Penguins Update: I Feel for Mikael Granlund

February 28, 2023.

Perhaps not a day that will live in infamy for Penguins Nation, but maybe it should. Late in the third period of a 3-1 victory over Nashville, then-Preds forward Mikael Granlund broke free and shot the puck, center mass, on Pens goalie Tristan Jarry.

As Jarry made an easy save, an eerie reverse premonition popped into my head. Something to the effect of, “Gee, I hope we don’t acquire Granlund.”

Little did I know our assistant GM Chris Pryor was singing the Finnish forward’s praises to his boss, Ron Hextall, perhaps at that very moment. Or that the very next day Hextall would acquire Granlund (and his $5 million cap hit) for a second-round pick, in the process referring to him as a “coveted” player.

The last act of a desperate GM.

The rest, as they say, is history. Although an accomplished veteran with three 60-point seasons on his resume, Granlund wasn’t what we needed in any way, shape or form. We lacked youth, speed, size and finishing ability, in no particular order. What we got was an aging, pricey setup man (albeit a very good one) with a weak shot and a pass-first mentality.

A rich man’s Dominik Simon, if you will.

Skating in 21 largely forgettable games for the black and gold, Granlund tallied a lone goal and five measly points. The Pens were a lackluster 9-10-2 over that stretch.

Now his name’s being bandied about as a prime candidate for a buyout. A decision I wholeheartedly endorse. Through no fault of his own, he simply doesn’t fit here. Certainly not as a potential top-six replacement for UFA-to-be and former Wild teammate Jason Zucker.

But none of this is the real point of my article.

Rather, I feel for Granlund. He certainly didn’t ask to be traded. And he arrived in town to a firestorm of criticism over the deal among the media and fan base.

Talk about feeling unwanted. It had to hurt.

I’m sure he was aware of all the negative press. It would be almost impossible to tune it all out. Putting myself in his shoes, I can only imagine what it would be like to wake up each and every day and see my name splashed across the blog-o-sphere as if I was some sort of pariah.

In a way, he became the poster child for Hextall’s failures.

Granlund’s failings with the Pens weren’t due to a lack of effort or try. Expected to prop up our woeful bottom-six, he was put in a position to fail.

If the Pens acting GM, Kyle Dubas, executes a buyout as expected, I hope Granlund is signed by another club and I hope he succeeds. Jack Johnson received similar shabby treatment here, yet went on to hoist a Cup with Colorado.

Maybe it’ll be the same for Granlund.

Golden (Knights) Blueprint for a Cup

After watching Vegas eviscerate a very good Florida team in the first two games of the Stanley Cup Final, the blueprint for playoff success is crystal clear.

While, Jack Eichel aside, the Golden Knights lack true star power at the top of the lineup, they’re a deep team from top to bottom. They feature a near optimal blend of youth and experience to go with speed, skill, grit and toughness. And they’re exceptionally well coached by Bruce Cassidy.

I especially want to emphasize the last two points. I find it both revealing and instructive that Pens coach Mike Sullivan was quick to go public with his insistence about our need for more speed shortly after Dubas was hired.

While I don’t disagree with him, it almost seemed like a power grab. A thinly veiled attempt to paint Dubas into a corner while trying to exert control over the roster construction (or re-construction) process.

True to form, nowhere did he mention a need for aggression or toughness.

Again, let’s look at the Golden Knights. For every Jonathan Marchessault and William Karlsson, they boast a William Carrier and a Keegan Kolesar. For every puck mover on defense like Shea Theodore, there’s a rugged all-arounder like Nicolas Hague and Brayden McNabb.

Even “skilled” middle-sixer Ivan Barbashev has made like a bulldozer in a construction yard while dishing out some seismic hits, including a Game 2 demo job on Panthers masher Radko Gudas.

Can you imagine any of our current Penguins doing that? Ever?

Yes, speed is important. But other elements are, too.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. I don’t want Sullivan dictating personnel choices.