The days of us having a healthy Letang, Hoff are numbered.
- Oneonta Penguin

true.

its a shame with letang. i wont argue whether or not they should have moved on and cashed out when they had the chance. its moot now.

they have him, and hes part of the core going forward. just need to hope he can hang in there. i understand, not the most assuring logic.

i think hoff is gone for sure. him even coming back in this series would make it much closer, if everything else stays similar from tonight.

i still really think that a good, workable team can be built around 87/71. i dont know if they can do it, not from a cap standpoint, but simply from an asset standpoint. its not the lack of money or space, but just the right players.

true.

its a shame with letang. i wont argue whether or not they should have moved on and cashed out when they had the chance. its moot now.

they have him, and hes part of the core going forward. just need to hope he can hang in there. i understand, not the most assuring logic.

i think hoff is gone for sure. him even coming back in this series would make it much closer, if everything else stays similar from tonight.

i still really think that a good, workable team can be built around 87/71. i dont know if they can do it, not from a cap standpoint, but simply from an asset standpoint. its not the lack of money or space, but just the right players.
- stayinthefnnet

I think Letang will be fine long term...some guys have a few rough patches in terms of health like Mike Green when they're considered damaged goods but after they get over it, they stay pretty healthy going forward.

One forward on the NHL roster that he drafted and it's Bennett. That says it all for anybody that thinks he got a raw deal.

He made a few good trades, but overall, he starved this team by not being able to draft and develop any young forwards.
- madmike71

Honestly, he should have just loaded up on forwards. Forget about D when you have 71 and 87 and just have a offense only team. Instead of putting Dupes, Kunitz and whatever plug you can find off hte scrapheap in FA.

I was calling for Shero to be done a yr or 2 before it happened and this board thougth I was crazy.

I think Letang will be fine long term...some guys have a few rough patches in terms of health like Mike Green when they're considered damaged goods but after they get over it, they stay pretty healthy going forward.
- rangerdanger94

Yeah this board thinks that 87 was mash potatoes a few yrs ago, but hes put together 2 full seasons back to back. The reality is that anyone in any pro sport is 1 bad play away from their career being over. You either pay 58 7mil/yr or a mid 30 yr old 6. Ill take Letang.

I think Letang will be fine long term...some guys have a few rough patches in terms of health like Mike Green when they're considered damaged goods but after they get over it, they stay pretty healthy going forward.
- rangerdanger94

In his 8 year career, Letang has played one complete season (2010-11). He's missed at least 10% of the games every other year. He's great when he plays, but he's too injury prone to rely on.

Calls for the first goal scored tonight?

I'm going with Brassard
- xcheckmajor

Well now...

Let me clarify, if healthy and everyone is playing to their potential, a top 5 roster. Sure the bottom 6 is a disaster but Matta, Tang, and Hoff are a good D. I think Lap is fine for a 4C. Not sure what else you could ask for. He played well tonight.

I wasnt huge on the Perron trade. I think a 1st was over payment. I would have prefered Sutter + 2nd or Dumo or BB.

The Winnik deal is a mystery to me as well.
- sammy87

We might be better defensively with a healthy Maatta, Letang and crew, but offensively from a forward standpoint, we would still suck ass. We only have three competent forwards in our top six. The rest are third and fourth line guys.

Perron deal looked genius for 2.5 weeks. Since then, it looks lousy. Still trying to figure out why we gave up a first round pick for a guy that was playing on the second pooptiest team in the league's fourth line.

Winnie deal bothers me from the standpoint a second round pick next year is going to Toronto for a third-fourth line rental ...albeit he is playing in the top six because the rest of our forwards suck ass.

Honestly, he should have just loaded up on forwards. Forget about D when you have 71 and 87 and just have a offense only team. Instead of putting Dupes, Kunitz and whatever plug you can find off hte scrapheap in FA.

I was calling for Shero to be done a yr or 2 before it happened and this board thougth I was crazy.
- sammy87

I wanted Ray and Disco fired after the Bruins debacle (actually I wanted Dan gone after the Flyers fiasco). Those deals he made at the TDL were insane. Then he watches Dan get his ass handed to him by Julien and hands him an extension. Malpractice at it's finest.

i get that same feeling about saad and joe morrow.

if this team had a saad, zucker, kutcherov, type young guy, i think everything is very, very different.
- stayinthefnnet

............& if your Aunty had a penis she would be your uncle which would be also quite different.

We might be better defensively with a healthy Maatta, Letang and crew, but offensively from a forward standpoint, we would still suck ass. We only have three competent forwards in our top six. The rest are third and fourth line guys.

