In a way, it’s a compliment to the Pittsburgh Penguins that everyone thinks they’re having a terrible season.
After all, if people think 15-10-3 is that awful, they must believe you have a team capable of much, much more.
That, however, may be the mistake we’re all making about the Penguins as they are in December, 2015. Maybe we’re thinking they’re basically the same as they were in June, 2009 when they captured the Stanley Cup.
And they’re not. Not in many ways. And they’re probably, despite their marquee names, not a Cup contender.
Really, Marc-Andre Fleury in net and Evgeni Malkin up front are the common denominators. Sidney Crosby isn’t, not with the way he’s played this season. He’s leaving everyone just a bit mystified with his performance. If he can recapture his form, then sure, he would be a link to that ’09 champion as well.
Everywhere else this team is significantly different, and the forced retirement of glue guy Pascal Dupuis just makes it even more so. Back in ’08-09 the team had 11 double-digit goal scorers. This year’s club only has three players so far with more than five.
But it’s on the blue-line where there’s been a major falloff in personnel, and there wasn’t a thing, really, that Mike Johnston could have done to make that work much better. There’s been a win-now-or-else atmosphere about this squad ever since Jim Rutherford replaced Ray Shero, and with the club having shipped off prospects and draft picks for immediate help, there’s now a sense that there’s a very delicate balance between the chance for the Pens to be a threat this season or perhaps taking a major step backwards.
Now, it’s all about how they respond to Mike Sullivan. If they respond like they did when Dan Bylsma replaced Michel Therrien, Pittsburgh fans could be in for an exciting winter.
But right now, the team is struggling, the franchise is for sale, the team president has been forced to take time off to deal with health issues and the coach just got canned. Phil Kessel was probably hoping he was escaping chaos in Toronto for stability in Pennsylvania, but it hasn’t worked out that way.
Even worse, nobody’s sure who is calling the shots here now. How involved is Mario Lemieux, or is he involved at all? When you’re not winning, all these questions get louder.
All eyes on Stamkos
Yessir, it should be a circus tomorrow with Steven Stamkos is in town with the Tampa Bay Lightning to face the Maple Leafs. You could have circled this date on the calendar back in September knowing that if Stamkos wasn’t signed to a new contract by then, there would an extraordinary amount of interest around this game.
No one seems to believe there are even any contract talks right now between Tampa and Stamkos, although the Bolts could surprise us all and sign their sniper at any moment. Assuming that doesn’t happen today or tomorrow, this will be a chance for Stamkos to get a feel for Toronto when it’s at its frenzied best, or worst, depending on your point of view.
If he wonders how he might like the attention as a Leaf, here’s a good chance to find out. Moreover, it will be interesting to see how he handles it, whether he meets it all head-on or prefers to lie low and avoid the attention.
Johnston to Vancouver Giants a good bet
As noted on Hockey Night in Canada this weekend, the next landing place for Johnston could be back in the Western Hockey League, where he had great success running the Portland Winterhawks for years.
Right now, the Vancouver Giants are looking for a new GM after Scott Bonner, the only GM the team has ever hand, resigned last week. Bonner is staying until a new man is found, and depending on what Johnston has in mind, that could be soon.
Bonner and owner Ron Toigo met last Friday to discuss options just after Pittsburgh made its coaching change, and Johnston’s name certainly came up.
Crosby still a lock for Team Canada?
It’s unthinkable that Crosby wouldn’t be part of Team Canada for the 2016 World Cup, or even among the first 16 players named to the roster March 1st.
Right?
“He will be part of the first group of 16 players,” said Team Canada GM Doug Armstrong not so long ago.
So yes, it would be unthinkable to leave Crosby off the first group. Or shocking, at least.
As it stands, however, there are 18 Canadian-born centres in the NHL with more points than Crosby this season, and 26 with more goals than the six Crosby has potted so far.
As usual, Team Canada will likely be shifting some centres to the wing in the tournament. But when you start listing Canadian centres – Jonathan Toews, John Tavares, Claude Giroux, Tyler Seguin, Patrice Bergeron – you can see how Crosby might not quite be the lock he’s been in other years.
