Elements the Penguins Will Never Have as Long as Mike Sullivan’s Our Coach

I was reading articles and comments on other sites yesterday regarding the Penguins’ potential trade-deadline needs. I also took note that we’d sent promising youngsters Drew O’Connor and Radim Zohorna to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Leading to this mish-mash ramble.

Before I begin, I want to be clear. This post sincerely isn’t intended to bash Mike Sullivan, but rather to point out as matter-of-factly as possible elements we’ll never have as long as he’s our coach.

For the record, I think Sully’s a good coach. Perhaps even an excellent one in terms of intelligence, knowledge of the game, competitive fire and his ability to communicate and motivate. Quick to credit his players for the team’s success. A quality individual through and through. The Pens could do far worse for their headmaster and maybe not a whole lot better.

Now for that list.

Number one, a physical defenseman who takes the body, keeps the crease clear and drops the gloves when the situation merits it. We’ve had a few of those during Sullivan’s reign, most notably Ian Cole, Erik Gudbranson and Jamie Oleksiak. All went the way of the Dodo under Sully. All are gainfully employed and even valued by their current teams. Gudbranson, who supposedly can’t play, skates a regular turn on a Calgary team that’s won 10 in a row, has allowed the fewest goals in the league and is a sleeper to win the Cup.

Why didn’t these guys last in the ‘Burgh? Because Sullivan prefers new age, stick-on-puck defense rather than old school body-on-body. He likes mobile guys who can skate and move the puck to the forwards at the earliest opportunity and pinch as well. No room for exceptions.

Number two, a power forward who can play and bang and…yes…fight. Frankly, I’m a little surprised that hulking Brian Boyle, no speed skater, is seeing regular duty, although Teddy Blueger’s injury has more or less forced Sullivan’s hand.

Scanning our present roster, it isn’t hard to discern our coach’s type of player. He likes forwards who are fast, skilled and gritty. Size doesn’t matter and, indeed, almost seems to be a detriment. It’s no surprise we’ve consistently iced one of the smallest, lightest teams in the league under Sullivan. Or that the first guys sent down to the Baby Pens are often the largest.

To review, Dominik Simon (5’11” 190) is a Sully guy. Zohorna (6’6” 220) isn’t, even though he skates well for a big man and possesses underrated skills. Sullivan loves Simon because he does a lot of little things well (scoring not among them) and drives possession (Corsi of 58.2).

Guess what? Zohorna does, too. Through eight games of inconsistent use and changing roles, “Big Z” has a sterling Corsi of 65.9. Yet he’s headed for Northeastern PA and Simon’s a virtual linchpin. This isn’t meant to demean Simon or his contributions, but rather to suggest that his Czech-mate might provide what he does…plus a bit more.

Which leads me to my third issue. Kids rarely seem to get a fair shake under Sullivan. When they do play, they generally receive sheltered minutes on the fourth line and aren’t really given an opportunity to display their wares.

I get it to an extent. We’re in “win-now” mode and Sully wants players he can trust. And, in fairness, he seems to be a pretty good judge of talent and potential. Black-and-gold washouts like Sam Lafferty and Daniel Sprong haven’t exactly set the league on fire since leaving town. Still, Sullivan appears to have a quick hook with the kids.

With secondary scoring an issue, might it be worth giving youngsters like Zohorna and O’Connor an extended look? Given Sully’s track record, it’s hard to imagine that happening.

I’ll close by banging my favorite gong. I still believe there’s value in having at least one guy in the lineup who’s ready, willing and able to defend his teammates. At the trade deadline last season, it was practically a done deal that the Pens had acquired forward Nicolas Deslauriers from Anaheim, one of the very toughest players in the league. Yet at the 11th hour, the trade was scuttled.

While we won’t know for sure, Sullivan, who seems to abhor fighting and fighters, may have cast a dissenting vote.

For the record, Deslauriers has scored as many as 10 goals in a season. He presently has four, one more than the aforementioned Simon and three more than Zach Aston-Reese. He also has 177 hits, fourth most in the league.

On nights when the guys are dragging and struggling to find the on-switch, wouldn’t it be great to have a player like Deslauriers spark the team with a big hit or a fight?

We’ll never know as long as Sullivan’s our coach.