Undying Pursuit. [NHL 20]

[GoldenJet]

Re: Undying Pursuit. [NHL 20]

PENGUINS ACTIVE EARLY; PICK UP KOVALCHUK

As the Taylor Hall Sweepstakes continues to heat up, the Penguins are preparing alternative routes


Ilya Kovalchuk's chase for a ring brings him from Washington to Pittsburgh to join the likes of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.

Associated Press

The Pittsburgh Penguins successfully cleared cap space and looked to be active in the early stages of free agency. Looking to defend their Stanley Cup championship with a talented - although aging - core, the Penguins wanted a mix of players ready to contribute now but young and affordable enough to take over once superstars Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin stop producing at their insane rates.

Firstly, the Penguins picked up goaltender Mike Smith on a one-year contract to help in net with the recently resigned Tristan Jarry. Smith, 37, last played against the Penguins for the Edmonton Oilers in the Stanley Cup Finals, and despite an impressive regular season that awarded him and fellow goaltender Mikko Koskinen the William M. Jennings Trophy for the lowest goals-against average in the league was glued to the bench for the playoff push.

The Penguins then signed defenseman Zach Bogosian to a one-year contract worth approximately $1.25 million and depth forward Tomas Jurco to a one-year, two-way contract that was under a million dollars.

Bogosian, a right-handed shot, will most likely play on the third defensive pairing with either Jack Johnson (if he makes it to the regular season, as he has been rumored to be on the trade wire) or Juuso Riikola.

Lastly, the Penguins picked up Russian star Ilya Kovalchuk on a one year contract worth approximatey $3.6 million. Kovalchuk is expected to replace the likes of Jason Zucker (traded to Florida) or Anthony Duclair (signed a one-year contract with the Calgary Flames) and line-up alongside either Malkin or Crosby.

In other league news, Justin Schultz officially signed a one-year contract with the Vancouver Canucks while Christopher Tanev has landed with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Mike Green has finally gone full circle, ending up with the Washington Capitals on a one-year deal, while the Minnesota Wild, who had just signed center Derrick Brassard to a three-year deal, immediately traded him to the Montreal Canadiens. The Canadiens also signed Adam McQuaid and Jason Spezza to one-year deals

Former Penguin Conor Sheary was picked up by the Nashville Predators on a two-year deal while the Colorado Avalanche picked up goaltender Cam Talbot.

Taylor Hall, who the Penguins notably kicked the tires on, is expected to be making his decision soon.

[GoldenJet]

Re: Undying Pursuit. [NHL 20]

THE RICH GET RICHER; HALL PICKS PITTSBURGH

Penguins land the big fish of free agency, Hall is the newest Penguin


The Stanley Cup champions roster experienced a lot of turnover this season, but Taylor Hall will join an electric offense.

Associated Press

When it was announced that superstar forward Taylor Hall would not be resigning with the Arizona Coyotes, the Taylor Hall sweepstakes began - marking the rare time a big fish of his caliber would be hitting the open market.

The Colorado Avalanche were the front-runner, expected to join Hall with their current pantheon of superstars like Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, and Cale Makar. Other teams like the Detroit Red Wings and the Columbus Blue Jackets all presented their case to the 28-year old phenom from Calgary, Alberta.

The team that landed him: the Pittsburgh Penguins.

When it comes to top-tier free agents, the Penguins are not typically in the race due to always being cash-strapped. When you have three superstars (Crosby, Malkin, and Letang) who all make over seven million dollars annually, it is not very often they can swing for top prospects.

However, the Penguins spent the first half of their off-season thinning the herd, dealing the bigger contracts of Jason Zucker and Nick Bjugstad, while allowing Justin Schultz, Matt Murray, and Anthony Duclair to hit free agency.

The Pittsburgh Penguins have signed former MVP Taylor Hall to a two-year contract worth approximately $9.3 million per season. Though Hall was looking to find a forever home, he couldn't pass up the chance to make big money in a huge market such as Pittsburgh with the defending champions.

"This isn't an opportunity you get very often; to get to play with this caliber of a roster. I'm hoping to be here for the long-haul. Pittsburgh is a great city" Hall commented via phone interview with TSN.

The Penguins dealt the rights to Matt Murray and defenseman Jack Johnson to Ottawa Senators for young center Drake Batherson and Pittsburgh's own first round pick, shedding approximately 7 million dollars in cap space.

GM Jim Rutherford has not ruled out any further signings, as he is expected to shore up the blueline with one last signing to replace Johnson.

[GoldenJet]

Re: Undying Pursuit. [NHL 20]

PENGUINS ACQUIRE DZINGEL

Penguins also welcome back Jussi Jokinen to one-year deal


The Penguins have formally dealt Nick Bjugstad for Ryan Dzingel to all but wrap up their off-season of immense change.

Associated Press

Pittsburgh Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford has put his name firmly in place for consideration as Executive of the Year with his incredibly thorough and drastic off-season that saw the team welcome the likes of Taylor Hall, Ilya Kovalchuk, and Drake Batherson

The team went and negotiated a deal with Metropolitan Division foes Carolina Hurricanes, trading center Nick Bjugstad and their second-round draft pick for winger Ryan Dzingel

The team now features depth at wing with the likes of Hall, Kovalchuk, Dzingel, Patric Hornqvist, Jake Guentzel, and Zach Aston-Reese just to name a few. The team also signed forward winger Jussi Jokinen to a one-year deal worth just under a million dollars.

