Post-Game Talk: Jack Johnson Era 0 -2.

[Ryder71]

Rope. Is and understatement. People act like Crosby as well can carry a team anymore. Nope he cannot and he has the pen's best winger on line. The entire year if Malkin wasn't here before covid the pens would not even have had a shot at making regular playoffs. As I stated. You trade Malkin, sid will want out well, because at his age too I doesn't want to be part of a bottom feeding team

Let me be perfectly blunt and honest. If either play like this, I really don't give a shit if they want out! Just get something decent for them.

 

[Beauner]

Malkin is untouchable and deserves more rope than anybody in management, before that talk gets outta hand.

I pray jr agrees. Though apparently Mario agrees as well which is good reassurance

 

[Pittsburgh1776]

For the Malkin trade talk. I don't think Malkin is going anywhere, because of Crosby. I think that might be one of the only things keeping him here after this series. We have two superstars, when one is rolling you go with it, you don't play favorites. Malkin was a freight train all season, then Crosby comes back and boom everything is broken up, nothing makes sense, all the lines mixed. Sorry, but 34 year old Geno isn't winning games by himself anymore. But he has a line that was the best in the NHL, and by the start of this series the coach took one of them away, and by the end he took the other one away. I don't have words for it.

It's the third period of an elimination game and Sullivan is rolling lines, playing L3 and 4 after breaks, playing them after L1, and with 4 minutes left he's playing guys like Marleau. I don't have words for it.

JJ in after being owned the whole series. Schultz on the top PP? WTF?

Look, we need to make the change. Rutherford did ok, this isn't his fault. Sullivan and Recchi need to go or the Sid and Geno era is over.

 

[Gurglesons]

So you don't believe that in two years he can play 25 minutes a game and quarterback the number one power play? I'd like to know what you're basing that on?

No I don’t I think we saw Marino completely exposed this series.

I think he’s a great defenseman, but he will not carry a d-core especially one as weak as our prospects look.

 

[Vega]

Malkin deserves criticism , sure. But Shultz and Johnson were out there with him a ton. That pairing killed us more than anything . A solid third pairing does matter and we didn’t have one. They both killed any chance we had .

 

[Pittsburgh1776]

Let me be perfectly blunt and honest. If either play like this, I really don't give a shit if they want out! Just get something decent for them.

Lol.

 

[Andy99]

The two biggest differences, in terms of the roster, compared to 2017 . . .

1. The absence of warriors. Then, it was Bonino, Cole, and Horny. Now? Bonino left. Sullivan ran Cole off. And Horny has like 3 years and 20000 more miles on him.

2. The lack of young blood up front. Sheary and the other kids in 2016. Jake in 2017. Their energy was infectious.

this is the main issue...Trotz and Julien play the stars very tight...Sid and Geno were never going to do much in this series like last series...this is why you need depth that can come thru, can score and get open and push back and cause mistakes by the opposing team...we don’t have that depth and we had a lot of players we were trying to fit in February that didn’t play a lot here...

 

[ownal]

Sully is stuck in 2017 playing Schultz as much as he did.

 

[PhilThrillPill]

1. Sullivan lost the team and was outcoached - he needs to go
2. Schultz actively damaged the team and is definitely gone - THANK YOU! (How the **** was Sully playing him in extra man situations?!?!?!)
3. JJ - I'm at loss for words - please find a way to lose him
4. The Kahun for Sheary-Rod move was dumb - we all knew it at the time
5. Murray was not good enough to deserve a 6+mil contract and his slope has downwards since the cups - you do not pay a person for past performances.
6. Jake needs to heal and rebuild strength and confidence - his shots and passes were off, he looked like a shell of his former self and should not have been an automatic stable on the first line
7. McCann should not be resigned for anything above 3+mil - what lousy play and inconsistency
8. Bjugstad be gone please.

Jake (version 2.0) - Sid - New winger
Zucker - Geno - Rust
New Winger - New Center (?) - Horny
BART - we know that line is not changing

Dumo-Letang
Petts-Marino
New D3, New D3

**We all new that the Marleau trade was a waste as well!
**Very questionable decisions were made at the trade deadline

 

[Shady Machine]

How do people seriously think that just getting rid of a few bad depth players and firing the coach will solve the problems with this team? Like this series wasn't "Penguins playing great, but a few bad apples tanked the team". This was catastrophic failure all around.

correct which is why you can’t overreact and sell the whole team.

 

[Hell Yeah!!!]

This is the best possible outcome. Usually on talent alone we would do something stupid like prolong the series or make it to the next round or anything to give management the opportunity to not say this is hot garbage.

We lost, looked terrible, players mailed it in and Sully....well he Sullied the lineup, adjustments, everything.