That said, he’s always answered the call, and has come through for Canada time and time again. That won’t be forgotten, even if he is struggling through his most difficult professional season.
Lehner investment yet to pay dividends
The future of Robin Lehner in Buffalo is going to be interesting to watch.
The Buffalo Sabres already have a great deal invested in Lehner after shipping a first round pick to Ottawa at the draft and taking on the contract of veteran centre David Legwand.
Lehner finished last season with concussion problems, and as a result wasn’t able to train extensively during the summer. When he arrived at Buffalo’s training camp, he weighed at least 255 pounds, about 30 pounds more than he was when he helped Binghamton win the Calder Cup in 2011.
Not surprisingly, he was injured eight minutes into Buffalo’s first game in October, suffering a high ankle sprain, and has been trying to rehabilitate the injury ever since. The initial estimate was between 6-10 weeks, and it now looks like it will be the first or second week of January at the earliest before he is ready to play again.
For a while, it looked like youngster Linus Ullmark might be ready to jump right in and fill Buffalo’s goaltending void, but it’s now clear Ullmark needs more time. So Lehner is needed as soon as possible. But when will that be, and will he be in shape to carry the load when he does return?
The Senators, by the way, drafted Colin White with the 21st pick acquired in the Lehner deal. White is having a strong start to his career at Boston College with 23 points in 16 games as a freshman and could be one of the steals of last summer’s draft. Legwand’s contract expires after this season.
Angst in Anaheim
Everyone keeps waiting for the coaching axe to fall on Bruce Boudreau in Anaheim, where the Ducks continue to struggle along. Every time it appears the team is ready to turn the corner it produces a lousy effort, as was the case last Thursday in a 5-1 loss to Carolina on home ice.
The Ducks, who have scored only five goals in their last four games, sit dead last in the Western Conference, but that still leaves them only three points out of a playoff berth because they’re in the weak Pacific Division.
Frustrated GM Bob Murray would love to make a deal. Any deal. But it’s total gridlock out there right now, and with the NHL trading freeze kicking in Dec. 19th, we may see nothing until the New Year.
For now, Murray is determined to stick by his coach, a somewhat rare quality in a GM.
The falling stock of Dal Colle
Michael Dal Colle is learning how quickly they can fall out of love with you.
Dal Colle was loved by many clubs as a top prospect for the 2014 draft and was taken by the Islanders with the fifth overall pick, right after Sam Bennett and right before Jake Virtanen. He had 42 goals in Oshawa’s Memorial Cup season last year, but the whispers began in the playoffs that many scouts and junior observers didn’t like what they were seeing.
Now, he’s struggled this season with seven goals in 27 games with the Generals, just got cut from Team Canada for the world juniors and is expected to be traded before the OHL trade deadline next month. Oshawa GM Roger Hunt is sifting through offers, with teams like Kingston, Peterborough, London and Kitchener believed to have great interest.
NHL resolves Nolan shove of linesman
Many were left a little surprised on the weekend when L.A. forward Jordan Nolan wasn’t suspended for shoving linesman Shandor Alphonso rather forcefully in a game Friday night. The odd part is that Alphonso wasn’t breaking up a fight, but merely stepping in between Nolan and another player when the shove occurred.
Sources said the league spoke to all involved and handled the matter internally.
Nylander yet to be loaned to Swedish junior team
Everyone expects William Nylander to be assigned to the Swedish national junior team for the world championships in Finland this month, but it hasn’t happened yet.
Kasperi Kapanen, another Leaf prospect with the AHL Toronto Marlies, was sent to the Finnish team yesterday, but Nylander hasn’t yet officially be loaned to the Swedes. Nylander leads the AHL in scoring with 33 points in 25 games.
There appears to be no resistance in the Leaf organization to sending Nylander to the world juniors, but GM Lou Lamoriello has been very tight-lipped on the subject. Unless the Leafs call him up, however, the club is obliged to send him to the tournament.
