Salary Cap: Pittsburgh Penguins Salary Cap Thread: If they trade Letang, Scandy Riots

[Darren McCord]

I like Pettersson but I also think he hasn’t yet proven he’s a 2nd pairing guy. Not like Marino has. I also think the goal *should* be to find a good D so that he’s slotted into the #5 spot.

But I don’t think he’ll be terribly out of place or we’ll be severely harmed if we go into the season with him on the 2nd pair.

People I think don’t like him because he’s not real pretty out there and they misinterpret the stat of him being the “most hit” like it’s some kind of knock on him.

Petts just finished his 2nd NHL season I still think he can be a solid number 4

 

[Big Friggin Dummy]

Yep... that's what I mean.

I also suspect that JR was bluffing an awful lot about these seismic changes to the roster and sorta feel like it's gonna just be some guys nobody really cared much about moved around with much the same overall roster problems as last two years. But it's early, yet. Maybe he can do it. I doubt it. He seems more interested in making edgy quotes to the press.

I think he's trying to clear some space to get one of "his guys" in FA, which doesn't inspire a lot of confidence in me. Because, by and large, "his guys" tend to suck and he overpays like crazy for them. But in general, we'll probably go into the season with a lineup very similar to the one we ended the season with, and when we miss the playoffs or are swept in the 1st round again, everyone in the FO/coaching staff will shrug and go "Huh, what happened? Who could've seen this coming?"

 

[Darren McCord]

Dumo-Letang
2LD-Marino
Petts-Riikola/3RD

I think with the hope POJ breaks in soon you go for a RD

Demo - Letang
Rikola/POJ - Marino (if marino made Johnson look good this pairing is fine)
Petts - RD trade or ufa

 

[dogthateats]

No he's not?

Pettersson out-produced Dumoulin's best offensive season in his first season.

Dumoulin’s best season is 76 gp 3g 20a
Pettersson’s 2 seasons are:
84gp 2g 23a and 69gp 2g 20a

Seems about a wash to me

 

[Big Friggin Dummy]

I think with the hope POJ breaks in soon you go for a RD

Demo - Letang
Rikola/POJ - Marino (if marino made Johnson look good this pairing is fine)
Petts - RD trade or ufa

POJ and Poulin coming into camp/pre-season and blowing the team away is our best case scenario, but I don't think it's very realistic at all. I think Poulin's got more to gain from staying up and learning at an NHL level, but I don't think this team will give him that sort of on the job training. He'll go back to Junior, tear it up, then play a season in the AHL. POJ is another guy I see probably getting another season in the AHL to bulk up and refine his game before we give him a spot on the blueline.

 

[Jacob]

Petts just finished his 2nd NHL season I still think he can be a solid number 4

Yeah I think he will be eventually.

 

[BlindWillyMcHurt]

I think he's trying to clear some space to get one of "his guys" in FA, which doesn't inspire a lot of confidence in me. Because, by and large, "his guys" tend to suck and he overpays like crazy for them. But in general, we'll probably go into the season with a lineup very similar to the one we ended the season with, and when we miss the playoffs or are swept in the 1st round again, everyone in the FO/coaching staff will shrug and go "Huh, what happened? Who could've seen this coming?"

I think he'll make at least one big move simply because he can't stand not being talked about.

Hopefully it's at least a good one.

*cringes in advance*

 

[Darren McCord]

POJ and Poulin coming into camp/pre-season and blowing the team away is our best case scenario, but I don't think it's very realistic at all. I think Poulin's got more to gain from staying up and learning at an NHL level, but I don't think this team will give him that sort of on the job training. He'll go back to Junior, tear it up, then play a season in the AHL. POJ is another guy I see probably getting another season in the AHL to bulk up and refine his game before we give him a spot on the blueline.

