Simple Poll: If We Kept Fleury, Do We Win One More Stanley Cup?

[theicebox]

If we protected and kept Marc-Andre Fleury during the Vegas expansion draft, do you think we would have won our sixth Stanley Cup during 2017-18, 2018-19, 2019-20, or 2020-21?

It's been four years and I am very curious what the board thinks. Simple yes or no poll for the off-season.

Very shocking to hear that Fleury was traded today.

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[Gurglesons]

No. We probably let him walk?

 

[Empoleon8771]

I'm actually tempted to say yes because of 2018, but it's impossible to tell if Fleury would have repeated what he did in Vegas in 2018 for the Penguins.

It would be absolutely not in any other year, but a maybe in 2018. No is the safer answer here IMO.

 

[PensPlz]

No but I think we beat Montreal in the qualifying round the year before and beat the Islanders last playoffs. Maybe lose to Boston, maybe not. But we definitely have a few more playoff series wins with Fleury.

As it is, we've won 9 playoff games out of 26 since trading Fleury to Vegas. And that is GARBAGE

 

[Sidney the Kidney]

Which years since he left were we that close to winning a Cup that a goalie swap was the only thing holding us back?

And why is Fleury that upgrade when he's had his own share of choke jobs each of the last few years in Vegas?

 

[Kristopher Letang]

If we kept Fleury, do we break more TV remotes?

 

[Gurglesons]

This year is the only year since Fleury left that has been a goaltending issue.

 

[Scandale du Jour]

Probably not, no.

Moving on when we moved on was the right move.

I am a big fan of his, but we had two young goalies including one who just won us two Cups AND there was an expansion draft coming. We had no other choice than to let him go when we did. We could have exposed Murray, but, it would have been dumb (at the time, without the benefit of hindsight).

Do we beat the Caps in 2018 with Fleury? Maybe, maybe not.
Do we win a ROUND from 2019 to 2021 with Fleury instead of Murray/Jarry? Probably one or two.
Do we win a Cup? Most likely not. Too many other issues. Primary issue being changing the team identity after 2017 because goons.

 

[Empoleon8771]

Which years since he left were we that close to winning a Cup that a goalie swap was the only thing holding us back?

And why is Fleury that upgrade when he's had his own share of choke jobs each of the last few years in Vegas?

Possibly 2018. Murray didn't sink them of course but he wasn't particularly good. If Fleury would play like he did for Vegas in 2018, I think they probably get past Washington.

With how dominant the top line was in 2018, I think you could argue that they plus Fleury would have been enough to carry the Penguins to the finals that year.

 

[MetalheadPenguinsFan]

 

[Sidney the Kidney]

Possibly 2018. Murray didn't sink them of course but he wasn't particularly good. If Fleury would play like he did for Vegas in 2018, I think they probably get past Washington.

With how dominant the top line was in 2018, I think you could argue that they plus Fleury would have been enough to carry the Penguins to the finals that year.

The Pens, as a team, were running on fumes. We were getting offense literally from one line and no one else. And while Fleury was good through 3 rounds, he was back to being his usual self in the finals against -- you guessed it -- Washington. So I'm not sure his performance versus Washington with Vegas wouldn't have just been his performance versus Washington for us, only a couple of rounds earlier.

 

[Empoleon8771]

The more I think about this question, the more I think it just opens up a can of worms and making any definitive claims is impossible.

What would you get back for Murray in a trade? They wouldn't have left him available in the expansion draft. How would you deal with Rust likely being the expansion casualty? Columbus was apparently sniffing around Rust and wanted to pay Vegas to take him and trade him to Columbus. How does keeping Fleury impact the Penguins cap structure in 2017-2018 and beyond? Fleury made nearly twice as much as Murray did, so the are some cap ramifications too.

If you just took 2018 Fleury and put him on the 2018 Penguins, I think they could win the cup in 2018. But you fundamentally can't just put 2018 Fleury on the 2018 Penguins.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Make a poll asking if we kept Tocchet as assistant coach.

