How does this team stack up?

So...


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BHD

Vejmelka for Vezina
Dec 27, 2009
38,124
16,511
Moncton, NB
I thought now would be a good time to start this thread. Since the Metro teams are done making moves (for now), where do you see this team - as currently constructed - finishing in the division? Please provide an explanation if you can. Per usual, discuss the post - not the poster. You can always reach out to the mods if you think there is an ongoing issue in the thread.
 
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Malkinstheman

Registered User
Aug 12, 2012
9,270
8,033
I think we're set at forward. They just need to make some adjustments at D to give themselves the best chance. Right now im feeling pretty good about the team. Im gonna say they could do something. With so many new players, we need to see how everyone fits.
 

Peat

Registered User
Jun 14, 2016
29,292
25,206
Top 4 unless Matt Murray regresses again/has major injury problems. It's pretty difficult to miss the playoffs if your goaltender is in the top 10 starters for save percentage - there might be some weaknesses to this team, but I don't think they're so big as to outweigh the strengths.
 
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ColePens

RIP Fugu Buffaloed & parabola
Mar 27, 2008
107,022
67,647
Pittsburgh
I'll break it down a bit, but overall I'm very intrigued.

Forwards: I'm very interested in the offense. They finally have an "identity" of a nice mix of youth, star power, and some tenacity/speed. So i'm very happy with the forwards.

Defense: No. Not there yet. We desperately need a skating dman. Not just a puck moving dman, we need a skating dman. Someone like Daley who could skate the puck to pressure for us and then make a subtle dish. All of our defense, except Tangers and Riikola, sit back and look to bomb passes. Some can get away with it and some cannot. Our defense is in desperate need of that Scuds/Daley trade or Riikola really stepping forward in a big way.

Goalies: Yeah... if Muzz plays the way we know he can, we are solid.


Overall - very pleased with how the team looks and the direction it is going. Get JJ out and a miracle in a 1 year signing of Gardiner and this team is LEGIT. I would write them in as a cup contender, but paper contenders don't mean a damn thing. We've seen that w/ Tampa. It's got to all come together AND luck is needed.
 

Peat

Registered User
Jun 14, 2016
29,292
25,206
I went with fringe because there are too many question marks at forward AND defense AND net. If we off load JJ, I have more faith in our D and would say they are still fringe. As always. Wouldn’t surprise me to see a cup run.

I think there'll probably need to be a couple of in season adjustments for a cup run.
 

Beauner

Registered User
Jun 14, 2011
13,031
6,132
Pittsburgh
I'm hoping the offloading of Kessel will impact the forward unit as a whole and allow them to play at the same pace, but with smarter and more purposeful decisions with and away from the puck.

I'm actually a little worried about the lack of experience up front. They're super young. Besides most of the top-6, none of them have experienced a deep playoff run (or a full season with a team with Cup aspirations for that matter). Hopefully they can learn on the fly
 

Andy99

Registered User
Jun 26, 2017
50,038
32,210
I went with fringe because there are too many question marks at forward AND defense AND net. If we off load JJ, I have more faith in our D and would say they are still fringe. As always. Wouldn’t surprise me to see a cup run.

Agree...too much variability right now in how things could turn out...we could be a contender or we could be fighting for a WC spot and near the bottom of the division...we’re relying on lot of forwards gelling and we’ll need good and healthy Murray to show up because we know the D is ass...play it out, make moves as needed and perhaps we’re there at the end...way too early to say
 

Peat

Registered User
Jun 14, 2016
29,292
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Daley like trade for an LD, Murray being Murray, and two or three of the young wingers becoming 40-50pt players makes us a favorite IMO considering how wide open the East is.

No argument there.

Just that's one adjustment - maybe two to get that Daley trade - and I've got a gut feeling that maybe we have another winger trade coming or call up to get to that stage. Or 3C replacement. Or Schultz replacement. Just so many questions, I'm expecting something goes a little wrong.
 

Dipsy Doodle

Rent A Barn
May 28, 2006
76,532
21,073
I'll break it down a bit, but overall I'm very intrigued.

Forwards: I'm very interested in the offense. They finally have an "identity" of a nice mix of youth, star power, and some tenacity/speed. So i'm very happy with the forwards.

Defense: No. Not there yet. We desperately need a skating dman. Not just a puck moving dman, we need a skating dman. Someone like Daley who could skate the puck to pressure for us and then make a subtle dish. All of our defense, except Tangers and Riikola, sit back and look to bomb passes. Some can get away with it and some cannot. Our defense is in desperate need of that Scuds/Daley trade or Riikola really stepping forward in a big way.

