I love October. Not only does it signal the beginning of hockey season, it is Halloween time. It is the time of ghosts, goblins, and ghouls. As far back as I can remember, I have always loved to watch horror movies, especially in October, especially at Halloween. I have a large library of Horror films in different formats, ranging from old silent movies like Nosferatu, through the Universal Studios classics, Hammer Studio remakes, and 1970s slashers, I love them all. However, Mr. Rutherford and Mr. Sullivan, I am not sure I like how you guys are trying to combine 2 of my favorite Fall entertainments.
I understand that you have to build suspense, characters have to get attacked by the creature, one by one to get the viewer on the edge of their seat. Pretty much in the opening frame we have Johnny saying to his sister “They’re coming to get you, Barbara”, pointing toward the zombie stalking through the graveyard. Unwittingly, Johnny was right, the zombie attacks Barbara. Johnny comes to her defense and loses his fight with the living dead. Barbara runs away in shock (looking sort of like the way Mike Sullivan often looks on the bench). And we get treated to a scare fest and the seminal Zombie movie.
It should be mentioned that the actor playing Johnny wasn’t the star of the movie. He wasn’t a supporting actor either. His name doesn’t even appear in the credits. Someone should have pointed this out to the Penguins that making Evgeni Malkin an early casualty in this horror film was not a good idea.
Also, I always loved the comedians’ take on horror movies making fun of how the dumb actors advance the plot with stupid moves and self-inflicted wounds. The group always splits up, forgetting about safety in numbers, so that they can get picked off one by one. And of course there is always the cute girl who slips and falls at the worst time, running from the monster.
As our Penguins are now fighting to salvage a four game home stand and get themselves back to 0.500, let’s remember this started in the off-season.
- Mike Sullivan couldn’t make nice with star forward Phil Kessel who never seems to miss games, so GM Jim Rutherford traded him for a prospect that may still be 2 years away and a mediocre forward, Alex Galchenyuk that is now on the Injured Reserve (IR) list.
- The plot thickened even more when Rutherford signed Brandon Tanev to put the team over the Cap again. I am liking what I see from Tanev, but Rutherford still hasn’t solved the financial end of signing him, all these months later. Luckily he gambled and won, he was able to sneak Casey DeSmith through waivers to buy a little time to try and straighten out the mess that he, himself, created.
- Then Rutherford signed several marginal RFA players to one way contracts so that they now have to clear waivers to be sent down to Wilkes Barre – Scranton (WBS).
- Next Sullivan opted to start the season with 9 Defensemen on the opening roster. Part of that may have been from Rutherford’s poor financial planning, but I am pretty sure Chad Ruhwedel can get through waivers to open up some wiggle room. Even if he doesn’t, and although I think he is a serviceable 7th Defenseman, let’s face it, 7th Defensemen aren’t that rare of a commodity that they can’t easily be replaced. I would rather not lose Ruhwedel but Sam Lafferty and Kasper Bjorkqvist played well enough in the preseason to earn opening roster spots and at worst would be pressuring Zach Aston-Reese, Dominik Kahun, and Dominik Simon to produce.
- Now, if you believe what the rumor mill churns out, Rutherford is now trying to shop Erik Gudbranson. Gudbranson will never be confused with Bobby Orr but since he has been here, no one has been taking liberties with our Goalies. If this rumor is true, please, please, please, someone stop him. For our Goalies’ sake, someone stop him.
- Also, apparently Sullivan really doesn’t get it. Yesterday, Sullivan decided to reward Simon for missing the net after 2, count them, 2 golden scoring opportunities muffed, in the waning moments of the Winnipeg loss, by putting him up on the top power play (PP) unit. Yes, eventually, Simon will probably score a goal, but at what cost? Anaheim has a solid Penalty Kill (PK) and Whitehall native John Gibson just may be the best Goalie in the league right now and our coach is saddling his team’s top PP unit with a player who dragged the team’s shooting percentage down from 9.9% to 7.8% when he was on the ice last season.
