Can the Penguins Improve?

The other day, my colleague Caleb Di’Natale sent me a text displaying his new and improved black-and-gold lineup for the coming season.

It included a veritable Who’s Who of heavyweight free-agents (Sam Reinhart and Nikita Zadorov) and marquee trade acquisitions (Lawson Crouse, Conor Garland and Jakob Chychrun). Departures included Erik Karlsson, Ryan Graves, Pierre-Olivier Joseph, Rickard Rakell and Reilly Smith.

In addition, Caleb had a host of kids, including 2023 first-round pick Brayden Yager, Vasily Ponomarev, Ville Koivunen, Jack St. Ivany, John Ludwig and Joel Blomqvist occupying roster spots.

As I studied (salivated over) Caleb’s handiwork, I have to admit I was impressed. He’s much more hopeful than I.

Too bad his upbeat overhaul isn’t likely to occur. Here are just some of the significant barriers we face.

Not a Garden Spot

Even if we free up cap space and have money to burn, it’s extremely difficult to see front-line free agents like Reinhart and Zadorov opting to come to the ‘burgh. Most players, especially ones in a position to bargain, want to play for a team that has a legit shot at competing for a Stanley Cup.

With two straight playoff misses on the heels of four straight opening-round exits, the Pens are trending down, down, down to where Gollum (and the Blackhawks and Sharks) live.

The Fish Aren’t Biting

While I’d love to land players like Garland, Chychrun and especially Crouse, a soon-to-be 27-year-old power forward squarely in his prime, it’s hard to imagine opposing GMs climbing over one another to acquire the guys we might be offering in return. Karlsson (onerous AAV) and Rakell (dreadful term) are good players on unattractive contracts and Graves did much to train wreck his reputation last season.

I just can’t see other clubs being that anxious to do business.

As for other obstacles to improvement?

We Ain’t Gettin’ Any Younger

With all due respect to Sidney Crosby, who had an extraordinary season…period…let alone for a 36-year-old playing in his 19^th NHL season, the heart of our team is aging and in decline.

Evgeni Malkin, who turns 38 this summer, struggled to produce during the middle portion of last season with an un-Genoesque 31 points in 49 games. There’s talk of moving the venerable Russian to wing.

Courageously playing through an injury, Kris Letang’s defensive impacts suffered in the second half. Karlsson, at age 34 the young gun of the bunch, saw his production basically pared in half from his standout Norris Trophy campaign of 2022-23.

Key support players like Bryan Rust, Lars Eller, Rakell and Smith are on the un-sunny side of 30 as well. Even with the anticipated influx of kids, we remain at our core a geriatric bunch. And there’s no guarantee the youngsters will provide immediate help…or develop as hoped.

The Blackhawks were in a similar place in the late 2010s in terms of age and roster construction and went nowhere.

Unfortunately, I expect the same for us.

The Net Effect

I’ve saved (no pun intended) the biggest impediment to improvement for last.

Former GM Ron Hextall gets excoriated for hastening the Pens’ decline, and rightfully so. But Kyle Dubas may have chained the final millstone around our collective necks when he inked goalie Tristan Jarry to a five-year deal last summer for a shade under $27 million.

Jarry, who has a well-documented history of fading in the second half, not to mention in the clutch, sagged once again last season. He was supplanted down the homestretch by Alex Nedeljkovic, who backstopped us to an 8-3-3 finish.

Yet Dubas has all but announced that UFA-to-be Ned won’t be re-signed while hinting that Jarry, erratic and enigmatic, will once again be the guy. In effect, choosing to ride a goalie who went 19-25-5 over one who was 18-7-7.

Talk about insanity.

Perhaps the 22-year-old Blomqvist, who had an outstanding season with the Baby Pens, can assume the backup (or 1A) role.

Again, don’t count your chickens before they hatch. Spurred by an iffy performance in the Calder Cup playoffs (sound familiar?), there are rumblings the former second-round pick may not be as NHL-ready as fans would like to believe.

In my perfect world, we re-sign Nedeljkovic and peddle Jarry, although it would likely be for someone else’s problem contract. Canadiens power forward Josh Anderson, a two-time 20-plus goal scorer, comes to mind.

If not?

I read yesterday that Blue Jackets goalie Elvis Merzlikins, once highly regarded like Jarry, is weary of the situation in Columbus. He’s under contract for three more seasons at an AAV of $5.4 million.

Perhaps a swap is in order. A fresh start might do both goalies some good. Plus, win, lose or draw, our announcers could say with certainty, “Elvis has just left the building,” after each game.

Yes, I’m being silly.

I Was Right

With my admittedly cracked crystal ball, I’ll be the first to admit I don’t get things right too often. In fact, I’m wrong about 90 percent of the time. So in those rare instances when I do nail it, I feel the need to toot my own horn a little.

During the latter stages of Jim Rutherford’s reign, there were rumblings we were kicking the tires on then-Flames power forward Sam Bennett, a former fourth overall pick who’d inexplicably regressed out west. I wrote a couple of articles on PenguinPoop imploring GMJR to pull the trigger.

Unfortunately, the Panthers beat us to the punch, acquiring “Playoff Sam” at the 2021 trade deadline for a second-round pick. A deal that’s paid dividends in spades.

A throw-back to old-school power forwards like Gary Roberts and Rick Tocchet, Bennett plays a fast, forceful, hard-hitting game. He can score, too.

The snarling 6’1” 195-pounder is precisely the type of player we desperately need yet never get.