Ya but I think you can run that lineup without POJ and set yourself up better for the future. If you bring in a LD for to much term you block out POJ. Riikola can be fine in the role if you bring in a legit RD

 

[Big Friggin Dummy]

Dumoulin’s best season is 76 gp 3g 20a
Pettersson’s 2 seasons are:
84gp 2g 23a and 69gp 2g 20a

Seems about a wash to me

Yep, agreed. They're extremely similar with regard to their offensive production--which is to say, not great.

Petts is best served on the bottom pair. If JR didn't hand him the "hey, thanks for taking a 1yr deal, here's a little extra" deal for $4 million AAV, everyone would be fine with him playing a bottom pairing role. Even if he's capable of playing the more defensive style on that pairing, we've already got Marino, who is exceptional in that regard. That pairing, and the blueline as a whole, needs more offensive depth.

 

[Darren McCord]

Yeah I think he will be eventually.

I mean he's only 24 and paced for about 30 points last season. If he can put any muscle on in this extend break before next season he will be a solid number 4. He just needs to work on his muffin shot and build some strength.

 

[Empoleon8771]

Dumoulin’s best season is 76 gp 3g 20a
Pettersson’s 2 seasons are:
84gp 2g 23a and 69gp 2g 20a

Seems about a wash to me

Why don't you compare the rest of Dumoulin's seasons?

Pettersson's first 2 years as a 22 and 23 year old match Dumoulin's best season as a 27 year old. Pettersson is on track to be better offensively than Dumoulin, he's already better right now and he'll likely get better.

 

[Sidney the Kidney]

Counterpoint - Almost nothing worked in the post-season and if we're going to use that series as the key determinator of what to do with good regular season units, it's time to blow the whole thing up.

Counter-counterpoint - ZAR's got zero career playoff goals in 17 games (only 2 assists), is a career -6, and has been on the ice for 9 goals against and only 3 goals for at 5on5 during his career. A guy who adds zero offense shouldn't be giving up 9 goals against in 17 games if the only thing he actually contributes is "defense".

Whatever he may or may not bring in the regular season (IMO, still very, very little), he's atrocious once the playoffs begin.

 

[wheelz87]

No he's not?

Pettersson out-produced Dumoulin's best offensive season in his first season.

I mean Pettersson has 4 goals in in 130 games. He’s never going to ‘break out’ offensively. You see the tools with Marino. He’s got the potential to put up some solid numbers.

And he is far from a great skater..

 

[Big Friggin Dummy]

Ya but I think you can run that lineup without POJ and set yourself up better for the future. If you bring in a LD for to much term you block out POJ. Riikola can be fine in the role if you bring in a legit RD

I think a Petts-Riikola bottom pairing is probably fine. POJ, again, is probably still a year away. If he tears it up in the AHL, you can look to move Petts next summer or something.

We're approaching the days when Dumo-Letang is going to be our 2nd pairing anyway, or at least has their minutes reduced and given to Marino's pairing. Letang's a guy who probably benefits from reduced minutes, and I'm pretty worried about Dumo's ankle being a long-term, career-altering kind of issue. He looked very uncharacteristically bad defensively against Montreal.

 

[WheresRamziAbid]

I really like the idea of tanev in johnson out but i dont see how its going to work

 

[Darren McCord]

Petts is best served on the bottom pair.

I agree with that but not because he isn't a solid number 4. Having Dumo, Marino and Petts anchoring the defense for each pair could set you up for three strong pairings. The pens need a mobile puck mover for the third pairing and hopes that POJ can provide that for the 2nd pairing.

 

[Empoleon8771]

I mean Pettersson has 4 goals in in 130 games. He’s never going to ‘break out’ offensively. You see the tools with Marino. He’s got the potential to put up some solid numbers.

And he is far from a great skater..

Good to know assists don't matter all of a sudden.

Pettersson isn't Letang back there, but he's definitely a good skater. Not everyone needs to be Letang or Tanev to be a strong skater.

 

[Darren McCord]

I think a Petts-Riikola bottom pairing is probably fine. POJ, again, is probably still a year away. If he tears it up in the AHL, you can look to move Petts next summer or something.

