. We expect and demand our teams to reach the highest level.

So if I sit back and just try to enjoy hockey, I love this team. We have reason to tune in every night. And as much as we hate Bylsma, he's a good coach. Not a great coach, a good coach. But I think we all know it's going to end the same way. Alllllll these expectations and another disappointment.

So I think you make some great points, but ultimately the goal at the end of the season isn't to have a great season, it's to come home with Lord Stanley. That's the only way it doesn't end in disappointment.

I choose to put my faith in J Martin making **** happen behind close doors with this staff. He will win out by the end of the season, and we will have a staff that holds its players accountable, plays good D, and still scores plenty.

Based on what I have seen, if we get solid goaltending, things will work out.

A key point to consider, is the team has to fall on it's face, fall off the wagon of responsible good play, in order for Martin to get this staff holding it's players accountable.

What we saw this weekend was inevitable, and we will see plenty more nights they fall off the wagon before the culture change occures-first with the staff, then with the players.

It's coming though IMO. We hired a great coach, and he will get DB and the rest straightened out.
 

Til the End of Time

Registered User
May 18, 2003
7,853
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Santa Monica, CA
Visit site
also this is the prime of sid/malkin's career.

rarely will you have the game's two best players in their prime and it's a tragedy if they miss out on championships because the team makes inane non-nonsensical decisions, things like keeping around lovable loser fleury.

want to win cups, yet have the worst playoff goalie in the league... doesnt make sense.
 

KIRK

Registered User
Aug 2, 2005
109,700
51,216
Next Pens ad campaign: Entertainment, Not Expectations. :laugh:

To echo the sentiment here, I expect the Pens to win the division handily and to be fine against any team in the division. Boston, probably Toronto, maybe another really tight defensive team again will be an uphill battle. Then again, in the spirit of this thread, maybe we'll get lucky like 2009 and not face a good defensive team in our conference and then have the team we meet in the finals have its best player with a broken ankle. :handclap:
 

BumFortyOne

Registered User
Nov 13, 2006
965
0
Berkeley
Next Pens ad campaign: Entertainment, Not Expectations. :laugh:

To echo the sentiment here, I expect the Pens to win the division handily and to be fine against any team in the division. Boston, probably Toronto, maybe another really tight defensive team again will be an uphill battle. Then again, in the spirit of this thread, maybe we'll get lucky like 2009 and not face a good defensive team in our conference and then have the team we meet in the finals have its best player with a broken ankle. :handclap:

See, this is where the playoffs are such a crapshoot. I mean, what exactly is to blame for the fact that this team managed only 2 goals in a four game sweep? Can we really say that because Iginla was played with Malkin and Kunitz and Dupuis were with Crosby that it was inevitable that the offense was going to go ice cold? There was more than enough offense on that team (even with what I and most others think were questionable line choices) to manage more than 2 goals in four games. But **** happens. I would bet that if you had told people in advance the team was going to get swept by Boston you would have expected it to be the defense that failed. If anything, that loss falls squarely on some of our best players failing to make a mark on that series.

And to your point, I thought that the 08 Finals team was better than the 09 Cup winning team. But it takes some luck to win in the playoffs as much as it takes a good team and a good coach.
 

KIRK

Registered User
Aug 2, 2005
109,700
51,216
See, this is where the playoffs are such a crapshoot. I mean, what exactly is to blame for the fact that this team managed only 2 goals in a four game sweep? Can we really say that because Iginla was played with Malkin and Kunitz and Dupuis were with Crosby that it was inevitable that the offense was going to go ice cold? There was more than enough offense on that team (even with what I and most others think were questionable line choices) to manage more than 2 goals in four games. But **** happens. I would bet that if you had told people in advance the team was going to get swept by Boston you would have expected it to be the defense that failed. If anything, that loss falls squarely on some of our best players failing to make a mark on that series.

And to your point, I thought that the 08 Finals team was better than the 09 Cup winning team. But it takes some luck to win in the playoffs as much as it takes a good team and a good coach.

Agreed there. And, the 2008 team steamrolled in the East, including over a really defensively good Rangers team. Rookie jitters and Malkin hurt for the finals.
 

KIRK

Registered User
Aug 2, 2005
109,700
51,216
I find the lack of cynicism in this thread disturbing.

