This upcoming season is the last chance the Pittsburgh Penguins have at winning another Stanley Cup with Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. The Pittsburgh Penguins Stanley Cup window may only be the size of a pinhole, but it is still there.
Crosby and Malkin are still good players, just not once they once were. This team proved this past season that they could still compete for a Stanley Cup. However, a bad matchup against a defensively-minded team, as well as terrible goaltending, cost this team in the playoffs.
Tristan Jarry absolutely careless with the puck and Josh Bailey wins it in double OT. #Isles #LetsGoPens #StanleyCup
pic.twitter.com/KefO7woJ1T
— 2 Goalies 1 Mic (@2Goalies1Mic) May 25, 2021
Ticking Contracts
But there is always next year, and for the Penguins this may be the last season they can say that confidently. The following players will be either unrestricted free agents (UFA’s) or restricted free agents (RFA’s) at the end of next season: Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, Jeff Carter, Bryan Rust, Kasperi Kapanen, Jared McCann, Pierre-Olivier Joseph, Mark Friedman, Drew O’Connor, Anthony Angello, Chad Ruhwedel, Sam Lafferty, Juuso Riikola and Casey DeSmith.
Not only is that almost half of the roster players on the team, but core pieces like Malkin and Letang will not be cheap to bring back. Guys like McCann, Kapanen, Blueger and Rust will also need substantial raises.
Jared McCann went five-hole on 𝙏𝙃𝙍𝙀𝙀 players. #NHLonSN pic.twitter.com/Q84yzTQgbn
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) April 7, 2021
Go crazy, go stupid
I am going to do something that I rarely do and go back on my word. The Penguins should not keep their picks and prospects anymore. They already have the core players needed with Malkin and Crosby. The Penguins need to throw everything at the wall and see if it sticks for one last cup with this core.
The plan may seem like a simple mindset. But this is something that general manager Ron Hextall has to commit to. If you are going to do it, then do it.
Thankfully, I am not the general manager of the Pittsburgh Penguins or else Greg McKegg would be the team’s current captain. But I do strongly suggest to Hextall that this is the right course of action. Players like Malkin, Crosby, and even Letang do not grow on trees. With two of their contracts expiring next offseason, now is the best time to strike.
Here are just some hypothetical examples of the absurdity that I am talking about. The Penguins should go after Alex Ovechkin, Tuukka Rask, and Mike Hoffman in free agency.
Taking a page out of the Lightning’s book
Penguins should cheat the cap next season with Malkin presumably out for a chunk of it. It seems to be working out nicely in Tampa.
Just kidding. Maybe.— Josh Yohe (@JoshYohe_PGH) June 4, 2021
The Tampa Bay Lighting, love them or hate them, have been wizards at maneuvering around the salary cap. They have the 2020 Stanley Cup to show for it. This season they put star forward Nikita Kucherov on LTIR for the entirety of the regular season which freed up $9.5 million dollars in cap space.
Kucherov then conveniently returned for the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs as there is no salary cap on playoff rosters. He has been lighting it up ever since in the postseason. Even though this move by Tampa was ridiculously convenient and likely staged, Kucherov was hurt to a degree with a groin muscle injury.
I bring this up because the Penguins could do the same with their own Russian superstar that makes exactly $9.5 million. Just this week it was announced that Evgeni Malkin would undergo knee surgery that would keep him out all the way into next season’s training camp.
Evgeni Malkin underwent knee surgery.
He is not expected to be available for the start of training camp. pic.twitter.com/LgmoNK0RJw
— Seth Rorabaugh (@SethRorabaugh) June 4, 2021
Malkin has been battling injuries for what feels like an eternity now and a regular-season off would not be the worst idea in the world. The Penguins should do it, and Malkin has to be on board as well. This would benefit both the team and Malkin.
With that cap space and with the remaining picks and prospects you have, go all-out in trying to make this team the best it can be. Sign Rask, Hoffman, and Ovechkin, trade for guys at the deadline, and most importantly milk this core of Crosby, Malkin and Letang.
The Stanley Cup is worth it
Again, I am not Ron Hextall, just a wacky and deranged Penguins fan that wants his team to win. I have no experience managing an NHL team (outside of EA Sports). There is a 99% chance that all of the ideas I mentioned here will not happen.
But could you imagine?
Penguins fans seem to overlook that the team has not missed the playoffs since 2007 which is the longest active streak in the NHL. Instead of turning into the Detroit Red Wings of the early 2000s and staying in limbo, the Penguins need to have one last push all-or-nothing style.
I go fully in-depth with my thoughts here on my YouTube Channel. This is it folks. This may be the last shot the Penguins will have at winning a Stanley Cup with this core; 2022 Cup or bust.
The post The Penguins need to go all-in this offseason for one last cup appeared first on Pittsburgh Sports Castle.
