Where have all the goals gone? A fair question. Especially in the wake of a wildly prolific stretch fueled by the incendiary production of superstars Sidney Crosby and Kris Letang.
Until recently the Penguins’ offense was really humming under Mike Sullivan. Then the injury bug bit hard. Eric Fehr went down during a wild 6-5 victory over Ottawa. All-Star Evgeni Malkin followed. He’s missed the past six games while nursing a lower-body injury.
Combined with earlier injuries to Nick Bonino and Beau Bennett, the maladies have taken an abrupt toll on the Pens’ production and exposed an old weakness—a lack of scoring depth. Indeed, after exploding for six goals during a victory over Anaheim on February 8, the black-and-gold has managed just two regulation tallies during their past three contests.
The power play—a veritable gusher in recent weeks—has dried up, too. The Pens have haven’t struck with the man-advantage since Letang’s overtime winner against Florida ten days ago. They’re 0-for-6 on the power play during that span.
While it’s nothing the return of a healthy Malkin and his towering offensive presence can’t cure, the Pens could use some help in the short run. Especially since top-six wingers Carl Hagelin, Patric Hornqvist, Phil Kessel and Chris Kunitz are struggling to fill the void.
How about the kids?
Thus far, the cream of the organizational forward crop haven’t proven themselves up to the task. The erstwhile Baby Pens—Tom Kuhnhackl, Bryan Rust, Conor Sheary, Oskar Sundqvist and Scott Wilson—have combined for a paltry five goals. Factor in journeyman Kevin Porter (no goals in 34 games) and defenseman Derrick Pouliot (none in nine) and the numbers for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton crew get downright ugly.
A pity their output doesn’t match their effort. The kids bust their collective humps. In particular, Rust and Sheary create a ton of opportunities and help drive possession. However, sweat equity and hustle haven’t translated into goals. At least not enough.
While it’s true that—Pouliot aside—there isn’t a true blue-chipper in the bunch, the youngsters do possess some pedigree. Wilson paced the American Hockey League with 22 goals prior to his latest recall. The diminutive Sheary was among the AHL leaders in points and assists. And Kuhnhackl had a 39-goal season in junior.
That they haven’t capitalized on a consistent basis shouldn’t come as a shock. Young players often take time to develop at the big-league level. Still, a goal now and then wouldn’t hurt.
“That’s something that we’ve got to do a little more of moving forward,” Rust noted following last night’s 2-1 shootout loss to Florida. “Especially if we want to take more points.”
For now, Sullivan and Pens GM Jim Rutherford are showing patience. But if the kids don’t start producing? Look for JR to add some punch at the trade deadline.
Scuderi Waived
The Chicago Blackhawks placed veteran defenseman Rob Scuderi on waivers today. If the former Penguins stalwart isn’t claimed by another NHL club, the Hawks have up to 30 days (or 10 games) to assign him to Rockford of the AHL.
Scuderi, 37, struggled to catch on in the Windy City after arriving on December 14 in a trade for Trevor Daley. In 17 games with the Hawks, the Long Island native recorded 10 blocked shots and seven hits while averaging a shade over 11 minutes of ice time per game. He was a minus-6.
Prior to the trade, “Scuds” registered four assists (and a plus-4) in 25 games with the Pens.
Hi Rick
Two quick unrelated points.
1. Local Toronto Media have been saying today that the Pens and the Leafs are going to do a trade deal….favorable to the Pens this time, because Toronto wants and needs the Pens 2016 FIRST round pick this year to help in their rebuilding process.The only way they can get it is if the Pens make the playoffs… so the Leafs have to help the Pens a bit. Strategically speaking,it makes sense from Toronto’s perspective.Works for us too. The key words are “help a bit”…. Have the Pen’s finish 7th or 8 th in the conference,and then get eliminated in the first round, then the Leaf’s pick 16th to 18 th in the draft. Probably, then the Leaf’s would package the Pen’s pick with a player or two and try to move up into the top 10 spots in the draft giving them 2 top 10 picks in 2016.What the Leaf’s do not want to have happen is we win the Cup and their stuck drafting 30 th !
2. An article today in Pens media says that Roots TV states for the first time in 7 years the Pen’s are no longer number one in the US ratings. Market share is 5.51, a drop of 19 % in just one year.
They lost one in five customers in one year Rick !
“Houston …We have a problem ! ” Interesting, the article says Buffalo with a market share of 6.81 is now number one in the Roots system.
