Questions for every Penguins player going into the season part 2

Équipe: 2020-21 Penguins de Pittsburgh

Date de création initiale: 19 oct. 2020

Publié: 26 oct. 2020

Mode - plafond salarial: Basique

Questions for every Penguins player going into the season part 2

===Defensemen===

Kris Letang--Can Kris Letang keep driving the offense from the backend? Until Marino, he had had to do much of the heavy lifting in that regard as Schultz regressed, JJ--never mind, and Pettersson can't hit an open garage to save his life. He should have some help with Marino and Matheson having the potential to contribute offensively but he has to step up. The "A" needs to stand for Assist, not requesting anonymity after another egregious turnover! And no, I won't bother asking if he can stay healthy for a full year.

Brian Dumoulin--Can he pretend like that MTL series never happened? That was the worst I had seen of the 8-58 pairing's play in a couple years at least. A solid partner for Tanger is hugely important for this D-core to be successful. (See Johnson, Jack)

John Marino--Can he avoid the stereotypical "sophomore slump"? He broke out in a BIG way last year and is frankly the steal of the year. (Thanks, EDM!) And does he have even more to give? This year is huge for him. A step forward would cement him into this top-4 for a while. Lastly, what does him next contract look like? Pre-COVID, I would have thought 6 x 6ish. Now...I'm not so sure. DeAngelo has the flashy offensive stats but won that through arbitration so... I say on the first day of training camp, walk up to John Marino #6 and offer him 4 x $4.75M === $19M. The only reason I don't think instantly 8 year deal is I kinda want to be all in for the next 2 years of Sid and Geno, but then have a ton of valuable assets to move to speed up a rebuild when not if we stink in 3-5 years. (What could Rust, jarry, Guentzel, McCann, Blueger, ZAR, marino, Pettersson, etc. fetch in a trade in a couple years???)

Marcus Pettersson--Can he stop trying to be an offensive defensemen??? I want him to be Dumoulin, not Letang. I don't think he gets that. marino has the smooth vision and passing to be the offensive part of that tandem. Pettersson is still trying to play C sometimes. THIS ISN'T THE SWEDISH LEAGUE AND YOU'RE NOT 14! The guy can't put pucks on net. he had almost the lowest shots on net % of anyone on the team. pass it to marino. period.

Mike Matheson--Is there something there that Florida just mismanaged? I think the answer is yes. But how much? Some analytics say he should be viewed higher than he is. I hope the Penguins can salvage this player. If they don't, the "worst contract in the NHL" line may be used. The Pens have "fixed" Defensemen before, but this isn't 2016 and we don't have the "defensemen whisperer" Sergei Gonchar.

Cody Ceci--Is he as bad as some fans think? The short answer is--no. People are never as bad as some think and never as good as some think. It's only 1 year at just over $1M so it's not like JJ 2.0. He's not as bad as JJ is. Will he fit with this team? I don't really think he fits the "speed and skill" game. Why does GMJR say everyone can play a speed game when they are not fast? And why does every defensive defensemen call himself a two-way defensemen? Pettersson, Ceci, Dumoulin, etc. seriously people, just play D!

Juuso Riikola--CAN HE PLAY FOR ONCE??? Due to the super expensive Left side, I think they try to sneak him though waivers while they distract Dubas with Dominic Simon or something... I like what Riikola could bring, but I do agree with the coaching staff that he needs some more seasoning. Hopefully he can finally get that in the AHL.

Chad Ruhwedel--I don't actually have a good question, but the less he plays the better--not because he is bad but because it means either Ceci is garbage or someone is injured.

Pierre-Oliver Joseph--Is this Kid ready? And how much input will his #1 fan and new Assistant coach Vellucci have? I think POJ will be ready when he gets a little more seasoning in the AHL and puts on some muscle. He has the potential to be a cheaper replacement for a "D that makes over $4M" on the left side.

Zach Trotman--Why does GMJR keep calling him the "ninth NHL-caliber Defensemen"? he's at least #10 now....and he's not NHL caliber unless this is the Detroit Red Wings of last year...

Cameron Lee--Who is this college kid? Probably nothing special, but I love college FA signings bc we don't give up anything except $$$.

Josh Maniscalco--Ok, since we saw John Marino come in and be amazing we now have way too high expectations for a highly touted college RHD whose name starts with "Ma", ends in "o", and has a "i" and a "n" in the middle somewhere. But there is definitely something to this kid more than all the other college FAs the pens have signed.

Will Reilly--Who's better, he or Lee? I hope he can help stabilize the WBS Pens for now.


===Goaltenders===

Tristan Jarry--Is this guy a #1? One-half a good, shortened season isn't much of a sample size. The Pens will need him to step up in a big way and solidify the blue paint.

Casey DeSmith--Can he come back to the NHL after an AHL detour and be an NHL-caliber backup--even a #1B??

Maxime Legace--Will he have to play in the NHL?

Emil Larmi--Does this kid have a shot to make it? He'll likely have a shot in a couple years. The pens aren't exactly stacked with studs at the G position right now.

Joel Blomqvist--Why did the Pens take him so high? Is he the goalie for the next time the pens are good--alot of years from now--after a rebuild???

Calle Clang--Does he have a top-5 coolest goalie name? "here's ______ with the puck, shoots.......CLANG off the iron!!!" Ukka-Pekka Luukkonen or however you spell that is #1 for sure...