Jesus, I don't even know where to begin with my 1st post in months. I figured I'd check in after a few games and see what's what on HB. Some things never change I guess. But, based on where the Pens are currently at, lets reflect a bit....
1. I was one of the lone soles clamoring for the Pens to trade Kunitz BEFORE the '14 Olympics. I could see him slipping even back then. But, everyone including your resident blogmaster, suggested I didn't know what I was talking about. "You cant trade Kunitz! He makes under $4 mill and scores 30 goals!" RW kept mentioning his hands and analytics as if trying to justify his uselessness. Kunitz is D-O-N-E. I've know it for 2 years now. The rest of you are just coming to this conclusion now. He gets 1st line time, plays more often than not on the 1st PP. 1 point in 30 games. But, hey, his analytics look good! I guarantee you, Horny is pissed off right now that his PP time was awarded to midget Tanner Glass. Enjoy Kunitz and that "bargain" contract for this season and next. Good teams (i.e. Chicago) trade him 2 years ago for assets to rebuild. Ya'll wanted him, ya'll got him. Stop complaining about him and keep thinking the overpaid 6th defenseman is the problem. Its the uneducated viewpoint just so you all know....
2. I was flat out against the Perron trade. Most everyone loved it. Gave up a 1st for that bum. Anyone with a Center Ice subscription and the time to watch 10 or so Oilers games at the time could realize how bad a player he was. Now, I admit, after his hot start when he 1st arrived, I was thinking he may prove me wrong afterall. But, alas, as usual, I was right again. Terrible player.
3. Before I signed off months ago, I said if the Pens did indeed trade for Kessel, that would be the final nail in the coffin. And here we are. Now, dirty little secret #1...Phil is the Pens most skilled player. 71, 58, and 87 included. He actually has been playing as I expected him to. Been one of our better players. But, he isn't what this team needed. He's a poor fit for Sid. I knew that 6 months ago. Everyone always says "If Kessel can score 30 playing with Bozak, imagine how many he'll score with Sid!". Um, how about 30? Dirty little secret #2...Sid's tough to play with and very particular with his wingers. He just doesn't automagically mesh with everyone as we've seen. He doesn't really elevate his wingers as much as we all like to think he does. After about 30 or so games with Sid, Phil will be begging for Tyler Bozak.
4. Dirty little secret #3...of the Pens core 3 (87, 71, 58), only 1 is effective playing on the PP. If you guessed 71, you get a point. 58 isn't a pointman. No hockey instincts whatsoever. 87's PP game consists of blind cross-ice passes and trying to fight 71 to get position on the 1/2 wall. Malkin needs to run the PP, not 58.
5. Dirty little secret #4...71 and 87 can no longer carry this team. Not skilled enough. Don't consistently put forth full effort. Not 100% engaged all of the time. Been this way for over a year now.
6. Dirty little secret #5...Pens main problem right now is they cant get any time and space because they cannot skate. Was at the Dallas game last night. Sat dead center ice, first row, top bowl. Watched for 60 horrifying minutes as the Stars just suffocated the Pens. They had nowhere to go. Its amazing how unskilled a supposed skilled team looks when a faster team takes away passing lanes, pressures the puck, and counter-attacks.
7. Dear HCMJ, if you wish to save your job, please put 81 with 71 and 87 with 72. Kessel isn't a one-time shot kinda guy. He's a peel-off-the-boards and let it rip or score-on-the-rush kinda guy. What part of that meshes with 87? 87 isn't great on the rush. His strength is peeling off the boards using his frame, and getting pucks on goal. Kessel aint picking up that garbage. That's more in Horny's wheelhouse. The 1 of 10 cross-ice passes he makes that will actually land on Kessels stick will likely go unscored anyway. Sid's powerful goaline game meshes perfectly with 72 and Malkin's rush game and power skating meshes better with Kessel's. Also, 71 will draw more attention away from 81 as teams will have to respect his shot way more than 87's. Need more proof? Think James Neal. He was useless with Sid but perfect with 71. Same thing applies here. If we are to believe the lines in practice today, you all will realize what I already know by about 11PM Saturday evening. Maximize your idiotic investment in Kessel and play him with 71. He'll score 40 if he plays with 71. He'll be lucky to hit 30 with 87.
8. This article proposes trading Horny for another asset. I cannot, in words, articulate how utterly stupid that suggestion is. On a team full of soft players, lets trade one of the lone few who shows up every day, gives a crap, goes balls to the wall, and actually cares. The biggest problem with 72 right now is he's playing with the wrong center. It's horrifying to me that our coach cannot see this. Did anyone watch 71 and 72 play last year? It was a disaster. We've been clamoring for years now about having no wingers. Now, the blogmaster general wants to trade our 2nd best one who possesses a skillset no one else on the friking roster has. Seriously..anyone else want to takeover as the master blogger?? RW says the window has passed on trading Kunitz! Really? I had been saying that for years and you called me an idiot every time. Now you say the window is closed intimating they should have moved him? You were the leader of the keep Kunitz camp with all your charts and graphs telling everyone how he was playing well. Now, you finally realize it.
