Penguins Update: What’s the Plan if Crosby and Malkin Miss Time?

This morning I was up bright and early, perusing other hockey sites, when a thought so terrible I hesitate to commit it to cyber-type occurred to me. I apologize ahead of time for taking our PP readers to a very dark place.

You’ve no doubt heard the old adage, “a failure to plan is a plan to fail.” With that in mind, what’s the Penguins’ plan should top guns (or top ‘Guins) Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin fall prey to the dreaded injury bug?

To digress, Sid and Geno missed nary a game in 2022-23 while enjoying injury-free seasons. A rare phenomenon, especially given their respective ages (35 and 36) and Malkin’s checkered health history. One that occurred…well…never in the previous 16 seasons the dynamic duo skated as black-and-gold teammates.

It was the first time Geno played a full 82-game slate since ’08-09 and only the third time in his illustrious career. As for Sid? It was the first time he skated in all 82 games since ’17-18 and only the second time in his likewise brilliant stay in the bigs.

At the risk of sounding like Captain Obvious, it isn’t likely to happen again.

Which begs the question. Who steps up to fill the void should either or both of our Two-Headed Monster miss time?

To my eye, the one need Kyle Dubas hasn’t properly addressed this summer is third-line center. At the risk of writing with a forked pen, free-agent pick up Lars Eller is solid…albeit strictly in his prescribed role. But at age 34, with his offensive output on the wane, is he capable of slotting up to a top-six role for more than a handful of games?

I don’t think so. Keep in mind, Eller scored 10 goals last season…or three less than Pens pariah Jeff Carter.

Personally, I would’ve targeted a more offensive type to anchor our third line such as Blackhawks speedster Andreas Athanasiou or Max Domi, both 20-goal scorers last season. But the Hawks re-upped the former (AAV of $4.25 million) and the Leafs, Dubas’ former employer, snagged Domi for a cool $3 million on a one-year deal. For reference, only $550 K more than we’re paying Eller.

Water under the bridge and well downstream at this stage.

It’s conceivable although highly unlikely another newbie, Noel Acciari, could be called upon to plug the gap. While he’s great on faceoffs and will chip in the odd goal here and there, setting up linemates is decidedly not his forte. In fact, he’s never breached double figures in assists over the course of his eight NHL seasons. For the record, nine’s his career best.

Once upon a time Jake Guentzel played center and could possibly slide to the middle in a pinch, although his weak defensive play would clearly mitigate against such a move. Ditto Mikael Granlund, provided he’s still around. He’s played center quite a bit and, unlike Acciari, is an excellent setup man. Perhaps the most compelling argument for not buying him out.

Another possible option…and once again I’m going to a dark (dark) place.

Carter.

At age 38, would Jeff have enough left in the tank to rise to the occasion as he did at the beginning of the ’21-22 campaign in Sid and Geno’s dual absence? Given the pronounced dip in the big guy’s play last season, a stretch to say the least. But it’s somewhat ironic the much-maligned vet might be our best option.

Among the kids, former first-round pick Sam Poulin comes to mind. Drew O’Connor, too.

No real BREAK GLASS IN CASE OF EMERGENCY option in the bunch.

So what’s our best plan should Sid or Geno go down with an injury?

Pray. A lot.