Goalies: Yeah... if Muzz plays the way we know he can, we are solid.


Overall - very pleased with how the team looks and the direction it is going. Get JJ out and a miracle in a 1 year signing of Gardiner and this team is LEGIT. I would write them in as a cup contender, but paper contenders don't mean a damn thing. We've seen that w/ Tampa. It's got to all come together AND luck is needed.

Solid depth at forward right now, but I am worried about our scoring with Phil gone and JJ still on the roster. And as you said, we could use another skating defenseman.

As it stands I think we're a bubble playoff team, but there's a lot of summer left.
 

Pens1566

Registered User
Aug 2, 2005
18,377
7,216
WV
Went with "fringe". Lots of roster turnover, barely squeaked in last season, lots of improvement (other than the BJs) on other teams.
 

Empoleon8771

Registered User
Aug 25, 2015
80,407
78,003
Redmond, WA
I feel like this team is clearly in the top-4 in the division. The star power in Crosby, Letang, Malkin and Guentzel with the superb forward depth, top-10 starter in Murray and a solid defense (it's better than people here give it credit for, the top pair and bottom pair are both excellent) should make this team pretty comfortably in a playoff spot.
 

Khelandros

Registered User
Feb 12, 2019
3,928
4,410
For everyone saying "bubble team, squeaking in, fighting for spot", show me which team is going to beat them.

Washington - Lost some d-men
Pittsburgh - Lost 13 SH goals against, added speed and scoring on wings
Philadelphia - Maybe Hart will repeat what he did last season? Still a team built with 3rd liners everywhere.
NYI - Lost their #1 goalie and replaced him with Varlamov! LOL
Carolina - Lost their #1 goalie and replaced him with Reimer! LOL
NYR - Added a scoring winger but don't have any depth other than first line, Lundqvist is well into his decline, Kakko isn't getting them 12 wins
NJ - Hughes is going to be Hischer 2.0, Wayne Simmonds, LOL. Good luck finding 13 extra wins
Columbus - Traded all the picks, lost all the FA, Torts, 2 rookie goalies --> good luck at the lottery

The Pens will be comfortably in 2nd, probably going at it with Washington for the Division right to the last day.
 

ZeroPucksGiven

Registered User
Feb 28, 2017
6,338
4,275
Hard to really predict who this team is right now

I could see this team blossoming with the mix of F's that were brought in. I could also easily see this team struggling to score goals due to Kessel's loss (let's not get into this debate again please)

If they kick JJ to the curb I think this defense can do enough to compete for a Cup. But until he's on this roster we won't do diddly squat

This year I'm focused on MM. He's got no more excuses and he needs to put away those question marks about what kind of goalie he is or isn't. He's wildly inconsistent and I want to see who the real MM is finally.
 

BHD

Vejmelka for Vezina
Dec 27, 2009
38,124
16,511
Moncton, NB
I’m leaning towards Top 4 in the division. Partially because other teams got better, partially because I try not to have high expectations when it comes to my own team. Columbus is the only team that got worse, but they’re still solid.
 

Shady Machine

Registered User
Aug 6, 2010
36,691
8,111
I said top 4 because I think there is enough talent and I like the forward depth right now. Some question marks on chemistry and ability to live up to potential for some players, but on paper it looks pretty good. Defense is 1 or 2 moves away from being a good fit, but is also 1 move or injury away from garbage.

If Sid, Geno, Letang, Murray, and Jake all stay healthy and play to expectations, they are a top 3 team in division IMO. If injuries hit to these players, they could be bubble.
 
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Jaded-Fan

Registered User
Mar 18, 2004
52,446
14,304
Pittsburgh
On paper this is a much better team that last year. Yes they lost Kessel but for anyone who watched him just stand around and do nothing on the power play except for fumble the puck, they seemingly lost him by the second half of the year anyways.

Four lines, much more speed, youth, and most of all players who are possession demons. That is a recipe for winning playoff hockey. The other team can not score if they do not have the puck.

The Pens defense, while ugly at times, did have one of the better GAA in the league by the end of the year. It was getting the job done.

A true PMD as Cole pointed out would make them a lot less ugly. But on paper this team has me excited for the first time in a couple of years. For the first time they once more have an actual identity and do not seem to be pulled in two diametrically opposed directions.
 
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SEALBound

Fancy Gina Carano
Sponsor
Jun 13, 2010
40,104
18,216
Last year was much more about players not performing to their capabilities. JJ did not sink the team. He was bad but everyone elses performances, sans Sid and Jake, were suspect at best. Murray had a really rough year.