"We're happy with what we were able to do this off-season, and we're confident to go into the season with the roster that we've got" commented Rutherford via TSN podcast.

Other news around the league has the Boston Bruins paying defenseman Torey Krug top dollar to retain their top player, while captain Zdeno Chara continues to flounder in free agency.

Metro rivals continue to bulk up to take Pittsburgh's crown from them, with the Florida Panthers picking up defenseman Travis Hamonic, the Philadelphia Flyers adding veteran defenseman Jay Bouwmeester, and the Columbus Blue Jackets adding skilled winger Tyler Toffoli.

The Ottawa Senators welcome back winger Mike Hoffman, while the Detroit Red Wings pick up goaltender Robin Lehner.

[GoldenJet]

Re: Undying Pursuit. [NHL 20]

PITTSBURGH PENGUINS SEASON PREVIEW

Questions of chemistry, aging talent, and shaky goaltending clouds Penguins' repeat hopes


The two-headed monster of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin have now won four Stanley Cups together. Do they have enough in the tank for a fifth is the biggest question of all.

Associated Press

The running theme of the Pittsburgh Penguins off-season was the rich getting much, much richer. They trimmed the perceived fat from their roster and used the foreign cap space they had not been used to having during the Crosby/Malkin era and went shopping.

Their purchases? Taylor Hall, Ilya Kovalchuk, and Mike Smith just to name a few.

The Penguins, through their general manager Jim Rutherford, went out and trimmed the likes of Nick Bjugstad, Jason Zucker, and Conor Sheary from the roster, and let the likes of Anthony Duclair and Justin Schultz go get paid in free agency. They officially moved on from goaltender Matt Murray, and decided to go with Tristan Jarry between the pipes.

Signing Taylor Hall was a huge addition to the league's top offense, as well as adding the still-potent Ilya Kovalchuk to their fearsome top six unit. Finally allowing Bryan Rust to take over the third center slot was monumental, as Rust had usually been thrust out of his natural position to play with either Crosby or Malkin on the wing.

The Penguins, however, do have multiple questions that this season will need to answer before they are automatically handed another Stanley Cup championship.

What exactly does the aging Crosby/Malkin duo have left in the tank?

It always feels as though it is a season too early to predict that team captain Sidney Crosby and fellow star Evgeni Malkin are going to slow down and not be in the top echelon of NHL stars, as every time that prediciton comes around, one wins the league MVP (Crosby) and the other leads the playoffs in goals scored (Malkin). However, Crosby is 33 years young, and Malkin is a year younger, and Father Time still reigns undefeated. Are the Penguins prepared for 87 and 71 to not be able to bear the full brunt of the scoring load? Speaking of which...

Does the secondary scoring have enough chemistry to keep up?

Though the Penguins did free up enough space to pick up the likes of Taylor Hall and Ilya Kovalchuk, sacrifices had to be made. Nick Bjugstad, Conor Sheary, Jason Zucker, Patrick Marleau - all big contributors to the Penguins' Stanley Cup championship - are now on other teams. Which begs the question of whether the Penguins' secondary scoring has enough to work together to pick up the slack when the superstars inevitably have trouble getting it together? Bryan Rust, Jared McCann, and Zach Aston-Reese are joined by the likes of Jussi Jokinen, Tomas Jurco, and Ryan Dzingel with the likes of Drake Batherson, Sam Lafferty, and Dominik Simon dying for a spot in the big league. This team will go as far as that bottom unit goes.

Can John Marino fill Justin Schultz's shoes, or will he suffer from the sophomore slump?

John Marino was in the midst of a Calder Trophy caliber rookie season before a bad concussion knocked him out for the majority of the second half of the season. The team looked at Marino's playoff performance and felt comfortable enough in his development to give Schultz his walking papers. Marino is a solid, two-way defenseman that has been able to quarterback the powerplay when called upon, but the league knows his talent now. Does he have the ability to take that next step, or do the Penguins have more problems on the back-end than they are ready to face?

Does Tristan Jarry have enough talent to be Matt Murray's successor?

The trouble thing with Tristan Jarry becoming the starting goaltender is definitely going to be his adjustment to the workoad. Though he did perform much better than Matt Murray most of the season, Jarry played a significantly less amount, which could have effected his numbers. GM Rutherford has rolled the dice, and given Jarry the keys to the Ferrari. Veteran Mike Smith, after a star studded season with Edmonton that handed him a William M. Jennings Trophy, has been brought in as insurance. The question has to be answered, will the Penguins be looking for another starting goaltender in a year?

The Pittsburgh Penguins open the season against the Dallas Stars on October 4th in Dallas, Texas before returning home to raise their Stanley Cup Championship on October 7th against the Vancouver Canucks.

[johnstone1987]

Re: Undying Pursuit. [NHL 20]

Another Cup for the Pens!