We're approaching the days when Dumo-Letang is going to be our 2nd pairing anyway, or at least has their minutes reduced and given to Marino's pairing. Letang's a guy who probably benefits from reduced minutes, and I'm pretty worried about Dumo's ankle being a long-term, career-altering kind of issue. He looked very uncharacteristically bad defensively against Montreal.

If POJ breaks in you definitely don't move Petts. You hope Reilly or another guy can come in cheap and you have a very strong affordable defense for years.

 

[Peat]

Counter-counterpoint - ZAR's got zero career playoff goals in 17 games (only 2 assists), is a career -6, and has been on the ice for 9 goals against and only 3 goals for at 5on5 during his career. A guy who adds zero offense shouldn't be giving up 9 goals against in 17 games if the only thing he actually contributes is "defense".

Whatever he may or may not bring in the regular season (IMO, still very, very little), he's atrocious once the playoffs begin.

True, but I was making the point about writing off things based solely on these playoffs, and little else.

 

[Big Friggin Dummy]

I agree with that but not because he isn't a solid number 4. Having Dumo, Marino and Petts anchoring the defense for each pair could set you up for three strong pairings. The pens need a mobile puck mover for the third pairing and hopes that POJ can provide that for the 2nd pairing.

Yeah, my issue with Petts on the 2nd pair isn't that he's wholly incapable of that role, it's that he brings a weaker version of what Marino's strengths are, and that pairing is nowhere near capable of the offensive depth we've lacked. Petts can handle a 2nd pairing role, but he's best suited to the bottom pairing role on this team, with the options available to be his partner.

This is all pointless anyway, because we're gonna run Dumo-Letang, Petts-Marino, JJ-RD and the blueline will continue to suck at producing points, and our 3rd line will continue to let us down when it comes to that critical third wave of depth.

 

[BlindWillyMcHurt]

Counter-counterpoint - ZAR's got zero career playoff goals in 17 games (only 2 assists), is a career -6, and has been on the ice for 9 goals against and only 3 goals for at 5on5 during his career. A guy who adds zero offense shouldn't be giving up 9 goals against in 17 games if the only thing he actually contributes is "defense".

Whatever he may or may not bring in the regular season (IMO, still very, very little), he's atrocious once the playoffs begin.

I'm not at all trying to attack anyone with this statement (I've made PLENTY of terrible calls) but ZAR is absolutely going to be one of those guys a few years down the line that a certain segment of the fanbase and media suddenly forget about because of the embarrassment of trying to prop him up for years.

 

[JackFr]

The fourth line faced a higher quality of competition than the Malkin line did this season. They played against top competition.

No, they are not great at generating scoring chances but they keep the puck in the offensive zone and do not allow chances against. That's just a fact. Aston-Reese was our best forechecker before Zucker joined the team.

If you guys think you can just replace him with anyone and Tanev and Blueger will get the same results - they literally had to do that when he got hurt and the line was far worse as a result.

 

[Darren McCord]

Yeah, my issue with Petts on the 2nd pair isn't that he's wholly incapable of that role, it's that he brings a weaker version of what Marino's strengths are, and that pairing is nowhere near capable of the offensive depth we've lacked. Petts can handle a 2nd pairing role, but he's best suited to the bottom pairing role on this team, with the options available to be his partner.

This is all pointless anyway, because we're gonna run Dumo-Letang, Petts-Marino, JJ-RD and the blueline will continue to suck at producing points, and our 3rd line will continue to let us down when it comes to that critical third wave of depth.

Ehh Maybe. My bet is they get a rd and actually move Marino down to baby sit JJ.

 

[JTG]

Petts is a really good 4-6 guy. He needs to play with a guy like Marino. If they were to put him with a lesser defenseman he would be out of place.

 

[Big Friggin Dummy]

Ehh Maybe. My bet is they get a rd and actually move Marino down to baby sit JJ.

You're probably right, but reducing the role of our best all-around blueliner from a year ago to play bottom pairing minutes alongside JJ seems... Shitty? Stupid? Exactly what JR and Sullivan will do?