Wanna blog? Start your own hockey blog with My HockeyBuzz. Register for free today!
 

Finally some good news on the injury front

February 18, 2020, 11:12 AM ET [380 Comments]
Ryan Wilson
Pittsburgh Penguins Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
We finally have some good news on the injury front that has plagued the Penguins since the first game of the year against the Sabres when Malkin went awkwardly into the boards. Dominik Kahun is skating today and he is in a normal jersey.




Kahun has been out since January 20th with a concussion he suffered against the Bruins. Kahun had six points in four games playing with Malkin and Bryan Rust leading up to the injury. His return is incredibly helpful. He was one of the bets Jim Rutherford placed on a top six tweener that has paid off this year. He has a 2.43 points per 60 at 5v5 and just what the team needed to build up their forward depth. He started the year ice cold and without a pulse, but he clearly found a groove and has been a positive since.

The Penguins will take any good news they get because things understandably haven’t been going great even though the team is picking up points.




The injuries have taken a toll and the team has seen a drop in their ability to play at the level they were at for much of the season. The lack of Marino and Dumoulin in the lineup is clearly visible. This year the forwards have gotten the puck on a regular basis from the defenseman when the team has been healthy. Right now it is shades of last year when it was a weakness except for when Dumoulin-Letang were on the ice.

Here are what the lines looked like today




It appears they will be easing Kahun back into the lineup by not placing him immediately back with Malkin and Rust. Hornqqvist gets the promotion with Zach Aston-Reese out of commission after being hurt in the last game with a lower body injury. Zucker up top sure helps with the lineup depth, but there is still room for improvement. The bottom six even with Bjugstad doesn’t look set up to be regular offensive contributors. The Simon-Bjugstad-Hornqvist trio was excellent in xGF% last year, but ultimately didn’t put the puck in the opposition’s net. It’s really too bad about Guentzel because throwing him in the mix would give Sullivan a lot of options to try and create a third scoring line with the “fourth” line (Aston Reese-Blueger-Tanev) being the one you give no offensive zone starts and throw to the wolves so the other lines get better matchups.

It won’t be easy for the Penguins to land an offensive piece to create another scoring line with the way the market has been. Both Blake Coleman and Tyler Toffoli went for assets the Penguins either don’t have at the moment or are unwilling to part with (Legare/Poulin). They did get ahead of the market and acquire Zucker for a decent price and that shouldn’t be ignored. I don’t expect the Penguins to be done trading because of the uncertainty surrounding Brian Dumoulin and the lack of depth scoring in the bottom six.

Thanks for reading!
Join the Discussion: » 380 Comments » Post New Comment
More from Ryan Wilson
» Penguins earn victory on Jake night
» A salute to Jake Guentzel
» Sid puts on show as Avs dig out of hole
» A dud in Dallas
» My thoughts on Dubas' thoughts