This may seem like a trivial matter,but in the Hockey business this is serious stuff.This is a significant change. No wonder they made a coaching change !
cheers
Interesting stuff, Jim. Thanks, as always, for sharing.
I, too, have read that the Penguins and Leafs are talking. And that we might be interested in defenseman Roman Polak and forward Peter Holland.
I’d be surprised if JR acquired Polak–only because he doesn’t seem to fit our mold. He’s more of a stay-at-home bruiser than puck mover. Not that I wouldn’t welcome him.
Aside from the fact that Holland’s a former first-round pick of the Ducks, I don’t know much about him. He’s got okay numbers (eight goals) with the Leafs. According to The Hockey News, he can play all three forward positions. Twenty-five years old. Good size (6’2″ 194). Not especially physical.
I thought the Pens might have an interest in P.A. Parenteau. Veteran, history of decent production, affordable ($1.3M), UFA-to-be.
The ratings dip doesn’t surprise me. The Pens were pretty tough to watch under Johnston. The last few games aside, they’ve been a lot more entertaining since the coaching change.
Hey Rick,
I am not going to argue with you here. I love this kids, especially Rust, Kunhackl, and Sundqvist, but all of them have to start finding the range. And not just them, even stars such as Kessel and Hornqvist are not scoring. Their shooting% are way down.
During the Fla game, it must have been Errey, who filled up some dead space by relating a story of how Rick Kehoe helped Jagr with his wrist shot. Chico was, if nothing else a sniper. So, although I wasn’t there and can’t attest to the truth of Errey’s story I can believe it, so maybe it is time to bring in a specialist coach to work with these kids and some of the slipping veterans.
If Rust, Sheary, Kessel, and Hornqvist can just learn/relearn to elevate the puck with all the chances they generate, then scoring will not be a problem. I get tired of watching goalies go down in the butterfly cutting the low corners and giving up the top corners only to see the Pens oblige them and shoot the puck right into their pads or take too long to set up only to see their shot get block on the way to the net.
But a journey of a 1000 miles starts with a single step. Getting rid of MJ was the first step. Now that the Pens finally stopped crawling, hopefully they will not waste too much time walking but start running. A shooting coach just might accelerate that pace.
Hey Other Rick,
An interesting (and creative) approach to our goal-scoring dilemma. Let’s face it, the talent we have is what we’ve got. Can’t tap them with a magic wand and turn them into a bunch of Ovechkins. Maybe a little one-on-one instruction could help.
Also, great observation about shooting low. It occurred to me that Kunitz began scoring again when he started elevating the puck. Easier said than done, I’m sure. Especially when you’re skating at warp speed like these guys. Sometimes it’s probably all they can do to get a shot off, never mind the trajectory.
Regarding Hornqvist. I love the way he crashes the net. But I wish he could back up a step or two. More often than not he’s right on top of the goalie, which doesn’t afford him an opportunity to do much with his stick. Kind of like a batter in baseball who crowds the plate and jams himself.
Of course, when you’ve got a d-man trying to drive you into the ice, you probably don’t have too much control over your body position.
Agree 100% about the coaching change…and the journey of 1000 miles.
Hi Rick,
You raise some really good points concerning the AHLer’s playing in the big show in Pittsburgh.Yes they are working very hard.They are bringing a new level of energy to the team.However as you noted in your article that they do not produce many goals ! Why ? Maybe because they are playing to the maximum of their ability already.Has anyone thought of that possibility?
Scott Wilson was drafted 209th,in the seventh round.He played US College hockey.Scoring in the AHL and the NHL is completely different. Conor Sheary was signed as an un drafted free agent who played for University of Mass-Amherst.Josh Archibald was drafted 174th in the sixth round.Byran Rust was drafted 80th in the 3rd round and was described as a defensive forward in College.Not a goal scorer.Terrific hockey IQ.Tireless worker.But not a goal scorer! Oscar S. played in the Swedish men’s league which was a better level of competition than College hockey, so once he is adjusted to the NHL he should be able to contribute. My point is that because we drafted so poorly,and or so low in the past 3 or 4 years,our talent pool is composed of bottom level talent except for D.Poulot ,Sprong,Jarry and Murray. It is hard to win when you have no talent in your system,even with Crosby and Malkin on our team.
To illustrate my point Rick,I just reviewed several NHL teams and their talent pool.To save time and space I will not list players names ,but just the draft order of their picks in their system drafted.( 60th or less.) It is alarming !