Who would like to volunteer for the force-choke first? :darth:

My Lord, KCD needs not be force-choked. They will choke themselves in the playoffs.

After you revealed yourself at long last as a dark lord of the hockey Sith and your powers transformed Gladams into the great disturbance in the force, you need only command, and I will follow as all should follow.
 

orby

Registered User
Jun 16, 2013
6,637
5,155
Erie, PA
www.youtube.com
I think a lot of the Pens' problems against Boston last season ran deeper than the fact that the first line was getting stifled. The entire system collapsed in the first two games, and by the time we got to games 3 and 4 - which were generally tight and closely contested - the corrections the Pens made were simply not enough to cover the difference. Iginla NOT playing on Crosby's wing was just as big of a problem as the fact that he WAS playing on the wrong side of the second line, in an unnatural position from which he was set up to fail. That helped to neturalize the second line - had Bennett been playing there instead, I think they'd have had more success. Brenden Morrow's injuries and lack of speed made him completely useless on the third line, too - Jokinen should have seen more playing time, for sure. The whole roster was a mess, partly because Shero got greedy with deadline acquisitions and focused on grabbing the two "best available" forwards without a clear plan about how they could be used.

This season, considering the lower cap and lack of wiggle room, I don't think we'll be seeing a glut of new players coming in at the deadline and throwing a wrench in the works. Ironically, I think the team is better-suited to handle a defensive squad like the Bruins now than they were last season, provided the right players be put in the right positions (even discounting the first line, having someone who can legitimately play left wing like Bennett or Jokinen rather than a career RW like Iggy on the second line).

Despite some hiccups in the first two games, I also like the defense better this year than last. Scuderi is no longer in his prime but he has been nothing but a positive influence when he's on the ice, and when Letang comes back I think we're really going to see the benefit of having an honest-to-god good stay at home defenseman as his partner rather than the remains of Mark Eaton.

The third line is a big question mark this year, for the first time in a while - without Cooke, the whole lineup looks quite a bit different -but I'm a glass-half full guy when it comes to Kobasew and Bennett as bottom 6 players. They bring a different skill set to the table than Kennedy and Cooke did - certainly less physical overall - but I think Bennett lifts the playmaking burden from Sutter on that line in a way that 48 and 24 couldn't. Kobasew has also looked like a steal in the early going.

Tanner Glass looks...better? I guess?

Bylsma and Shero have the pieces necessary to make the team succeed, and I hope they realize that. With the benefit of an exceedingly weak division, I think they'll roll into the playoffs with a high seed and play relatively lousy teams in rounds one and two. Once we're in the ECF, it could be a very different story, but I'll save the mourning until the funeral.
 

AjaxTelamon

Registered User
Jul 8, 2011
6,068
1,821
Add the fact that our D prospects are all either on schedule or ahead in terms of development, and suddenly we have more than enough trade chips to fill any needs.
 

Nightwing

Registered User
Nov 23, 2010
284
6
Ottawa
Actually thought this would be a thread dedication to the excellent play of tanner glass LOL!

Team is playing good defense is looking shaky but we are missing a big piece(Letang), hopefully when he comes back Nisky would be pushed onto the 3rd pairing.
 

Al Smith

Registered User
Apr 28, 2012
7,116
3,714
So, in the spirit of accommodating the many Pens fans who - not without reason - find the discussions on this forum far too negative for where we are at, here's an attempt at looking at the bright side.

You will notice that this hardened, multi-year Bylsma-critic will simply eschew that topic in the following.

