8 goals and only 1 point sid... No way he catches mcdavid if he is gonna be unproductive like that
He has had 2 1 point games in a row now. Mcdavid 2 0 point games in a row but still

8 goals and only 1 point sid... No way he catches mcdavid if he is gonna be unproductive like that
He has had 2 1 point games in a row now. Mcdavid 2 0 point games in a row but still
- martox

And only 17 goals in 20 games... Guy should retire

And only 17 goals in 20 games... Guy should retire

- 21peter

Exactly. Can't even break Gretzkys records. What a bum honestly

Who would you put on Malkin's wings? He should have more than misfit scraps.
- T-Train

Ideally Guentzel and Hagelen but Rust and Haglen is fine too. That speed and his passing ability would wreak havok.

Chris Neil coming up on a 1000 games played for the same franchise. Good for him. The game was ok I guess. I don't see how all our young guys let Malkin just take all that poop. We could really let one of them go and find the next Matt Martin.

I don't remember that at all. I remember being ridiculed on this site for suggesting He be a trade deadline target a month before the deadline last year though.
- Dcoms

There were a handful of people who said that Shultz was a joke. I think most of the animosity came from Edmonton though. Most (not all) of the locals were willing to wait and see what he could do away from Edmonton.

Ideally Guentzel and Hagelen but Rust and Haglen is fine too. That speed and his passing ability would wreak havok.
- Dcoms

Guentzel and Hagelin are both LWs. Rust and Hagelin lack bona fide finishing and a net-front presence. I just see them as third liners. Speed is great, but saddling Malkin with two sub-20 goal scorers is kind of a waste, IMO. And somebody on his line needs to set screens, get deflections, rebounds, etc. They are both perimeter players (well, more straight line slashing styles, but neither would park in front of / near the net) and with Malkin that would be too easy to defend. Who knows, maybe Rust develops into that kind of player and maybe he is able to become a goal scorer. But for now, Malkin and Kessel work well. HBK wasn't working and Bonino / Kessel likely aren't a thing anymore.

There were a handful of people who said that Shultz was a joke. I think most of the animosity came from Edmonton though. Most (not all) of the locals were willing to wait and see what he could do away from Edmonton.
- Thunderbolt

He came with great expectations and a lot of pressure. To be honest most NHL defensemen take years to get to where they are very skilled defensively and offensively. He has the skating ability and stick handling skills. I guess after making mistakes with the Oilers and dealing with the pressure it affected his confidence. Here there is more talent across the board and a better coaching staff, IMO. It has allowed him some time to develop his skill annd regain his confidence possibly?

Whatever it is, he is displaying his skating with authority, weaaving through traffic, jumping into the play and wreaking havoc with defenses that are not set up to handle that type of situation. He also has a knack for finding the open man while the D is staring at him going, WTF?

There were a handful of people who said that Shultz was a joke. I think most of the animosity came from Edmonton though. Most (not all) of the locals were willing to wait and see what he could do away from Edmonton.
- Thunderbolt

That's the way I remember it, too. I recall the sentiment as being "low risk, potentially high reward" and if it doesn't work out, no biggie. It only cost a third round draft pick (which for the Pens is damn near the 4th round which is borderline worthless) and Edmonton retained 50% of his salary. Turns out it was a steal!

So... (frank) playing defense

Haven't been able to keep up with the Pens that well over here in Italy. What's the story with us? I've been seeing a lot of people complaining on here but then I see that we're in contention for the president's trophy and Crosby, Malkin, and Kessel are all like top five in points, so now I'm just confused. Is our defense that bad?

Haven't been able to keep up with the Pens that well over here in Italy. What's the story with us? I've been seeing a lot of people complaining on here but then I see that we're in contention for the president's trophy and Crosby, Malkin, and Kessel are all like top five in points, so now I'm just confused. Is our defense that bad?
- Victoro311

When Murray is not in... yes

Haven't been able to keep up with the Pens that well over here in Italy. What's the story with us? I've been seeing a lot of people complaining on here but then I see that we're in contention for the president's trophy and Crosby, Malkin, and Kessel are all like top five in points, so now I'm just confused. Is our defense that bad?
- Victoro311

Pens are fine. Sullivan is looking at different scenarios and placing guys in different situations. He is treating the regular season as a tune up for the playoffs.

Another turnover in government there in Italy, but from what I understand that is just business as usual. Although the consequence could be the demise of the European Union.

