Penguins Must Get Tougher

The late Barclay Plager, noted St. Louis villain and early Penguins tormentor once said, “It’s not who wins the fight that’s important, it’s being willing to fight. If you get challenged and renege, everyone wants to take a shot at you.”

He didn’t know it at the time. But “Barc the Spark” could’ve been addressing our present-day Pens. The ones who were bullied all over the Nationwide Arena ice last night en route to a painful 2-1 overtime loss at the hands of the bruising Columbus Blue Jackets.

The sight of Sidney Crosby sprawled on the ice after absorbing a brutal Brandon Dubinsky crosscheck to the neck sickened me. With the notable exception of Evgeni Malkin, the appalling lack of push-back from his teammates made me feel helpless…and enraged.

Not content with laying waste to one Penguin, Dubinsky tried to remove Kris Letang’s head early in the third period. He nearly succeeded.

Again, not a whimper of retaliation.

Congratulations, Mario. Way to go, Jim Rutherford. Thanks to you, we’ve become the proverbial 98-pound weakling from the old Charles Atlas ad who loses the girl to the beach bully and gets sand kicked in his face to boot. Lady Byng would be proud.

Just once, I wish someone had enough guts to call a spade a spade on air. Bob Errey, Paul Steigerwald, and Dan Potash? See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil. All they do is blather about team toughness and parrot the company line.

Bullshit.

You don’t ask a prom queen to play roller derby.

I envy the Blue Jackets. I really do. Dubinsky, Nick Foligno, Scott Hartnell, Boone Jenner, and Ryan Johansen. Forwards who tip the scales at 208 pounds or more. What I wouldn’t give for at least two of those guys. Same with their defense. Kevin Connauton, Jack Johnson, and David Savard. Big guys who can play.

Why can’t we get players like that? Seriously. I’d love to hear Rutherford’s rationale for constructing a paperweight team—the fourth lightest in the league. One that, when push comes to shove, literally can’t defend itself. Talk about putting your marquee players at risk. Hell, JR might as well replace the skating Penguin logo with a black-and-gold bullseye.

With muscle in such short supply, I don’t fault the players. They battled as best they could and earned a point against an infinitely tougher foe under hostile conditions. Imagine what they could accomplish with a nasty forward or two to discourage foes like Columbus from taking liberties. And a defenseman who actually relished contact.

That will never happen. Not under the current regime.

Did I mention Dubinsky assisted on the game-winner?