It didn’t take long for bombastic Brian Burke to make waves upon his arrival in the ‘Burgh. Shortly after the veteran hockey exec was hired on February 9, 2021, to fill the newly minted post of president of hockey operations, Burke voiced his opinion over the Penguins’ preferred style of play. In the process, establishing an expectation for the new regime.
“Pittsburgh’s the last team to win with a small, fast team,” he noted at the time. “The last three Cup winners (Washington, St. Louis and Tampa Bay) have been big, they play long pants hockey, they play ugly hockey. I think we need to look at that and see, have we kept up with the joneses here?”
I confess, it was music to my ears. Anyone who’s read PenguinPoop over the years knows I’ve long been a proponent of adding size and a physical element to our team. While former GM Jim Rutherford tried at various stages to add muscle in the brawny forms of Ryan Reaves, Jamie Oleksiak and Erik Gudbranson, his efforts appeared to be undermined by coach Mike Sullivan, who has a well-known preference for smaller, quicker players.
After assuming the reins from Rutherford, new GM Ron Hextall appeared to follow Burke’s lead, acquiring big Jeff Carter at the 2021 trade deadline and making overtures for then-Ducks hit-man Nicolas Deslauriers. I was encouraged.
Then came the offseason. In rapid succession we lost Brandon Tanev, a spicy heart-and-soul type and our most aggressive player, while adding a batch of smallish free-agents cut from the classic Sully mold, most notably Evan Rodrigues and Dominik Simon. To say I was disappointed was the understatement of the century. I was only partly mollified when we signed hulking Brian Boyle in the fall.
This isn’t to demean the players Hextall brought in…for the most part they performed both effectively and admirably. However, the team was still sorely lacking in the physical play/enforcement department, a shortcoming pounded home with brutal efficiency during our postseason encounter with the bruising Rangers.
Yet upon closer examination Hextall is, indeed, proving good to his boss’s word. No, he didn’t run out and acquire the power forward/enforcer or the big snarling defenseman I covet. But in an understated way, he’s infusing the organizational ranks with functional size.
In a pair of high-profile moves this summer, GMRH signed free-agent defenseman Jan Rutta (6’3” 204) and acquired blueliner Jeff Petry (6’3” 209) and forward Ryan Poehling (6’2” 197) from Montreal. While none of the newcomers is overtly physical, they do give us some bigger bodies for opponents to contend with.
Then there’s the draft. With a couple of exceptions, all the players Hextall and director of player personnel Chris Pryor have selected over the past two years shop in the big ‘n’ tall section. First-round selection Owen Pickering (pictured above) and fellow blueliners Isaac Belliveau, Nolan Collins, Daniel Laatsch and Ryan McCleary all stand at least 6’2”. Forwards Luke Devlin and Kirill Tankov go 6’3” and 6’1” respectively.
Youthful free-agent pickups Corey Andonovski, Jordan Frasca and Ty Glover boast good-to-decent size as well. Like Belliveau and Collins, Andonovski is reputed to play with an edge. Or “angry,” as Burke describes.
This isn’t by accident. According to Pryor, he and his staff consciously sought players with some size and toughness who can play the game as well.
“You still got to be able to make a play with that little black thing on the ice,” he explained. “There is a balance there.”
Combined with sizeable players like Raivis Ansons, Judd Caulfield, Drew O’Connor, Nathan Legare, Samuel Poulin and Radim Zohorna who are already in the system? We may one day shed our “Smurf City” image.
Of course, it’s a long way to Tipperary…and an even longer trek to the NHL. There’s no guarantee any of these kids will make it to the big show, let alone have an impact once they arrive. Then there’s the question of how well they’ll adapt to Sullivan’s forechecking game, which requires a healthy dose of speed.
Much like turning a large ship at sea, it takes time to change an organizational culture. And I still wish we had at least one legitimate tough guy to ride shotgun for our stars. However, in his own quiet, methodical way, Hextall appears to be charting a new course.
Sully Love
Sullivan doesn’t always get a ton of love on our blog. Indeed, we’re at times critical of everything from his personnel choices to his seeming unwillingness to adjust his coaching style to suit the situation and talent on hand.
That doesn’t mean he isn’t a good coach. Quite the contrary.
During a recent Mailbag post on NHL.com, veteran hockey analyst and scribe Dan Rosen offered his predictions for the Metropolitan Division, picking the black and gold to finish third during the upcoming season.
He concluded by opining, “Frankly, Mike Sullivan’s presence behind the Penguins bench might push them over the top… He’s that good of a coach.”
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Hey Rick,
I did read that NHL website article you read about Sullivan. A couple of things, I really don't think that is a rousing endorsement of Sullivan that he could put them over the top of the Isle for the 3rd spot in the Metro.
Also, why didn't you talk about "The Penguins are third because we don't have a clear picture of the Islanders yet. If Kadri goes to the Islanders and they get another left-handed defenseman, I might be inclined to put them at No. 3 and drop Pittsburgh to No. 4. I have reservations about the Penguins' defense beyond Kris Letang and I worry about their health as an older team. They had a lot of injury issues last season and didn't get any younger in the offseason." That passage seems more interesting.
Apparently Dan Rosen doesn't really view the Pens in much of a light, particularly their D. He also doesn't feel their penchant for digging up, trading for, and signing fossils has helped the team.
