Categories: PenguinPoop

Are the Penguins Physically Equipped to Handle the Playoff Grind?

Anyone who’s read PenguinPoop over the years knows the Penguins’ size and toughness…or lack of…has been an ongoing concern of mine.

After watching our guys do battle with the ultra-heavy Wild in a game that featured a healthy dose of physical play last Thursday night, I began wondering anew if we have the requisite size and strength to not only survive a run to the Cup but thrive.

I worry about injuries. I worry about pushback. I worry about what happens to us when we absorb punishment and aren’t handed a spate of power plays to redress the balance.

As a refresher, although we certainly didn’t shy away from physical stuff, the Wild banged us around pretty good. Jason Zucker was taken out early. Brian Dumoulin went head-first into the boards and newcomer Rickard Rakell was shaken up after being tripped by Frederick Gaudreau.

I imagine some extra ice packs were passed around the dressing room afterward.

Unless you count Brian Boyle, we don’t really have a physical deterrent and likely never will so long as Mike Sullivan’s coach. That’s not to say we’re timid by any stretch. We’re eighth in the league in hits. We stick our collective noses in and compete for loose pucks. Although we don’t always win those battles, as a general rule it isn’t for a lack of try or grit.

In fact, I think our big three of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang fairly represent the team’s physical capability. They do whatever it takes, even if it means getting their fingernails dirty.

Hockey tough.

However, the playoffs are as much a war of attrition as they are a triumph of supreme talent and ability. Size matters. Since the Pens last hoisted Lord Stanley’s chalice in 2017 with a speedy, undersized bunch, the Cup winners have all blended skill with brawn.

Eleven of the 20 players who skated for the champion Lightning last spring tipped the scales at 200 pounds or better. In 2019, 15 of 21 Blues’ skaters weighed in at 200 pounds or heavier. The season before that, 14 of 23 Capitals topped the 200-pound mark.

In addition, heavy teams like the Islanders and last season’s Canadiens went deep into the postseason. In 2020, the 24th-seeded Habs knocked us out in the qualifying round by basically shoving our Smurfish forwards to the perimeter and denying them access to the prime scoring areas.

I still recall us employing the “horseshoe” offense. We’d dump the puck into the Canadiens’ zone along the boards and they’d dump it right back out again along the far wall.

For the record, that black-and-gold squad listed only three 200-pounders among their forwards…Crosby, Zach Aston-Reese and an over-the-hill Patrick Marleau.

Since that ill-fated series, the Pens have made some strides in adding functional size…especially since Ron Hextall took over as general manager. GMRH’s added the likes of Jeff Carter (6’3” 219) and Boyle (6’6” 245). The latter has skated recently on super-sized (and effective) fourth lines along with fellow behemoths Radim Zohorna (6’6” 220) and Anthony Angello (6’5” 210).

Malkin and Brian Dumoulin aren’t small men. Neither is Rakell (a solid 6’1” 195) or Kasperi Kapanen for that matter.

Are they enough? Especially when you consider that Angello, Zohorna and perhaps even Boyle may not see the ice when everyone’s healthy. To be replaced in all likelihood by smaller players in the classic Sullivan mold (see above reference to Smurfs).

As the old saying goes, “Quick guys get tired; big guys don’t shrink.” In the physical cauldron not to mention endurance test that is the Stanley Cup playoffs, only the strong survive.

To that end, I wish we had at least one defenseman with a penchant for clearing the front of the net and depositing opposing forwards on their keisters. I love Mark Friedman’s feistiness and willingness, but he’s only 5’11” 185. Trade deadline pickup Nathan Beaulieu may be that guy if he ever gets healthy, but Hextall insists he’s strictly a depth piece. Unless we’re struck with a Biblical plague of injuries on the blue line, it’s hard to imagine Sullivan playing the newcomer over any of the incumbents.

I also wish we had a hard-checking forward to crash and bang and make opposing d-men a little nervous. And maybe do a little enforcing should the need arise. Alas, there’s no one who remotely fits that description in the organization.

Nicolas Deslauriers would’ve been a welcome add. Old friend Bill Guerin was savvy enough to snap him up for the Wild.

Our likely first-round foe, the Rangers, are no strangers to physical play. They’re third in the league in hits, five notches above our Pens. They employ thirteen 200-pounders. We have seven.

They have Ryan Reaves. We have…

Rick Buker

Recent Posts

Penguins Blitz Oilers Early, Hang on for Dear Life (and 5-3 Win)

Who were those guys clad in black-and-gold at PPG Paints Arena last night? And, more…

23 hours ago

Should the Penguins Claim Daniel Sprong?

I turned on my phone this morning and was promptly greeted by a text from…

2 days ago

Penguins Blow Two-Goal Lead, Bow to CBJ in Shootout

In a game that in many ways was a microcosm of our season, the Penguins…

3 days ago

Penguins Update: Marooned in the Middle?

Now that the Penguins’ hot streak has passed (1-2-2 in our last five games) and…

4 days ago

Penguins Outed By ‘Canes, Fall 4-3 in OT

Our Penguins were outed last night en route to 4-3 overtime loss to the Kryptonite…

5 days ago

Penguins Hang Tough, Earn Point in 3-2 Shootout Loss to Panthers

When the final curtain drops on the 2024-25 NHL season, our Penguins may once again…

7 days ago