Any other player than Simon, with over a season long scoring drought would hve found himself plying his trade in the AHL, but Sullivan elevated Simon to the top PP unit. It makes me wonder if Sullivan realizes that Anaheim isn’t Team Italy, Team France, or Team Great Britain, the teams Simon padded his stats against during this past Spring’s IIHF’s Tournament. Anaheim is an NHL team, an NHL team boasting one of the best Goalies around.
Sullivan, I am hoping your gambit works out but I am not hoping for your sake. I am hoping for the sake of the black-n-gold. I caution you though, if it does work out tonight, it may just be random chance that it worked. Long term, it is a design for failure.
If moving Simon up to the Top PP fails, it may not be Simon’s fault, but it will still be yours. You will be the one that didn’t put the best players out there. You will deserve all the heat you get, if the media is honest.
In the end, I do love Halloween. I love Horror movies, but I may have to watch tonight’s game through the finger’s covering my eyes. A 1 – 3 home stand may be too frightening even for me. Yes, they are only 4 games, 4 home games of 41 across the season, but it will be rather difficult to make up those lost points on the road at the end of the season.
Come on Sid, wake me up from this nightmare.
Go Pens!!!!
AWESOME!
Finally found someone whom hasn’t been affected by their steadfast dedication to all things advanced stats to the point of having whatever those stats say, and depending upon which of the metrics they claim as their god, become their entire view on any given player (all while denying so in the same arguments where only advanced stats are used to bolster their point). Finally someone who hasn’t been swayed or hypnotized by the Penguins PR, control the message machine otherwise known as the media hockey coverage in Pittsburgh whom has ignored the long and documented locker room problems which spring up wherever Sullivan goes or how those who question him are alienated, blackballed or shipped out. Or who have bought into the narrative which gives him a whole large chunk of credit for the two cup wins while minimizing that of the players relatively speaking, yet absolves him to the point of anger for any of the failures in the subsequent time afterwards and instead easily and completely places the blame anywhere else.
Even to the point of the shameful and downright DISGUSTING campaign and treatment against an iconic player and one of the games all time greatests who fans of other teams would kill to have had in their franchise and who has done a thousand times more for this team and their back to back cup runs than Sullivan ever would. A player whom our media, management and fans treated with so much disrespect only to follow the narrative of an average coach who has a one dimensional game plan which despite when it is obviously figured out, has no clue as to how to make an tactical adjustments so instead he puts lineups in a
blender and hopes for the best . A coach who wants one dimensional robots on the ice and values skill only if it comes with an aggressive, but defensively safe fore check. A coach who doesn’t understand how to use and intergrate players with skill or how such skill can be a major factor in a game plan. Or who would rather give icetime, and who thinks more value lies in dime a dozen players who skate fast and fore check hard rather than elite level skill that is rare even in the top league in the world. Or the coach who gets rid of any player who dares to have a mind of his own or who sees the blatant flaws which the media clearly ignores. The one who has systematically gotten rid of those players, even ones who were directly responsible for getting him 2 cups and thus his now legendary hockey guru status which the press narrative continues despite the evidence, even to the point of obviously weakening the team just so he can have his pride and his way.
The same coach whom started the whole problems with PK by continuing to pull him from Geno’s line despite the historical season the two of them put together the year before and then not having any reason for doing so when finally questioned about it other than because it has to be his way.
The same coach who also systematically destroyed the only blue chip forward prospect this team has seen in years and who never gave him any opportunity to grow and succeed. And who put him only in a position to fail, again and again simply because he just didn’t like him when in reality he has no clue, thus no use on how to coach skill and rather than expose this lack of ability to develop a player like this (a coaches actual job description) relegated him to the press box or 5 minutes of ice time every 5th game because he kept trying unsuccessfully to turn this blue chip prospect into a dime a dozen clone of Bryan Rust.
Or who incredibly had the nerve to blame Sprong for all of this saying time and time and time again how a player must earn his ice time and opportunity to move up lines while never explaining how a player who plays 2 minutes a night or is in the press box is supposed to earn anything or get better in any way. And who the coach based the criteria not upon the type of player the kid was but on a style which he has never played or hasn’t been expected of him yet in those brief moments of ice he is expected to excel in this new style and learn it against the best players in the world.