So now its in Marios and probably still JR's hands (who other than trading Kuhn I'm fine with but even that I'm going to pin on Sullies Sheary man love and I dont care if theres no basis for that).

Maybe some real coaching and roster change....and a chance at LaFreniere

And no crazy $7M 6yr Matt Murray contract!!

Hell Yeah!!!

 

[CascadiaPenguin]

A word of caution- we were equally certain that Sully was gone after the Isles debacle last year. They may find a way to justify keeping this shitshow intact.

 

[Pittsburgh1776]

Good post, but JR gets blame too for enabling MS, and the terrible Kahun trade.

Malkin was the pens best player during the season and they were killing it as a team with the Guentzel-Malkin-Rust line. Genius coach decided to ignore that though.

JR trusted Sullivan, he thought the players were the problem in 2019 and now he's seeing there are two sides to all stories.

 

[LittleSpoon]

How do people seriously think that just getting rid of a few bad depth players and firing the coach will solve the problems with this team? Like this series wasn't "Penguins playing great, but a few bad apples tanked the team". This was catastrophic failure all around.

Your statement really does point to the coach though. Idk how you can look at each team and think that the pens simply didn’t play well enough. I’d argue that our defense, and coaching is what needs to change. Even though we didn’t score and haven’t been scoring at a high rate for quite some time indicates it’s a systems issue. Not saying my opinion is factual, but it just seems our ability to maintain pick possession is not on par with most of the league, and when I am looking at the personnel, I can’t help but think that it has to relate with the way they are being instructed to play. But again, this is my objective view point and that counts about as much as all pundits saying that the pens would win this series.

 

[2wayPlay]

Honestly I think they will chalk this one up as COVID weirdness and not fire the coach. There will be other changes but I’m just not seeing anything drastic.

And it may be justified honestly. The whole world is crumbling. Still with all of that. Jack Johnson is the worst of all time

 

[Ryder71]

Lol.

We're 1-9 with both these guys in the line up. Not sure why you think that's funny. Clearly we can lose very very easily with them.

 

[orby]

A word of caution- we were equally certain that Sully was gone after the Isles debacle last year. They may find a way to justify keeping this shitshow intact.

If they don't fire Sullivan after this, it's Bylsma all over again. Bylsma should have been gone after the loss to Philadelphia in 2012, and DOUBLY should have been gone after the Bruins sweep in 2013. The organization shot themselves in the foot by not forcing him out earlier than they did. I hope they don't make the same mistake with Sullivan. It's clear that his magic has worn off.

 

[2wayPlay]

I think you also have to look at the team quitting on Sully. Covid or not

 

[LittleSpoon]

Ranger fan here. Atleast ya’ll won a game.

You sir, are a sweetheart...or a sick sick individual.

 

[Empoleon8771]

correct which is why you can’t overreact and sell the whole team.

I never said you should, but acting like the team is suddenly fixed if they just get rid of JJ, Schultz and Sheary is equally as wrong as acting like they need to nuke the team.

This team needs big changes this off-season. That doesn't mean Crosby or Malkin, but it does mean players like Hornqvist, Dumoulin, Rust and maybe even Guentzel or Letang shouldn't be safe.

 

[Pittsburgh1776]

We're 1-9 with both these guys in the line up. Not sure why you think that's funny. Clearly we can lose very very easily with them.

I think it's hilarious you think 2 of the 3 or 4 best players in team history are the problem.

 

[WayneSid9987]

A word of caution- we were equally certain that Sully was gone after the Isles debacle last year. They may find a way to justify keeping this shitshow intact.

No doubt they can chalk it up to Price beating them but anyone with a functioning eye knows this shit ain't workin' no more. ie. JR can blame Price but Mario should see the bigger picture.

 

[LittleSpoon]

I never said you should, but acting like the team is suddenly fixed if they just get rid of JJ, Schultz and Sheary is equally as wrong as acting like they need to nuke the team.

This team needs big changes this off-season. That doesn't mean Crosby or Malkin, but it does mean players like Hornqvist, Dumoulin, Rust and maybe even Guentzel or Letang shouldn't be safe.

I give guentz a bit of a pass since he hasn’t played in like 7 months if my memory is accurate. Maybe 6...maybe 5 lol. I smoked a lot of weed in the early part of 2020

 

[Watson Bugsy]

We'll go get em next year. Us fans that endured the first 23 years used to say that.

 

[SEALBound]

Nope. Edmonton has Bettman on hold, waiting to see if the Blackhawks hand them their next #1.

Nah, they got their McDavid. It's been 15 years for us. 1991 - 15 years - 2005 and we get Sid. 2005 - 15 years - 2020 we get LeFreniere.

It's written in the stars my man.