Perron deal looked genius for 2.5 weeks. Since then, it looks lousy. Still trying to figure out why we gave up a first round pick for a guy that was playing on the second pooptiest team in the league's fourth line.

Winnie deal bothers me from the standpoint a second round pick next year is going to Toronto for a third-fourth line rental ...albeit he is playing in the top six because the rest of our forwards suck ass.
- Oneonta Penguin

Our forwards are playing poorly, but Letang, Maatta, and Ehrhoff (as well as Pouliot) would greatly improve the overall offense from the blue line. Right now, they are just limited on what they can contribute offensively and they are liabilities in the d-zone.

EDIT: Not sure how you can claim they "might" be better defensively if healthy. Pens were top 5 defensively before the injuries started stripping away the blue line.

We might be better defensively with a healthy Maatta, Letang and crew, but offensively from a forward standpoint, we would still suck ass. We only have three competent forwards in our top six. The rest are third and fourth line guys.

Perron deal looked genius for 2.5 weeks. Since then, it looks lousy. Still trying to figure out why we gave up a first round pick for a guy that was playing on the second pooptiest team in the league's fourth line.

Winnie deal bothers me from the standpoint a second round pick next year is going to Toronto for a third-fourth line rental ...albeit he is playing in the top six because the rest of our forwards suck ass.
- Oneonta Penguin

yep. winnik is a very fine player and a guy you can win with. but a second for someone who realistically wont be able to make the difference for us sucks. id love to sign him on as a third liner for next year though. great pk guy too. but yeah, on this crappy forward team he gets to be on the first line. thats absurd.

perron. just ugh. (frank) him. guy has talent but im seeing why teams sour on him.

kunitz is just done. he hit the wall that i thought hartnell would hit. perron is a ghost right now. it sucks the defense is hurt, thats just bad luck right now. going forward, i think theyll be able to cobble a good unit together. but forward wise, theres nothing on the horizon. and they severely need.

We might be better defensively with a healthy Maatta, Letang and crew, but offensively from a forward standpoint, we would still suck ass. We only have three competent forwards in our top six. The rest are third and fourth line guys.

Perron deal looked genius for 2.5 weeks. Since then, it looks lousy. Still trying to figure out why we gave up a first round pick for a guy that was playing on the second pooptiest team in the league's fourth line.

Winnie deal bothers me from the standpoint a second round pick next year is going to Toronto for a third-fourth line rental ...albeit he is playing in the top six because the rest of our forwards suck ass.
- Oneonta Penguin

With 87 and 71 the team will have a hole somewhere. Its just impossible to have a complete roster with those 2. And I saw the fancy stat about the past teams have 50% of the cap tied up in 5 players. Pens have 3 players taking up 35%. 87 is still the highest paid player to win a cup in the cap era. 71 now makes more. I know RW didnt post that stat so its not legit.

true.

its a shame with letang. i wont argue whether or not they should have moved on and cashed out when they had the chance. its moot now.

they have him, and hes part of the core going forward. just need to hope he can hang in there. i understand, not the most assuring logic.

i think hoff is gone for sure. him even coming back in this series would make it much closer, if everything else stays similar from tonight.

i still really think that a good, workable team can be built around 87/71. i dont know if they can do it, not from a cap standpoint, but simply from an asset standpoint. its not the lack of money or space, but just the right players.
- stayinthefnnet

Sure, a workable team built around 87/71 is doable. However, when you have that and some of the other contracts on the books, you need to have young talent that can come in and produce. Ottawa has six of them; so does Tampa ... Calgary has a few and so on. This organization is very flawed. While Ottawa has Stone, Hoffman, Zabiniajhad, Chiasson, maybe Lazar, maybe Pageau ... Turris is still young ... we have Beau Bennett to show. That is the problem.

Hoff won't play another game for the Pens IMO. This year has cost him serious $$$ on the free agent market as far as his injuries. Even if he wanted to take a major cut to come back, I'd seriously pass.

In his 8 year career, Letang has played one complete season (2010-11). He's missed at least 10% of the games every other year. He's great when he plays, but he's too injury prone to rely on.
- jfkst1

He isnt really injury prone, his "injuries" are freakish.

Concussion from a hit to the head in Dallas if I remember right that was a weird play where he was reaching for the puck.
Stroke
Concussion from a push into the boards in Arizona, that was a weird play where he fell awkward.

Sure he has a few groin injuries mixed in there but all high end skaters get those from time to time.

The majority of his missed time has been freak plays.

He is more cursed then injury prone

Wilson will be in for BB. I think Adams' career is over.

By the way, the baby Pens are on TV on Saturday night in Pittsburgh if anyone wants to DVR it and watch Kappy.
- madmike71

What channel? I assume its local only, which I am not..