Even more incredibly how the media pushed this asinine and insane narrative never once pointing out the many obvious flaws and hypocrisies with the narrative or how ridiculous it was for the entire thing to be the fault of an 18-20 year old kid for a lack of coachability rather than the adult being paid millions in order to coach for never coaching the kid.
Or whom shortly after Sprong was traded forgot about the hundred times he said that a player must earn his ice and earn a promotion to higher lines then promoting Rust, who was in a 20+ game drought to the top line or the several extended stays Simon has spent up there despite the obvious failure. And nobody in the media again says anything at all despite such a glaring and obvious hypocrisy showing negligence, favoritism and incompetence at a job he’s being paid millions to do.
Or whom now the whispers of locker room problems due to Sullivan come out when one of the most respected players in team history confirms the issues which are clearly affecting team play and chemistry? And again, the team uses the press as a denial, Sullivan calls Dupuis a liar, and despite his history of this very same issue affecting any team he has coached on, the narrative and every story in the press blames Dupuis because he should know better. Seriously, it all again becomes the fault of anyone else to protect a guy who is a cancer. Nobody follows up with the actual issue but instead have no problems dragging a class act like Dupuis through the mud.
Or that same coach who was gifted McCann and who pulled him from Crosby’s line because of a bad period despite the dominance that line showed for the previous 3 games. A trio which looked more dangerous than any top line of ours in years. Only to place Simon and his sub 7% shooting percentage and his 2 entire goals playing with Crosby in over 25 games. A line which was blanked in the playoffs and which remains today. And while Sid’s first 7 games this season saw him score 12 points and 5 goals, once terms saw that you could drop a winger from Simon for extra pressure on the other two, has seen Sid only score 5 points in the next 8 games…heck if you take away the Philly game, in the same amount of games where he got 5 goals and 12 points, these past 7 have seen him score 0 goals and 2 points…in 7 games. All while our press continues to write about how dominant his line has been and how Simon has proven he belongs up there. And all as the team dropped 5 of those 7.
They don’t question why Simon, who despite playing exclusively with one of the greatest setup men the game has ever seen, while still shooting below 7% shooting percentage is 3rd among the teams forwards in ice time. Over Malkin, Horny etc. And he does so with hardly any special teams ice. Or why Simon on a night where Crosby’s line was again shut down, going -4 received 15+ minutes of ice even strength while our all world center Evgeni Malkin only got 10 minutes even strength. Or why McCann (who has arguably been the teams best defensive forward this year) and his line who produced 2 goals, played less than our 4th line. And our press writes a story praising our 4th line.
This is the vision of Sully. Our team is doomed because the players getting the ice are the ones who are average, dime a dozen bangers as Sullivan thinks this is what it means, and the only way to achieve the status of hard to play against. He sees this as the way to win and I will predict this right now because it is obvious to me as I now know what to look for. He has his sights on Geno and is setting him up as the next fall guy. He is going to get Kesseled and the press will go right along with it as it started towards the end of last year.
Call me crazy or paranoid but I do know my stuff and have done the reading. All of the above is documented, though not incredibly easily found as he is amazing at using the press and their need for access and leveraging said need to control the narrative. All of which painting the picture of a thin skinned average coach with some major attitude issues and who is controlled by his ego, never truly accepting fault, even at the expense of the team. Or, as like he has said a thousand times, does anyone really believe he plays the players who give the team the best chance to win? When a 4th line which has produced 4 goals on the season and a fringe player making 750,000 get more ice time than Malkin or your 3rd line which were responsible for 2 goals already that night.
Hey tOR,
1) You’re hate affair with Simon and Sullivan because of Sprong cracks me up. I’m Still glad Sullivan is the coach. If you can’t see Simon’s value I’m not really sure you are watching the games.
The guy is a PROVEN world class talent who is playing with great confidence this year and it is showing. He is a ferocious fore-checker and back-checker.