Enjoy the team most of you wished for. Most of you welcomed Perron with open arms. Most of you welcomed a Kessel trade. And, last but not least, almost all of you wanted Kunitz kept around.
Am I an a-hole? Perhaps. But, I'm also an a-hole who's right way more than I'm wrong - 87_71_11_29
Who the F has this much time to write a post on a blog?
Another after the fact hockey expert alert! Didn't show up at all before now! Get out if you don't have the balls to make the claims before they happen - Guile
Well, how bout this, internet tough-guile:
June 23 @ 1:23 PM ET
Yeah, that Perron trade was a terrible trade for the Blues. They saved $2.7 milin cap space, which they used to lock up Pietrangelo, among others. The got a younger, former-1st rounder back, plus Barbashev, who is looking like a damn good player to this point (basicially that's 2 1st rounders) And Perron got traded again, his time for a 4th liner & a 1st round pick in a loaded draft, so his value diminished in EDM. Then, playing with arguably the best player on the planet, he scores a whopping 12 GOALS! Boy, St. Louis got hosed. He was a problem for the coach here, and made too much $$ for too little production. Not a bad trade at all. The Penguins' end of it, though? A 1st & a player for 12 reg season goals & 0 playoff goals?
It's about 1/2 down the page. So, looks like I'm more of a BEFORE -the -fact kinda guy. Instead of getting all pissy, just enjoy eating your crow.
And don't talk about my balls. Thanks.
Jesus, I don't even know where to begin with my 1st post in months. I figured I'd check in after a few games and see what's what on HB. Some things never change I guess. But, based on where the Pens are currently at, lets reflect a bit....
1. I was one of the lone soles clamoring for the Pens to trade Kunitz BEFORE the '14 Olympics. I could see him slipping even back then. But, everyone including your resident blogmaster, suggested I didn't know what I was talking about. "You cant trade Kunitz! He makes under $4 mill and scores 30 goals!" RW kept mentioning his hands and analytics as if trying to justify his uselessness. Kunitz is D-O-N-E. I've know it for 2 years now. The rest of you are just coming to this conclusion now. He gets 1st line time, plays more often than not on the 1st PP. 1 point in 30 games. But, hey, his analytics look good! I guarantee you, Horny is pissed off right now that his PP time was awarded to midget Tanner Glass. Enjoy Kunitz and that "bargain" contract for this season and next. Good teams (i.e. Chicago) trade him 2 years ago for assets to rebuild. Ya'll wanted him, ya'll got him. Stop complaining about him and keep thinking the overpaid 6th defenseman is the problem. Its the uneducated viewpoint just so you all know....
2. I was flat out against the Perron trade. Most everyone loved it. Gave up a 1st for that bum. Anyone with a Center Ice subscription and the time to watch 10 or so Oilers games at the time could realize how bad a player he was. Now, I admit, after his hot start when he 1st arrived, I was thinking he may prove me wrong afterall. But, alas, as usual, I was right again. Terrible player.
3. Before I signed off months ago, I said if the Pens did indeed trade for Kessel, that would be the final nail in the coffin. And here we are. Now, dirty little secret #1...Phil is the Pens most skilled player. 71, 58, and 87 included. He actually has been playing as I expected him to. Been one of our better players. But, he isn't what this team needed. He's a poor fit for Sid. I knew that 6 months ago. Everyone always says "If Kessel can score 30 playing with Bozak, imagine how many he'll score with Sid!". Um, how about 30? Dirty little secret #2...Sid's tough to play with and very particular with his wingers. He just doesn't automagically mesh with everyone as we've seen. He doesn't really elevate his wingers as much as we all like to think he does. After about 30 or so games with Sid, Phil will be begging for Tyler Bozak.
4. Dirty little secret #3...of the Pens core 3 (87, 71, 58), only 1 is effective playing on the PP. If you guessed 71, you get a point. 58 isn't a pointman. No hockey instincts whatsoever. 87's PP game consists of blind cross-ice passes and trying to fight 71 to get position on the 1/2 wall. Malkin needs to run the PP, not 58.
5. Dirty little secret #4...71 and 87 can no longer carry this team. Not skilled enough. Don't consistently put forth full effort. Not 100% engaged all of the time. Been this way for over a year now.
6. Dirty little secret #5...Pens main problem right now is they cant get any time and space because they cannot skate. Was at the Dallas game last night. Sat dead center ice, first row, top bowl. Watched for 60 horrifying minutes as the Stars just suffocated the Pens. They had nowhere to go. Its amazing how unskilled a supposed skilled team looks when a faster team takes away passing lanes, pressures the puck, and counter-attacks.