Just another of the things that make me go Hmm.
You're messing with my context...lol... :)
Rick
Sorry for reading the article Rick, I didn't go looking for it, it just happened. LOL My curiosity was piqued when I read the headline of how Rosen thought the Metro would play out this up coming season.
He didn't go into that great of a detail as to why, but outside of the Isles his predictions are pretty close to my gut feelings (I haven't really sat down yet to assess the division). Some teams got better in the division but others got worse, so, I could still see us finish 4th, maybe even 3rd with a bit of puck luck.
Another thing I found interesting in his post was his disrespect f the Caps, dropping them out of the top 4. Not that I am going to argue against the point, I haven't really began trying to make predictions. Rosters can still change drastically and with that flux, the chemistry of teams can change. I want to get a better idea of who will be where; will Kadri indeed find himself on the Isles roster and does that really mean anything?
Love the Ichabod Crane allusion. Just watched the 1999 version of Sleepy Hollow a couple of days ago with Brent Carver playing that bag of bones.
As for Sully, 'nuff said
Rick & The Other Rick
Without sounding like a negative Nelly it appears to me as if Hextall is meeting Sullivan half way with
the changes to the roster / depth. Although these players have size which I agree is a bonus I have to
ask the question "Where's the Beef"??? I did mention in one of my previous post that I do like Petry but
I would of liked that trade more if he was 30 and not turning 35 in December of this year.
IMO the way the league has been evolving we need a couple different dimensions / type of players to
play on the 4th line. I like "Big Z" but he's not suited for a role on the 4th line and I'm afraid Sullivan will
have the 5'10 Archibald in the opening day lineup. We refuse to embrace the fact that you need your
4th line to have an impact physically on imposing teams. I don't get this at all.
Couple of quick comments:
1) The Other Rick - I don't disagree with your assessment regarding Pickering - I will say his growth
spurt had a lot to do with his weight and he should fill out nicely in time. The guy grew 10" in three
years. "AMAZING"
2) I do think Sully is a very good coach but he allows his ego to play a role in his decisions and IMO
will eventually be his demise.
3) I'm still keeping my fingers crossed that GMRH still has at least one or two trades up his sleeve.
GO PENS
Hey Mike,
1) 10" in 3 years is amazing, can't argue that. And I apologize if I seem a little harsh, but I am not worried about the whys as much as I am the whats. As Rick writes below, for the Penguins sake, I do hope that eventually he does get with a solid strength coach and puts on that much needed muscle to benefit the Penguins.
2) Not going to argue with you over Sully's ego either.
3) and like you I am hoping for a trade or two by the beginning of the season or within the first month.
Hey Mike,
In terms of Hextall meeting Sullivan halfway, I wholeheartedly agree. I'll also point out that the type of player Hextall/Pryor have been drafting fall in line with their Philly M.O. as well. Decent-sized players who'll use that size as a matter of course, but who aren't overly aggressive.
Again, I think Poehling may be the poster child for the new black-and-gold mold.
Agree about Pickering. He should eventually fill out (hopefully).
Rick
Hey Rick,
Hmm. I wasn't going to write anything but, well I did.
After musing over your title, I am so glad you put a ? after that long pants hockey statement.
I am not a fan of the old Broad Street Bully Hockey style. I am do not think the team really needs a one - dimensional goon, but they certainly need physical players willing to go to the dirty areas in both zones and do battle. Now consider this,
1) Height alone doesn't equal size, it does equal reach, but doesn't necessarily equal size. You need muscle mass for size. Your poster child at the top of the article (Pickering) is the perfect example, he is tall but is a stalk of wheat in the wind. As I have noted, he almost injured himself enough to go on IR at the Photo Op at the PFD training academy, he is so not physical..
2) Size alone doesn't equal long pants hockey. Pettersson is tall but looks like Ruth Buzzy swinging his purse at a bunch of Artie Johnsons in his defensive zone. Particularly in game 1 of the NYR playoff series, when the blue shirts were hammering everything that moved, the dragon looked more like Puff than Smaug constantly, fearfully looking over his shoulder for the next freight train that was coming to hit him.
3) As you noted, the the bigger players who actually do play big have to be given ice time. It may be too late for O'Connor and Zohorna, these 2 - prospects may have over - ripened on the vine with the reticence of the team to pick them, opting instead for shriveled up, high priced raisin veterans. Their development may have been stunted by too many seasons of playing with and against AHL talent.
At Forward, I do like Frasca, Legare, and Ansons (from among the bigger prospects) so I will take a wait and see.
On Defense, McCleary may be a bit of a sleeper. I wouldn't classify him as the most physical of players, but he is intriguing. He has shown a lot of compete. I doubt you will ever see Laatsch, at least until Sully is gone.
If GMRH had taken Lamoureux, then I would be more willing to say he is trying to fulfill his promise of long pants hockey.
And don't get me started on Sully
Hey Other Rick,
I won't argue the fact that a lot of these kids (Pickering included) are probably shopping in the Ichabod Crane section of the Big 'n' Tall shop. Another way to look at it? There's plenty of room to put meat on those bones.
Let's hope at least a few of them mature into NHLers before all is said and done. We're gonna need 'em down the road a ways.
Rick
PS--Nice restraint on Sully ... :)