Simon was just playing Hornqvists role on the PP in practice while Hornqvist re-cooped. Oh, and Simon also kills penalties. All for $750 a year on a team that is up against the cap.
2) I’m wondering if you are mad at all 31 GM’s because they gave a hard pass on Sprong at a measly $750 a year? At some point you should admit to yourself that you were wrong about Sprong. Or better yet, keep taking it out on Sullivan and Simon.
3) Ripping on Sullivan because the team is injured is a bit silly also. If you remember correctly, Kessel played injured in the playoffs and regular season and the Power-play paid dearly. How soon people forget.
4) Kessel averaged 18 mins a game with the Pens and was mad he didn’t get 20. He played only 16 mins last game with the Yotes and was one of only two Yotes on the entire team in the negative column. Wonder how that’s going over?
5) I’m fine is Murray craps the bed in one of four games if he plays the other 3 great like he did.
Hey Phil,
I knew it was too good to be true; you and me agreeing.
1.a) Interesting that YOU brought up Sprong. Now if I say anything about Sprong will you now tell me to let it go? I explained, even way back when, my problems with Sullivan – Sprong were not about the actual player but 2 – fold, Sullivan playing favorites (Sheary getting TOI when he was getting tossed around by bigger teams – although I would take Sheary any day of the week over Simon, now that I have seen Simon getting TOI) as well as his insistence on playing players that were simply not getting the job done rather than trying someone new (Doing the same thing and expecting different results.
1b.) Again as I have explain ad nauseam my problem with Sullivan is again 2 fold, his inability to adjust to opponents (not just playing the same failed players over and over again, but not changing tactics after other teams have adjusted) as well as his sand paper personality that has caused 2 teams that he has been associated with to mutiny. Out of his own mouth and that of his step father Jim Rutherford, the whole team quit on him this past Spring (except his favorite whipping boys Malkin and Kessel where really the only forwards that showed up). In 2013 the NYR team wen t to the owner and told the owner they would quit rather than play for under “That coach” . Many thought they were referring to Tortorella, later Torts journalistic Nemisis Adam Rotter (Rotter and Torts fought tooth and nail all the time), Rotter warned Vancouver not to hire Sullivan as an assistant as he learned more players rebeled against Sully than Torts.
1c) Simon, really, have you looked at the results of when he is on the ice? I couldn’t care less how great he practices, it never translate into anything on the ice. The game is about goals not shots. Last season, despite many, many shifts with Crosby, in 71 games, he only had 8 goals and despite the team having a S% of 9.9 and the league avg S% was 9.5, when Simon was on the ice the Pens S% dropped to 7.8. In the IIHF, when playing Team Italy, Team France, and Team Great Britain, he lit up the score board, when playing countries that put players into the NHL he not only was conspicuously absent from the Score Sheet for Positives, he collect minuses on his +/-. In the CBJ game, a game in which the Pens scored 7 goals, against a rookie goalie on the ropes, only Simon, Malkin, Bjugstad, and Aston Reese failed to get on the score sheet. of those 4 players, only Simon and Aston-Reese played the full game without getting on the score sheet.
2. Refer to 1a
3. Where the Penguins Injured in the Isles series? Were the Penguins depleted with injuries in the home opener, their first game after the Playoff debacle? Did Cole, Reaves, and Kessel demand to be traded? Did Sullivan deny Kessel was injured 2 years ago, during the playoffs when Sully try to offer him up as the scapegoat that year? Then about 6 months later after whining about his own players in the media, did he not complain that Dupuis aired dirty laundry about his relationship with Kessel – as if we didn’t know after his first pathetic CYA? Who is forgetting history?
4) So far this season, while on the ice with Simon, Crosby only has 1 point. How is that going? Kessel isn’t in Pgh anymore, Sullivan ran him out of town. Rutherford’s inability to have a poker face limited his return to Galchenyuk, Galchenyuk only picked up points in the CBJ. The only forwards who finished the game and did not get on the score sheet that night were the black holes Simon and Aston-Reese.
