The Last Dance | Pittsburgh Penguins [NHL 22]

[GoldenJet]

In possible last dance, Penguins going for broke
With big names like Malkin, Letang, and Rust all free agents, Pens aim for last Cup run with their current core

September 14, 2019

PITTSBURGH - It certainly feels like it was yesterday when Pittsburgh Penguins team captain and superstar Sidney Crosby was first hoisting the Stanley Cup over his head after a hard-fought seven-game series against the veteran-laden Detroit Red Wings. However, it was not yesterday. It was 2009 and Crosby was a 22-year-old kid with the success of the National Hockey League on his shoulders.

It goes without saying that he has absolutely done his job. A Hall of Fame career with two more Stanley Cups, a couple of MVPs and scoring titles, and a myriad of accomplishments later, the Penguins are at a crossroads.

The team has had its success not just with having Crosby as their de facto leader, but with his partner in crime, Evgeni Malkin, doing his split as a member of the Two-Headed monster that has kept the Penguins' over a decade long playoff appearance streak alive. Not to mention top defenseman Kris Letang, who has continued to buoy the Penguins' blueline with his impressive skating skill and offensive prowess. Newer members like wingers Jake Guentzel and Bryan Rust have turned into overnight star players.

Though the back-to-back Stanley Cup champions are now a few years old, the team continues to dominate the Metropolitan Division against their rivals such as the Washington Capitals and New York Rangers. The unfortunate reality has been multiple playoff disappointments and early exits since.

That may now change. Due to said previously mentioned crossroads.

The Penguins have always operated near the cap. Having two perennial top-five players in the league with Crosby and Malkin, not to mention Letang's monster salary have continuously taken a piece of their salary cap. Not to mention adding pieces that have made the Penguins a constant contender.

This off-season, Malkin, Letang, and Rust are all due for paydays. And though they have previously taken contracts well below market value, as the first two are seemingly looking at their final contract and Rust is looking to finally get his superstar payday, it seems like retention is a fool's errand.

Thus, we look to "The Last Dance" - a moniker adopted from the 1997 Chicago Bulls squad from the NBA, looking at the final run at a championship knowing that the likes of Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, and coach Phil Jackson would not be seeing the next season. The team operated successfully, fueled by the knowledge that this would be their final chance at a championship. They succeeded, beating the Utah Jazz for their sixth NBA championship in eight seasons, completing their second three-peat.

The Penguins are currently adamant about prolonging their current core, but NHL pundits and analysts are well-aware that an uncertain cap ceiling for next season as the league continues to rebound post-pandemic will lead to the Penguins being even more cash-strapped than they already are.

This could very well be the final season of the Crosby-Malkin era.

Welcome to the Last Dance.

[GoldenJet]

Team History

Pittsburgh Penguins Opening Night Roster - 2021
#	CENTERS	AGE	HT	WT	SHOT	BIRTH PLACE
87	Sidney Crosby [C]	34	5'11"	200	L	Cole Harbour, NS, CAN
71	Evgeni Malkin [A]	35	6'3"	195	L	Magnitogorsk, RUS
77	Jeff Carter	36	6'3"	219	R	London, ON, CAN
53	Teddy Blueger	27	6'0"	185	L	Riga, LAT
9	Evan Rodrigues	28	5'11"	184	R	Etobicoke, ON, CAN
11	Brian Boyle	36	6'6"	245	L	Hingham, MA, USA
#	LEFT WINGS	AGE	HT	WT	SHOT	BIRTH PLACE
43	Danton Heinen	26	6'1"	188	L	Langley, BC, CAN
59	Jake Guentzel	27	5'11"	180	L	Omaha, NE, USA
16	Jason Zucker	29	5'11"	192	L	Newport Beach, CA, USA
23	Brock McGinn	27	6'0"	187	L	Fergus, ON, CAN
12	Zach Aston-Reese	27	6'0"	205	L	Staten Island, NY, USA
#	RIGHT WINGS	AGE	HT	WT	SHOT	BIRTH PLACE
17	Bryan Rust	29	5'11"	192	R	Pontiac, MI, USA
42	Kasperi Kapanen	25	6'1"	194	R	Kuopio, FIN
49	Dominik Simon	27	5'11"	190	L	Prague, CZE
#	DEFENSE	AGE	HT	WT	SHOT	BIRTH PLACE
58	Kris Letang [A]	34	6'0"	201	R	Montreal, QC, CAN
8	Brian Dumoulin	30	6'4"	207	L	Biddeford, ME, USA
6	John Marino	24	6'1"	181	R	North Easton, MA, USA
28	Marcus Pettersson	25	6'4"	177	L	Skelleftea, SWE
5	Michael Matheson	27	6'2"	188	L	Pointe-Claire, QC, CAN
2	Chad Ruhwedel	31	5'11"	191	R	San Diego, CA, USA
52	Mark Friedman	25	5'11"	185	R	Toronto, ON, CAN
#	GOALIES	AGE	HT	WT	SHOT	BIRTH PLACE
35	Tristan Jarry	26	6'2"	194	L	Surrey, BC, CAN
1	Casey DeSmith	30	6'0"	181	L	Rochester, NH, USA