If they all bounce back and perform as expected, this is still a cup capable team. Hopefully the fresh faces will had hunger and rejuvenate some efforts of the vets.

We still need a minor tweak or two but the pieces are most certainly there. Question is, will the effort and performance be?
 

KIRK

Registered User
Aug 2, 2005
109,700
51,216
I'll break it down a bit, but overall I'm very intrigued.

Forwards: I'm very interested in the offense. They finally have an "identity" of a nice mix of youth, star power, and some tenacity/speed. So i'm very happy with the forwards.

Defense: No. Not there yet. We desperately need a skating dman. Not just a puck moving dman, we need a skating dman. Someone like Daley who could skate the puck to pressure for us and then make a subtle dish. All of our defense, except Tangers and Riikola, sit back and look to bomb passes. Some can get away with it and some cannot. Our defense is in desperate need of that Scuds/Daley trade or Riikola really stepping forward in a big way.

Goalies: Yeah... if Muzz plays the way we know he can, we are solid.


Overall - very pleased with how the team looks and the direction it is going. Get JJ out and a miracle in a 1 year signing of Gardiner and this team is LEGIT. I would write them in as a cup contender, but paper contenders don't mean a damn thing. We've seen that w/ Tampa. It's got to all come together AND luck is needed.

There it is. Failing that, I think you COULD just move out Johnson and look to add a skating D towards the deadline to similar effect.

BUT, Johnson has to go. Look at the wingers on L2 and L3. That's not a mix that will drive play offensively without help from the blueline (like Sid will get regularly from Letang). He'd kill whatever capacity Schultz, who isn't exactly a puck rushing defenseman to start with, has to do that (like last year), and you can't have him on a 3rd pairing with Guds.

ANYWAY . . .

As constituted, with this defense, borderline top 4 in the division. With Johnson gone, I feel comfortable saying top 4, health permitting. With your Gardiner hail mary, assuming his back holds, a legit, albeit somewhat outside, shot at the division.
 
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Sidney the Kidney

One last time
Jun 29, 2009
55,519
46,242
It's hard to answer this question until I see how much more committed to team defense this year's version is compared to last year's version. Sure, last year's team had its flaws, but a lot of the struggles seemed to be self-inflicted due to a lack of players even trying to buy in.

Our defense, as it's currently constructed, is probably keeping us from being a legitimate Cup winner. But our structure and team defense is what made us look like a hot mess most nights.
 
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KIRK

Registered User
Aug 2, 2005
109,700
51,216
It's hard to answer this question until I see how much more committed to team defense this year's version is compared to last year's version. Sure, last year's team had its flaws, but a lot of the struggles seemed to be self-inflicted due to a lack of players even trying to buy in.

Our defense, as it's currently constructed, is probably keeping us from being a legitimate Cup winner. But our structure and team defense is what made us look like a hot mess most nights.

For all of the talk of buying in and bouncing back, one thing I'll be curious to see is what tactical lessons Sullivan takes from last season into this season (I'll also be curious to see how interested he is in making adjustments).
 
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Sidney the Kidney

One last time
Jun 29, 2009
55,519
46,242
For all of the talk of buying in and bouncing back, one thing I'll be curious to see is what tactical lessons Sullivan takes from last season into this season (I'll also be curious to see how interested he is in making adjustments).

I just hope Sullivan's solution to any struggles isn't just "insert Rust on Crosby's line, move ZAR onto Geno's line, and split up Dumo/Letang". Hopefully he can be more creative than that.
 

KIRK

Registered User
Aug 2, 2005
109,700
51,216
I just hope Sullivan's solution to any struggles isn't just "insert Rust on Crosby's line, move ZAR onto Geno's line, and split up Dumo/Letang". Hopefully he can be more creative than that.

Jokes aside, I'm not worried about ZAR with Geno. I am worried that at some point Sullivan will default to Galchenyuk-Horny with Jack Johnson regularly be behind and that it will kill the line.

As for Rust regularly being with Sid . . . yeah, I think people are right to be worried about that one. HOPE that Kahun gets a look and it works (or that McCann goes with Sid-Jake). I won't bother telling you to hope for Jake-Sid-Horny, because we all know that isn't happening.

Look . . . end of the day, it would behoove Sullivan to do what's best for Sid's RW regardless of what Sid wants and to try for once to do as much as he can to set up Geno to play to his strengths and succeed.

EDIT: **** it . . . I'll hope for the best, expect the worst, and withhold judgment until it (whatever 'it' is) happens.
 
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