5) Murray, If Sully and JR get their way and trade Gudbranson, Murray will probably end up on the IR the very 1st Caps game afterwards if not sooner. I may not be a JJ fan but Mike makes a very strong observation about the grit or lack there of on this team.
Reaves, Kessel, Sprong, Cole. All locker room problems. All off of the team. Good riddance. Don’t let the door hit you….
Reaves can’t score and wanted to be a top six. Head case Sprong is no longer in the NHL. Kessel lost the game for his team yesterday, -2 with one assist in 4 games. Cole had surgery on both hips, we will have to wait to see how that works out as he hasn’t played yet.
Your confusing Sullivan playing favorites with him playing who he believes is the best player for the job. Which by the way, is his job.
If you remember correctly that’s why Murray is in net right now and the better goalie is in Vegas.
Basic math Phil, when it is one player it is probably the player, when it is 2 it can still be the player, when it is 4 now the time comes to look at the coach. When a whole team refuses to play for you (Sully’s and JR’s words not mine) it is the coach. When it is the second time a team mutinies on you (2013 NYR) it is definitely the coach.
When will you let “Sprong” go.
Better goalie? I find it problematic when people have to go there. I find it problematic when people feel that you have to either be an MAF fan or Murray. I liked both of these two goalies and don’t want to disrespect either. MAF was a top Goalie in his day. He still is a solid Goalie. On a team that has only given up 29.4 shots per game, MAF has posted a .914 save% from last year until now.
On a team that has got a clue on how to play defense, that lead the league in the unenviable stat of break aways and odd man breaks given up, on a team that has ceded 33.3 shots per game, 4 mire shots per game than Vegas, Murray has posted .920 save%.
No disrespect to MAF, but the Penguins made the right choice.
BTW did you see Simon’s Team Goals against at Even strength over 60minutes. It is 4.0 and Team Sv% at even strength while he is on the ice, 86.5.
In other words, Murray’s Sv% is .912 at even strength but drops to .865 when Simon is on the ice. Murrays even strength GAA is 2.8 but balloons to 4.0 when Simon is on the ice. Last year when Sprong (you brought him up) was putting up numbers like that, you spewed vitriol all over him, this year you are calling a Simon world class? Thru what kind of glasses are you watching Simon.
Three years ago, I wanted to see what Simon and Sprong could do. I was over Sheary’s fade at the end of the season every year. I have seen what they can do. Sprong can score goals. He is a sniper. He just rubs everyone the wrong way. Captain Blyes like Sullivan as well as everyone else. Maybe in the minors he qill learn a touch of humility and be able to come back up.
Simon couldn’t hit the ocean with a beach ball. He only has 1 Assist so far this season, that is all. And he has now been given (nothing earned, given with no evidence to suggest that he will succeed) ice time with Crosby. Furthermore, his only assist came on a play in which Crosby wouldn’t be denied. Crosby, started the play back check like a his hair was on fire to knock the puck off of a Duck defender. All Simon can take credit for is being near the play.
Then Simon tried to backhand the puck up to a now totally in flight Crosby, while Simon was still pretty much standing still (that is why the team looks slow, players needing to stand still to pass). The pass was in Crosby’s skates. Crosby was talented enough to get the puck up to his stick and then barreled into the Ducks’ zone.
There are several elite players that could have handled Simon’s weak pass, but that number drops more than a little when the play continued, where Crosby stick handled with only one hand on his stick, while shielding the puck with his other hand.
As the play continued, let me remind you, Crosby came at high speed toward the net but still had the presence to look up. Simon was there on the back door but Crosby fortunately opted to pass to Guentzel. Simon didn’t even get in front to take Gibson’s eyes away. The Ducks defender lifted Simon’s stick so he couldn’t get his stick into the play and pushed him away from the net.
Unlike the game before when Simon was set up on a similar play, Guentzel drilled the puck into the open space of the net, not over the net like your world class talent.
In the mean time, in what really was Adam Johnson’s first game this year. He scored a goal and picked up an assist, without Crosby’s help. Granted it was only Dubnyk, but Simon couldn’t score or get an assist on Merzlinkins, a rookie. LAfferty had a goal and 2 assists.