1: We are 4-1-0 on the young season without even once having any of the top two lines go like they should be capable of.
2: We are 4-1-0 while playing without our Norris contending nr.1 D-man as well as being deprived of our best winger, a 40 goal All Star.
3: Our only loss so far was when we played our backup, who had a lousy first NHL game while our PK took a night off and key players such as 87 and 44 were horrible.
4: Our captain has played two very poor games by his standard out of five, has seen both his wingers play way below par.... yet leads the NHL in points.
5: Our other super star has been deprived of his number 1 side kick, has seen a revolving door on his wings, had his minutes and role mishandled greatly, and while being snake bitten, has gotten to a PPG average while showing steady improvement in one of his past weaknesses (faceoffs) and has had only one game where anyone could accuse him of playing less than great defensively.
6: On defense the number 5 D-man most here wants to trade (me too, certainly) in order to find a hard nosed forward/cap space, has five points in five games and leads the team with +7. Seems like he should be a decent trade pawn.... The other D-man we could desire to trade is our number 4 arguably, despite being 2nd in ice time among our D-men and leading us in both hits and blocked shots, as per usual. With his resume and style, most likely a good trade pawn also.
7: We have gotten our results and offense so far without having sorted out our offensive zone entries and getting barely any cycling of the puck outside of short bursts.
8: Our much (justly) maligned number 1 goalie has looked very good and can hardly be deemed culpable on any one goal he has allowed in his four starts so far, all wins.
9: We are yet to actually unleash any of our best and most 'prime time ready' youngsters in Beau Bennett and Simon Despres.
10: Kunitz and Dupuis can hardly play much worse than they are.
11: Our biggest duds, Gladams, have actually looked more than NHL worthy so far - indeed they have been key contributors.
12: Previously underused players such as Vitale and Jeffrey have both largely been used right, and now even gets to showcase the PK ability we all knew they had.
13: Outside of two, maybe three teams in the league, every other GM and coach would look at our roster with naked envy.


So, it is a long season ahead. We have the foundation for success and the assets with which to adjust/upgrade our lineup in the areas where it would be useful now AND long term. Personally I think it SHOULD be extremely possible for a competent GM, which despite a few misgivings I believe we have, to re-tool slightly with significant resulting benefits.

Next time we get an indication if the club has an inkling which direction it should be going in will be upon us shortly with the returns of Letang and Neal causing some decisions to be made roster wise.

NB: My moratorium on (rabid) Disco criticism ends with October.

Congratulations on your noble attempt to find some positives after 5/82 of the season being complete. I've bolded what I think are some of your better points, especially Letang's absence. Pens' record without him has been so-so, and their 4-1 start, IMO is due in significant part to the good play of Niskanen, Maatta, and Bortuzzo. I've already noted a turn for the negative, so I suspect by Post 30, this thread will join most of the other manic-depressive/perfectionist threads that seem to abound here.
 

KIRK

Registered User
Aug 2, 2005
109,700
51,216
Actually thought this would be a thread dedication to the excellent play of tanner glass LOL!

Team is playing good defense is looking shaky but we are missing a big piece(Letang), hopefully when he comes back Nisky would be pushed onto the 3rd pairing.

Tanner Glass needs no thread celebrating his unparalleled greatness.
 

Random Oracle

Registered User
Aug 3, 2005
2,112
51
As for positives, I find the Penguins very entertaining to watch. After all, they're essentially at the start of an 82-game preseason because the games are almost meaningless as long as you make the playoffs. I personally need some incentive to watch these kinds of games at 2:00 AM, but having the highest scoring team in the league and the two best players in the game is often incentive enough.
 

Sidney the Kidney

One last time
Jun 29, 2009
55,518
46,235
Glass half full? The Pens aren't paying Jordan Staal $6 million per season to produce like a 3rd or 4th line defensive center. Geez, is that guy struggling, at least offensively, in his short time in Carolina.
 

Darth Vitale

Dark Matter
Aug 21, 2003
28,172
114
Darkness
After you revealed yourself at long last as a dark lord of the hockey Sith and your powers transformed Gladams into the great disturbance in the force, you need only command, and I will follow as all should follow.


A substantial reward will be given to the one who finds the Gladams Mobile and disables it before the next game... you may use any means necessary, but I want them ALIVE. No disintegrations! Otherwise I will be forced to deal with the police and this would be... an unpleasant distraction.
 

Jaded-Fan

Registered User
Mar 18, 2004
52,446
14,304
Pittsburgh
I have seen the movie where we dominated the regular season before. The ending usually has not been pretty.

I will reserve judgment until April/May.
 

Crafton

Liver-Eating Johnson
May 6, 2010
9,842
110
San Francisco
I have seen the movie where we dominated the regular season before. The ending usually has not been pretty.

I will reserve judgment until April/May.

win, lose or draw this sentiment will be repeated ad nauseam throughout the regular season.

hopefully by mid-December every member will have it tattooed on their forehead so we don't need to hear about this profound, new concept...
 

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