Why?

putting the pens as a maybe for the playoffs.

their roster is no longer at the top of the metro, but they're not so bad where they'll completely falter. I think they do or die based on their divisional games.

IF Crosby, malkin, murray stay healthy. yes. If not, nope.

Crosby and Malkin are still two elite centers, and Guentzel's great too, but the defense is a serious weak spot. I'm also not sold on Murray being able to bail out the defense all that often. I think it's going to be very, very close, and they'll be within three points of making or missing the playoffs. It'll be down to the wire

What's wrong with their defence? Definitely not great, but their top-4 is Letang, Schultz, Dumoulin, and Gudbranson/Pettersson ... that 4th spot is a bit of a problem, but not too bad.

I'm gonna say no. I think they miss ... and no, that isn't a bold prediction. Lots of people are picking them to miss. Probably more than half (or at least about half). So, it's not bold at all.

Letang is a) injured all the time, and b) has a knack for defensive issues and other miscommunications on the ice. Schultz is a really good puck mover, but Dumoulin has a lot of the same issues as Letang but doesn't have the same offensive flare. Pettersson is sneaky good as a top four option, I like him a lot. But Gudbranson and Jack Johnson are awful. There also isn't a lot of depth.

I get what you're saying. However, i wouldn't call Gudbranson and Johnson "awful". Johnson as a 6/7 guy i have no problem with ... Gudbranson has played well in Pittsburgh.

If you look at literally any sort of advanced statistic, you'll find that Johnson hurts his team when he's on the ice more than he helps them. That's also very visible by simply watching a Penguins game. While Gudbranson did play well in the regular season, he once again looked bad in the playoffs. The fact that Pittsburgh needs these guys to play regular minutes is not good for the team, especially when they play on the road and the opposition can get the favorable matchup.

How many games was that? 4 for Gudbranson in the playoffs ... Crosby also didn't play great in the playoffs, either, when thinking about the expectations ... should we say Crosby is a 3rd liner because he only got 1 point in the playoffs? I agree their defence isn't great, but it's not too bad. Johnson is preferably a #7 for me, but if he's a #6 it's fine IMO.

as of right now i would say its not very likely

The pens barely made the playoffs last season - one game wouldve made the difference. If they lost against MTL on march 2nd they wouldve missed the postseason. Then consider that all 3 teams who missed the playoffs last year in the metro (NYR, NJD, PHI) all added major pieces to improve. Meanwhile the Pens lost Kessel, who was second only to Crosby to lead the team in points, and replaced him with Galchenyuk who only scored 41 points last year.

They could make the playoffs if they get super lucky with injuries (especially to Malkin and Letang who are made of glass), but I dont see that happening

I'm biased as a flyers fan, I don't want them to make it.
Looking at it as unbiased as I can, I still don't see them making it. Most of the rest of the metro got so much stronger and with Washington, Carolina and Philadelphia essentially being locks in my opinion with New Jersey and the New York teams also having a very good shot at getting in I don't think there's room for them anymore.

it will be tougher next year than in some years with the division improving, NJ(who the pens had trouble with anyway) and NYR are both much much better. Carolina is still up and coming, The caps will still be good, the Islanders shocked everyone last year and could be decent/good again this year. Flyers should be a bit better than last year. Only one that will be much worse on paper is the Blue jackets. You got legitimately 6 teams competing for likely 4 or MAYBE 5 spots.

Meanwhile they have themselves gotten slightly worse(downgrade trading away Kessel and Maatta)

I think Pens still finish above the rangers, devils, flyers, and blue jackets. Which means they should get in(one of the top four teams), but not as easily as usual.

The issue with that argument is that Gudbranson has a much longer track record of being bad, unlike Crosby. It's more likely that his short stint of good play in Pittsburgh is an outlier compared to his previous history of not being good.

I know, I was half-kidding ... obviously, those 4 games says almost nothing about Crosby, but i'm just pointing it out ... I wouldn't say Gudbranson was bad in Vancouver ... but he definitely struggled there this past year and he needed a change, which he got. I think for the most part he played well in Pittsburgh. Their defence still could use improvement though. It's a lot better than Ottawa's though lol.

Somebody's turning into quite the smart @$$ lol. Gudbranson had a good run with the Penguins right after he got traded for sure, but he looked bad towards the tail end of the regular season and again in the playoffs. It's a relatively weak defense with no real depth to it if injuries strike. If Letang or Schultz goes down, this team is in serious trouble.

For the most part I agree. If Letang or Schultz gets injured then all i can say is ... .
Then their defence would be a big problem.

I agree they have a blow-average NHL defence, but I wouldn't call it a "serious weak spot". It's a weakness, but not a huge weakness.

Gudbranson didn't play as well toward the end of the season as he did when he first went to Pittsburgh, but i wouldn't say he was bad. I wouldn't want him in my top 4 though.

Pittsburgh got worse in the offseason, while Philadelphia, Carolina, New Jersey and the Rangers all got better. Washington also looks strong again, and the Islanders have mostly the same group except a new goalie. With all the firepower that's come into the division and the Penguins downgrading from Kessel to Galchenyuk, it'll be a much tougher path to the playoffs that it would be for most teams. I'm not going to count out a team led by Crosby and Malkin any time soon, but this is a team that the wheels could easily fall off on. Easier than a lot of other teams, that's for sure.

I agree they miss the playoffs. I think they'll be close but i just think that division is too good. If the 4 teams in the Atlantic who most people are expecting to make it do, then i'd say 4 of Washington, Carolina, NY Rangers, Philadelphia, and New Jersey get in, and i don't think there's room for Pittsburgh. We'll see though.

Pens will make the playoffs if healthy.
Last year they had a bunch of injuries to all key guys. Hell, almost everyone on their roster was injured at some point or another, I don't bet on that happening again.


Also, roster familiarity. A ton of midseason moves is tough for guys coming in and the guys still there looking to find chemistry.
Losing kessel hurts but adding Tanev/Gally are good additions. Getting rid of Maatta is plus, Pettersson looks poised to command a top4 role which pushes JJ into 3rd pair (huge plus)

Can't forget that this core has played the most hockey out of anyone in the past 3-4 years.. a little rest might go a long way!

@mhockey91 triggered?

people hate the pens lol. they're still a good team. they're not a lock to make it but with a core of crosby/malkin/letang/guzental/dumo/murray they'll still be fine.

Barring an injury to a key player, the Pens will finish top 4 in the Metro. This is the same ol' song and dance everyone did after they lost in the 1st round in 2015. Crosby was declining, the defense was washed up, etc... then they won back to back cups.

This is exactly why they could make it ... i don't think they will though.

A lot depends on Murray's health and whether or not Malkin bounces back, but I think they'll miss. They'll be in the mix til April, but at the end of the day NJD and NYR are drastically improved from last season. Both teams have added superior depth this summer through the draft, via trades, and through free agency. I'm gonna predict that both those teams make it along with FLA from the Atlantic. CBJ, NYI, and PIT will drop out of the top 8.