But do you want to bet that Johnson and Lafferty will be back in WBS when Malkin, Rust, Bjugstad, and Galchenyuk get back, or at best riding the bench in Pgh while stone hands Simon will still be getting TOI?
Bro, do some research. Because you’re only being a parrot. And quite honestly, you are 100% wrong. And I can’t understand why someone who doesn’t have any knowledge of the history would so staunchly defend a position that were he to take the time to research, he would clearly see that his arguments have no basis in fact yet the person he is arguing with is absolutely correct.
I mean an opinion is one thing but you’re arguing as if you have the facts and, respectfully, you really don’t.
I do. I’ve educated myself on this guy and you’re defending someone who has some major character flaws and doesn’t deserve your loyalty
LOL
Hi TOR!
You made my day with this article! I just roared with laughter, especially your last sentence!! I really like your analogy with Halloween and horror movies.
I am laughing but with so many injuries and lack of depth in the minors, we can expect a difficult season. I hope I am wrong. As you mentioned, our hearts bleed Black and Gold (back in the day, it was Black and Lots of Goals). I wish them the best but I don’t think the Pens have all the required tools right now.
If this trading rumour on Gudbranson is true, it will mean less physicality for the team. And the Pens desperately need it. I always thought that trading Ian Cole was a mistake because he was very physical and goalies were well protected.
Well, let’s see what will happen tonight against the Ducks. Hope that the movie won’t be too scary!
Hi Jorenz,
Thanks, and in like terms, I love the Black and Lots of Goals. I hope at some point during this season I can borrow that phrase.
Regarding Gudbranson, I don’t anyone outside of Sullivan and Rutherford who seem to think that is a good move.
I know I said that this horror movie has been building since the off-season, but your point about Cole would seem to suggest that the screen may have been written back during the Bressard Trade. I liked Cole too. I do believe everyone is tradable but the benefit has to outweigh the cost. Trading both of you top 2 physical guys was bad.
As for tonight, I always hope, but I wouldn’t bet on a win. An OTL or SOL may be about the most we can realistically get. With Simon on the top PP, I would think a 0 – 0 regulation outcome may be more probable.
Not sure if this “penguin poo” site is a like or hate the pens site. If it’s a pro penguins site then you guys should seriously follow another team.
Sorry you feel that way Brian.
Not all people feel that blind acceptance of errors equals being a fan.
I go back to the very beginning of the team, Andy Bathgate, Leo Boivin, Ken Schinkle, and Les Binkley. I have loved them since they were blue and white and not black and gold. I remember all the times we almost lost our hockey team. I may get critical of some players, coaches, and other personnel here and there as they come and go, but that is because I love the team and not any individual and hate to see the team fail, particularly from self-inflicted wounds.
Participation trophies are not something in my vocabulary.
Brian
I have to stick up for the Other Rick here – everyone is entitled to there
opinion whether it’s a good or bad outlook on the current Penguin team.
I’ve had my differences with the Other Rick but you could do a whole lot
worse and jump on Pensburg – at least on Penguins Poop they understand
the game and also understand numbers don’t tell the complete story. I
went on Pensburg a few times and it’s ridiculous how they manipulate the
numbers to support their argument. Those guys are a joke.
Give me true Hockey guys any day!! “GO PENS”
Hey Mike,
I agree. tOR’s opinions may be wrong most of the time, (kidding) but he has solid hockey knowledge. I wouldn’t argue with him if he didn’t. Pensburgh used to be good when it was the guy who started it (he no longer writes there) and Hooks Orpik. Now it seems like they just re-write the post-gazette/trib articles or what Madden says a day or two later.
Thanks Phil and Mike
Phil
Your exactly right. i can’t stand there hypocritical number
analysis – if they don’t like a player they continue to
re-configure the numbers until it works in there favor.
Not a fan of the Hooks Orpik guy at all – Is Hooks his real
name?? Cant be!
LOL – Go Pen’s