7. Dear HCMJ, if you wish to save your job, please put 81 with 71 and 87 with 72. Kessel isn't a one-time shot kinda guy. He's a peel-off-the-boards and let it rip or score-on-the-rush kinda guy. What part of that meshes with 87? 87 isn't great on the rush. His strength is peeling off the boards using his frame, and getting pucks on goal. Kessel aint picking up that garbage. That's more in Horny's wheelhouse. The 1 of 10 cross-ice passes he makes that will actually land on Kessels stick will likely go unscored anyway. Sid's powerful goaline game meshes perfectly with 72 and Malkin's rush game and power skating meshes better with Kessel's. Also, 71 will draw more attention away from 81 as teams will have to respect his shot way more than 87's. Need more proof? Think James Neal. He was useless with Sid but perfect with 71. Same thing applies here. If we are to believe the lines in practice today, you all will realize what I already know by about 11PM Saturday evening. Maximize your idiotic investment in Kessel and play him with 71. He'll score 40 if he plays with 71. He'll be lucky to hit 30 with 87.
8. This article proposes trading Horny for another asset. I cannot, in words, articulate how utterly stupid that suggestion is. On a team full of soft players, lets trade one of the lone few who shows up every day, gives a crap, goes balls to the wall, and actually cares. The biggest problem with 72 right now is he's playing with the wrong center. It's horrifying to me that our coach cannot see this. Did anyone watch 71 and 72 play last year? It was a disaster. We've been clamoring for years now about having no wingers. Now, the blogmaster general wants to trade our 2nd best one who possesses a skillset no one else on the friking roster has. Seriously..anyone else want to takeover as the master blogger?? RW says the window has passed on trading Kunitz! Really? I had been saying that for years and you called me an idiot every time. Now you say the window is closed intimating they should have moved him? You were the leader of the keep Kunitz camp with all your charts and graphs telling everyone how he was playing well. Now, you finally realize it.
Enjoy the team most of you wished for. Most of you welcomed Perron with open arms. Most of you welcomed a Kessel trade. And, last but not least, almost all of you wanted Kunitz kept around.
Am I an a-hole? Perhaps. But, I'm also an a-hole who's right way more than I'm wrong - 87_71_11_29
It's about 1/2 down the page. So, looks like I'm more of a BEFORE -the -fact kinda guy. Instead of getting all pissy, just enjoy eating your crow.
And don't talk about my balls. Thanks. - usmcaaron
Except you were no where to be found when Perron was playing well last season. He has a 96.8 PDO with the Pens. When it gets back up ~100 you'll disappear again.
I think admitting defeat on the split PP was a start. This pretty monumental line shuffle is another step in the right direction. However, MJ still leaves more questions unanswered than answered about him. Unlike most, I'm not gonna crucify him for not playing Sprong last night after missing practice that week. He's an 18 year old who needs all the preparation he can get before games and I don't want to waste a game of his precious 9 if he's not 100%. However, why does Scuderi keep playing? Why was the PP split in the first place? Why did it take him this long to shuffle lines? Why do we seem incapable of playing from behind? Why does are PP look like garbage for long stretches even when its not split? These are all huge red flags. I'm not fully onboard the fire Johnston train yet, but I have my ticket and I'm considering getting on. - Victoro311
Thanks :-).
I'm pretty much in the same spot you are. I've been on the fence about a coaching change, but I think I pretty much got on the train this morning. I keep hearing that the penguins didnt have a come from behind win after two periods last year, but this morning it just occurred to me that that trend coincides with Johnston's tenure. That trend should be a huge red flag.
Fire GM JR n hope to get a 2nd rounder from another team hiring him in season.
Bennet is a bust. Trade to NJD for any D on their roster.
Malkin to TB n Stamkos to Calgary n Monahan/2nd to Pitt.
Hold on to draft picks instead of wasting them.
Tbh the Pens will not contend this year.
Fire GM JR n hope to get a 2nd rounder from another team hiring him in season.
Bennet is a bust. Trade to NJD for any D on their roster.
Malkin to TB n Stamkos to Calgary n Monahan/2nd to Pitt.
Hold on to draft picks instead of wasting them.
Tbh the Pens will not contend this year. - Nighthawk
Except you were no where to be found when Perron was playing well last season. He has a 96.8 PDO with the Pens. When it gets back up ~100 you'll disappear again. - jfkst1
Fire GM JR n hope to get a 2nd rounder from another team hiring him in season.
Bennet is a bust. Trade to NJD for any D on their roster.
Malkin to TB n Stamkos to Calgary n Monahan/2nd to Pitt.
Hold on to draft picks instead of wasting them.
Tbh the Pens will not contend this year. - Nighthawk
If numbers can have his rant, I will too on Bennett. I called it a while back he was a bust. Haven't changed my mind.
Outside of trading Despres to Anaheim for Lovejoy and a first round pick to Edmonton for a fourth line player in Perron, GMJR isn't the problem.
DTM on Geno's wing for a few shifts, Horny with Sid. Run Pholbo Baggins with Geno & play DTM LW & a shift or 2 RW & have Philbo rotate with Sid & Boner when that happens. BB on Geno's LW when DTM goes RW. Let's confuse the (frank) out of the players so they forget to play poop!!!