When Murray is not in... yes
- Guile

Fluery has been swimming and guessing inthe net. Pens know it, fans know it, and the coach kows it.... I really think that the Pens are trying to showcase himbefore shipping him out. Also, when you now your goalie isn't playing well , the defense trys to compensate and dont play within themselves.

Fluery has been swimming and guessing inthe net. Pens know it, fans know it, and the coach kows it.... I really think that the Pens are trying to showcase himbefore shipping him out. Also, when you now your goalie isn't playing well , the defense trys to compensate and dont play within themselves.
- hipcheck_goalie

Its getting harder to not buy into the team playing better when Murray is out there... the last month and a half are showing that to be true most of the time

Pens are fine. Sullivan is looking at different scenarios and placing guys in different situations. He is treating the regular season as a tune up for the playoffs.

Another turnover in government there in Italy, but from what I understand that is just business as usual. Although the consequence could be the demise of the European Union.
- Thunderbolt

I know next to nothing about Italian politics, but from an outsider's and relatively uninformed prospective, it sounded like Renzi had the right idea with this referendum. From what I gather, their two legislative houses have equal authority, which is just a recepite for gridlock, and this referendum was supposed to streamline the legislative process. Like, someone told me that they are now just passing laws that got put in motion to be voted upon 25 years ago, which is madness. The issue is that the referendum would put more money in the executive's hands than its had since Mussolini, and with Renzi's approval ratings not being super high, the Italian people were having none of it. Real shame, from what I can tell.

When Murray is not in... yes
- Guile

But it looks like Cole and Schultz are doing well?

But it looks like Cole and Schultz are doing well?
- Victoro311

They are absolutely excelling in the bottom pairing, which makes you think it could be time to try them both in a higher role again, but history says they would fail and then struggle to regain confidence in the 3rd pairing for a bit afterwards ...

Haven't been able to keep up with the Pens that well over here in Italy. What's the story with us? I've been seeing a lot of people complaining on here but then I see that we're in contention for the president's trophy and Crosby, Malkin, and Kessel are all like top five in points, so now I'm just confused. Is our defense that bad?
- Victoro311

People are complaining because they need stuff to complain about. I've read through 8 pages of talk about what wingers should play with what centers on a night where they scored 8 goals, lol #PENSWORLDPROBLEMS. The biggest issue the Pens have right now is it is December, and they are I think a little bored and they often are getting into the habit of playing pond hockey instead of focusing on the entire sheet of ice. The team will need a few tweaks here and there, but barring a major injury, they will be fine come March.

That's the way I remember it, too. I recall the sentiment as being "low risk, potentially high reward" and if it doesn't work out, no biggie. It only cost a third round draft pick (which for the Pens is damn near the 4th round which is borderline worthless) and Edmonton retained 50% of his salary. Turns out it was a steal!
- T-Train

x3

That's the way I remember it, too. I recall the sentiment as being "low risk, potentially high reward" and if it doesn't work out, no biggie. It only cost a third round draft pick (which for the Pens is damn near the 4th round which is borderline worthless) and Edmonton retained 50% of his salary. Turns out it was a steal!
- T-Train

We had a bunch of us saying that... I think I said near the same, with the exception of acknowledging that we always throw away our 3rd round picks so it wasn't like it was an asset loss anyway

But it looks like Cole and Schultz are doing well?
- Victoro311

Schultz, in particular, has been a revelation. Playing through what is perhaps, the best 4-5 game stretch of his career. Not to mention he's scored like 3 goals or something in the last 4 games

that was fun

nahh Fehr is just showing his worth, after a whole training camp and what not. Really valuable..
- j.boyd919

No kidding. Wasn't he an analytic darling when he was a free agent?

Anyone know how Sundqvist is doing in WBS? He seems to be the forgotten prospect.

No kidding. Wasn't he an analytic darling when he was a free agent?

Anyone know how Sundqvist is doing in WBS? He seems to be the forgotten prospect.
- YouMeAndDupuis9

I'm not sure about analytical darling, but he compared super favorably to Brandon Sutter, but who didn't. He's been meh to bad here. Gotta remember that he's not young. His career may very well be near over.

Sundqvist is apparently lighting it up in WBS. He should be an NHLer by next year. He probably could already be up, but its cool to see him wrack up the points in WBS when we have the depth to not need him.