[GoldenJet]

Save II - League History

After my lovely Penguins, unfortunately, could not get over the hump that was the New York Rangers, I felt as though it is my duty to see if I can either rectify that situation or at least steer the post-offseason Penguins in a better direction. Let's see what I can do.

[JurassicPuck]

Excited to See what you do with my favourite team, will be following along for sure!

[SENS_AK27]

Quote: Originally Posted by GoldenJet

Save II - League History After my lovely Penguins, unfortunately, could not get over the hump that was the New York Rangers, I felt as though it is my duty to see if I can either rectify that situation or at least steer the post-offseason Penguins in a better direction. Let's see what I can do.

Great to see you posting again. Good Luck with the Pens.

[GoldenJet]

Pens play spoiler on Tampa Bay's banner night
Penguins knock down defending champion Bolts in overtime behind Jarry


ABOVE: Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry comes up big with key saves as Penguins dismantle high-powered Tampa Bay Lightning.

Pittsburgh Penguins at Tampa Bay Lightning
Oct 12, 2021 1 2 3 OT F PIT (1-0-0) 0 1 1 1 3 TAM (0-0-1) 0 1 1 0 2 Three Stars Pittsburgh: Evgeni Malkin - Center 2 assists Tampa Bay: Nikita Kucherov - Right Wing 2 goals Pittsburgh: Chad Ruhwedel - Defenseman Game-winning goal	Team Stats Comparison PIT TAM Shots on Goal 20 18 Hits 17 8 Faceoffs Won-Lost 10 20 Penalty Minutes 02:00 02:00 Power Plays Converted 0 0 Power Play Opportunities 1 1 Time on Attack 05:54 06:59
Scoring Summary SECOND PERIOD TAM 00:25 - Nikita Kucherov (1) - Assisted By: Brayden Point PIT 04:46 - Jason Zucker (1) - Assisted By: Kasperi Kapanen & Evgeni Malkin THIRD PERIOD TAM 14:00 - Nikita Kucherov (2) - Assisted By: None PIT 16:48 - Bryan Rust (1) - Assisted By: Mike Matheson OVERTIME PIT 02:34 - Chad Ruhwedel (1) - Assisted By: Evgeni Makkin & Teddy Blueger
Pittsburgh Penguins - Goalies GOALIES SHOTS SAVES SV % GAA Tristan Jarry 18 16 89% 1.92
Tampa Bay Lightning - Goalies GOALIES SHOTS SAVES SV % GAA Andrei Vasilevskiy 20 17 85% 2.88

[GoldenJet]

Sunrise Shutdown
DeSmith draws in and outduels Sergei Bobrovsky as Penguins escape Panthers


ABOVE: Despite near collapse, Jeff Carter's third-period tally was enough for the Penguins to escape with a victory.