1.Chicago 18th,20th,26th,27th,30th,44th,54 th picks in their minor system
2.Anaheim 10th,26th,27th,34th,36th,38th,41st,45th,59 th picks “” “‘
3.LA Kings 15th,29th,37th,42nd,43rd “” “” ”’
4.Dallas 11th,12th,14th,22nd,29th,40th,41st,44th,45th,50th “” “” “”
Eastern teams :
1.Washington 13th,22nd,39th,46th,57th “” “” “””
2.NY Islanders 5th,15th,16th,28th,34th,42nd,55th,58 th “” “” “”
3.Tampa 3rd,10th,19th,33rd,34th,35th,40th,44th,57 th “” “” ””
4.Florida 11th,23rd,25th,31st,32nd,33rd,36th,50th ”” ”” ””
5.Detroit 15th,19th,20th,40th,48th,55th,58th “” “” “”
6.NY Rangers 10th,29th,32nd,59th,59th “” “” “”
7.PHILI** 7th,11th,17th,20th,24th,41st,45th,53rd,56th “” “” “”
Pens: Pouliot 8th, Jarry 44th,Sprong 46th T.Blueger 52nd.(center)
This illustrates my point that the Pens minor system has been robbed of any real talent when you compare them to other “elite teams” in the league.
Chicago and Dallas have 5 first rounders in their minor system.Even Phili has 5 first rounders.We have ONE.
The Islanders have 4 first round and 4 second round picks.Tampa has 3 first round and 6 second round picks as well.All the teams above ,with the exception of the Rangers maybe are in much,much better shape than we are moving forward. Which means every year these teams will get better and we will be forced to play with players either throne away by other teams or somebody drafted 209th out of 210 ! We do not have a first round pick in 2016.
Mean while we complain our guys can not score when in all reality if we had the talent pool of the other teams listed above,Wilson,Sheary,Porter, Kuhnackl would never be playing in the AHL, forget about for the big club.
So please folks, do not blame the AHLer’s for lack of scoring. They are doing the best the can.Remember, you can not enter a Clydesdale in the Kentucky Derby,and tell him he is a race horse, and expect to win.Most of these kids are in over their heads.
Blame Mario and Ron who created this mess in the first place! They caused this in order to win now at any cost.Why? So they could sell the Team for more money.
One last point Rick.We all rave about Trevor Daley and how he is our number 2 d man now and he skates so fast.The real question we should be asking is:
HOW COME CHICAGO COULD GIVE HIM AWAY FOR 1 MILLION IN CAP RELIEF?
The reason is simple.They had 6 much better d men on their team,and another 2 playing in their minor system as well and he was expendable!
Do you really think JR pulled a fast one on Stan Bowman ? If you do ,call me because I got a bridge to sell you in Brooklyn.
Scuds hasn’t played for the Hawks in a month. They did not need him at all.
That is what scares me Rick.
Cheers
Wow Jim,
You really did some homework, didn’t you?
While I’m not surprised our Penguins have fewer high draft picks in the system than other teams, your study is still an eye-opener. However, when you consider the Pens have been on a short list of Cup contenders for nearly a decade–and surrendered lots of draft picks in trades for upgrades or rentals–it kind of makes sense.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t bode well for the present (and near future) in terms of producing high-end young talent. The price we’ve paid for success, I suppose.
While I’m not unhappy with the way the kids have played, most if not all are destined to be role/support players at the NHL level. There’s always hope that a Wilson may develop into the next Chris Kunitz (undrafted–waived twice within 14 days back in 2005), but there’s no guarantee.
Speaking of hope, I noticed Tyler Biggs is off the IR and playing again for the Baby Pens. An intriguing piece of the Kessel trade: former first-round pick, 22 years-old, power forward (6’2″ 220), will drop the mitts. Missed a ton of time the past couple of seasons due to injuries (Achilles last year).
Goodness knows if he’ll ever pan out. But I can dream … 🙂
Missed him Rick. Now we got 2 number ones. Thanks.
Maybe he can be a fourth liner with some grit ! Hope so.
We both know it appears the Pen’s management does not put
a lot of faith in players who play a physical game and may draw
a few fighting majors. When will they wake up?
Hey Jim,
I do wish we had a couple of tougher guys. Heck, even a gamer like Andrew Shaw of the ‘Hawks would be a huge step in the right direction.
Sadly, the Pens don’t seem to value that type of player these days.
For most teams. Scoring seems low over all