Pens FB page has a great shot of Scuds with a stick in his eye.....no call.

I think that after the game today that the players should have some self belief that they can get through this series. Everyone wrote them off but have come out & gone 1-2 in a very close game. All pressure is on the Rags & with so depleted team the Pens nearly took them playing very ordinary at times. Now the Rags should play a little better though what I heard was that they played very well - but still only won by a goal.

Pens would have got a lot of confidence out of this & need to play better more disciplined game 2. Maybe these overachieving New Yorkers are about to level out, splutter, nose dive & come back down to their proper state - which is well below ours!

Now let's get this series back to even (in a couple of days)!

He isnt really injury prone, his "injuries" are freakish.

Concussion from a hit to the head in Dallas if I remember right that was a weird play where he was reaching for the puck.
Stroke
Concussion from a push into the boards in Arizona, that was a weird play where he fell awkward.

Sure he has a few groin injuries mixed in there but all high end skaters get those from time to time.

The majority of his missed time has been freak plays.

He is more cursed then injury prone
- stackthepads

It doesn't matter what you call it ... fragile, injury prone ... what ever ... the fact is he is so unreliable moving forward.

Sure, a workable team built around 87/71 is doable. However, when you have that and some of the other contracts on the books, you need to have young talent that can come in and produce. Ottawa has six of them; so does Tampa ... Calgary has a few and so on. This organization is very flawed. While Ottawa has Stone, Hoffman, Zabiniajhad, Chiasson, maybe Lazar, maybe Pageau ... Turris is still young ... we have Beau Bennett to show. That is the problem.

Hoff won't play another game for the Pens IMO. This year has cost him serious $$$ on the free agent market as far as his injuries. Even if he wanted to take a major cut to come back, I'd seriously pass.
- Oneonta Penguin

agree very much on the first paragraph.

the second, i dont know. if he took a major cut on a short deal. id go again. i dont think he would do that though.

but yeah. this team is entirely different if you put a stone, zucker, or saad on it.

One forward on the NHL roster that he drafted and it's Bennett. That says it all for anybody that thinks he got a raw deal.

He made a few good trades, but overall, he starved this team by not being able to draft and develop any young forwards.
- madmike71

Can we blame Shero for that though? Im sure the scouts gave him the big board and he just said...yea well take the best forward available..

Can we blame Shero for that though? Im sure the scouts gave him the big board and he just said...yea well take the best forward available..
- YouMeAndDupuis9

Who was a roller skater from CA. That just screams playoff hockey player.

I think that after the game today that the players should have some self belief that they can get through this series. Everyone wrote them off but have come out & gone 1-2 in a very close game. All pressure is on the Rags & with so depleted team the Pens nearly took them playing very ordinary at times. Now the Rags should play a little better though what I heard was that they played very well - but still only won by a goal.

Pens would have got a lot of confidence out of this & need to play better more disciplined game 2. Maybe these overachieving New Yorkers are about to level out, splutter, nose dive & come back down to their proper state - which is well below ours!

Now let's get this series back to even (in a couple of days)!
- Aussiepenguin

I thought the Rangers caught us with that quick goal.
If you remove the rest of the 1st, which the refs did then they had a system that looked pretty godd against the Rangers attack.

The Rangers had some chances in the 2nd and 3rd but most of it was from the outside, Fleury came up with the saves he needed to make but there weren't many or really any 10 bell saves.

I predict that we are going to see a meltdown from Lundqvist with all the traffic we are putting to the net.

We're taking this series.

Can we blame Shero for that though? Im sure the scouts gave him the big board and he just said...yea well take the best forward available..
- YouMeAndDupuis9

With Shero, our high end picks were long gone before the draft ... when your first pick is in the third or fourth round, you have problems. The 2015 draft, the deepest draft in most recent years, we have a second and a seventh to show for it. That is a problem.

Sticking by what I said from the get-go...Wilson/Farnham/Kapanen need to play

I thought the Rangers caught us with that quick goal.
If you remove the rest of the 1st, which the refs did then they had a system that looked pretty godd against the Rangers attack.

The Rangers had some chances in the 2nd and 3rd but most of it was from the outside, Fleury came up with the saves he needed to make but there weren't many or really any 10 bell saves.

I predict that we are going to see a meltdown from Lundqvist with all the traffic we are putting to the net.

We're taking this series.
- stackthepads

this is the only way. defensively, i thought they really recovered in the second half. but the offensive pressure needs to be there consistently. ill admit, its very hard with no help from the back end. the threat of a point shot is absolutely nonexistent. and no one from the back can bring it up ice, or even entertain the notion of joining the rush.