Pittsburgh Penguins at Florida Panthers
Oct 14, 2021 1 2 3 F PIT (2-0-0) 1 1 2 4 FLA (0-1-0) 0 0 2 2 Three Stars Pittsburgh: Jeff Carter - Center 1 goal, 1 assist Florida: Patric Hornqvist - Right Wing 1 goal, 1 assist Pittsburgh: Sidney Crosby - Center 2 assists	Team Stats Comparison PIT FLA Shots on Goal 25 26 Hits 15 17 Faceoffs Won-Lost 12 16 Penalty Minutes 00:00 04:00 Power Plays Converted 1 0 Power Play Opportunities 2 0 Time on Attack 05:14 06:29
Scoring Summary FIRST PERIOD PIT 02:38 - Jake Guentzel (1) - Assisted By: Sidney Crosby SECOND PERIOD PIT 19:54 - Teddy Blueger (1) - Assisted By: Jeff Carter & Chad Ruhwedel THIRD PERIOD FLA 09:06 - Patric Hornqvist (1) - Assisted By: Anton Lundell & Gustav Forsling FLA 10:10 - Carter Verhaeghe (1) - Assisted By: Patric Hornqvist & Aaron Ekblad PIT 13:44 - Evgeni Malkin (1) - Assisted By: Bryan Rust & Sidney Crosby PIT 19:58 - Jeff Carter (1) - Assisted By: Jason Zucker & Mike Matheson
Pittsburgh Penguins - Goalies GOALIES SHOTS SAVES SV % GAA Casey DeSmith 26 24 92% 2.00
Florida Panthers - Goalies GOALIES SHOTS SAVES SV % GAA Sergei Bobrovsky 24 21 88% 3.01

[GoldenJet]

Unsung Hero
4th line center Brian Boyle picks up hat-trick as Pens punish lowly Blackhawks


ABOVE: Pittsburgh's fourth line of Brian Boyle, Brock McGinn, and Teddy Blueger dominated and outpaced Chicago all night long.

Chicago Blackhawks at Pittsburgh Penguins
Oct 16, 2021 1 2 3 F CHI (2-1-0) 1 1 1 3 PIT (3-0-0) 3 3 1 7 Three Stars Pittsburgh: Brian Boyle - Center 3 goals Pittsburgh: Kasperi Kapanen - Right Wing 3 assists Pittsburgh: Mike Matheson - Defenseman 2 assists	Team Stats Comparison CHI PIT Shots on Goal 21 41 Hits 10 28 Faceoffs Won-Lost 20 21 Penalty Minutes 09:00 09:00 Power Plays Converted 0 1 Power Play Opportunities 2 2 Time on Attack 04:08 06:22
Scoring Summary FIRST PERIOD PIT 02:03 - Bryan Rust (2) - Assisted By: Brian Dumoulin & Kris Letang CHI 03:58 - Alex DeBrincat (2) - Assisted By: None PIT 04:29 - Jason Zucker (2) - Assisted By: Kasperi Kapanen PIT 18:31 - Evgeni Malkin (2) - Assisted By: Kasperi Kapanen SECOND PERIOD PIT 04:34 - Brian Boyle (1) - Assisted By: Zach Aston-Reese & Mike Matheson PIT 07:53 - Jeff Carter (2) - Assisted By: Kasperi Kapenen & Kris Letang PIT 12:04 - Brian Boyle (2) - Assisted By: None CHI 19:58 - Jonathan Toews (1) - Assisted By: Jake McCabe THIRD PERIOD CHI 05:01 - Dylan Strome (1) - Assisted By: Kirby Dach & Dominik Kulabik PIT 16:56 - Brian Boyle (3) - Assisted By: Brock McGinn & Mike Matheson
Chicago Blackhawks - Goalies GOALIES SHOTS SAVES SV % GAA Keith Lankinen 41 34 83% 7.00
Pittsburgh Penguins - Goalies GOALIES SHOTS SAVES SV % GAA Tristan Jarry 21 18 86% 3.00