 

[Ragamuffin Gunner]

F no. We'd prolly win a round but def not a Cup.

 

[Le Magnifique 66]

I don't think we would have won a Cup

But that being said, at the end of the B2B had they decided to keep Fleury as their goalie and traded away Murray for picks and prospects which I think more than a few teams would have paid for, we would have been in a bit better of a position regarding our prospect pool.
And yes, easier said than done

 

[Le Magnifique 66]

If we kept Fleury, do we break more TV remotes?

that was way backkkkkkkkk
I think we would it's more the tv we would have been breaking lol

 

[Night Shift]

I believe Fleury has done extremely well early on in Vegas because I think he personally needed the change of scenery. If he had stayed it would have been more of the same. But my thinking and is similar to @Empoleon8771 in that he after All did save us a few times in the playoffs in 17 so it's tempting to think maybe we reach further a round or 2 in the last 4 years before the typical playoff meltdown

 

[ColePens]

Love MAF.
Never understood this craze it brings the fans.
The dude hasn't started a SCF Game Winning Game since 2009.
He's a fantastic human being.
He was a big part of our franchise.

The end.

 

[ChaosAgent]

The more I think about this question, the more I think it just opens up a can of worms and making any definitive claims is impossible.

What would you get back for Murray in a trade? They wouldn't have left him available in the expansion draft. How would you deal with Rust likely being the expansion casualty? Columbus was apparently sniffing around Rust and wanted to pay Vegas to take him and trade him to Columbus. How does keeping Fleury impact the Penguins cap structure in 2017-2018 and beyond? Fleury made nearly twice as much as Murray did, so the are some cap ramifications too.

If you just took 2018 Fleury and put him on the 2018 Penguins, I think they could win the cup in 2018. But you fundamentally can't just put 2018 Fleury on the 2018 Penguins.

Bolded is the only scenario that may make sense. Trade Murray to upgrade on, say, Sheary. Or address the 3C position so you don't do the Brassard idiocy and lose Ian Cole.

But plopping Fleury on the 2018 Pens changes nothing.

 

[Luigi Lemieux]

No, team just hasn't been good enough the last few years. We might have gotten past the isles but we weren't beating Tampa.

 

[slowhands]

This board is funny, and maybe its just cause things are slow, but some things just never die. I guess that is part of being a fan, loyalty to your team and players.

Fleury was sent packing for the exact reasons he failed in Vegas. Not because he wasn't a good goalie, he wasn't a clutch goalie. Matt Murray outplayed him here in the playoffs and Lehner outplayed him in Vegas. New team same story.

If you could play him during the regular season and then have a hot goalie in the playoffs you could maybe still win one with him. He just hasn't proven he can consistently perform when games matter most.

If he couldn't win in Vegas he definitely wasn't going to win here the way the Pens played the last 2 post seasons.

 

[metalan2]

No, since we've always won cups in spite of Fleury.

 

[Gurglesons]

Bolded is the only scenario that may make sense. Trade Murray to upgrade on, say, Sheary. Or address the 3C position so you don't do the Brassard idiocy and lose Ian Cole.

But plopping Fleury on the 2018 Pens changes nothing.

We would've been f***ed cap wise in 2018 if we kept Fleury.

 

[ChaosAgent]

We would've been f***ed cap wise in 2018 if we kept Fleury.

Trade either Letang or Schultz for King's Ransom.

(Ideally have the foresight to know that Kessel would hit his expiration, but that would be too much to ask. Trading Kessel after 2018 was correct. 2017 would have been nuts.)

 

[Gurglesons]

Trade either Letang or Schultz for King's Ransom.

(Ideally have the foresight to know that Kessel would hit his expiration, but that would be too much to ask. Trading Kessel after 2018 was correct. 2017 would have been nuts.)

Schultz was a UFA.

shadow edit: Rfa.