Letang, Penguins in unfamiliar position days ahead of NHL Trade Deadline

PITTSBURGH -- Kris Letang doesn’t lack experience. But what’s happening this season is new to the 18-season veteran.

For the first time since his first full NHL season in 2007-08, the 36-year-old defenseman could see the Pittsburgh Penguins sell ahead of the 2024 NHL Trade Deadline (3 p.m. ET on Friday).

"It's not strange. It feels awful, to be honest,” Letang said Tuesday. “It was our job from the beginning of the year to put ourselves in a good spot and we didn't. Now we're here today and we have to deal with this.”

That started Tuesday, when Pittsburgh (28-24-8) defefeated the Columbus Blue Jackets 5-3 on Tuesday after losing three of four (1-3-0) on a road trip out west.

The Penguins are eight points out of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference with 22 games remaining, one before the deadline. On Feb. 21, president of hockey operations and general manager Kyle Dubas said the eight games leading to March 8 would determine the Penguins’ strategy.

Perhaps the biggest decision is what to do with 29-year-old first-line wing Jake Guentzel, a pending unrestricted free agent on long-term injured reserve because of an upper-body injury.

They are 4-3-0 in seven of the eight games. After a 2-0 loss to the Seattle Kraken on Feb. 29, the Penguins allowed three goals in the final 9:51 of a 4-3 loss at the Calgary Flames on Saturday.

The trip culminated against the Edmonton Oilers on Sunday, a 6-1 loss that resulted in Penguins captain Sidney Crosby declaring his focus hadn’t shifted.

"The deadline date hasn't changed, and we still need to get points,” Crosby said Sunday. “It's the same situation it was yesterday.”

Crosby has done his part. At 36 years old and in his 19th NHL season, he leads the Penguins with 63 points (32 goals, 31 assists) in 60 games.

In 10 games since Guentzel was injured Feb. 14, Crosby has 11 points (four goals, seven assists), resulting in just five wins (5-4-1).

Crosby and Guentzel have combined for 54 goals (Crosby, 32; Guentzel, 22), 30.5 percent of Pittsburgh’s 177 total, ranked 25th in the NHL.

Forward Bryan Rust is tied for third with 18 goals, including seven in his past nine games, but is week to week because of an upper-body injury sustained Feb. 25. Second-line center Evgeni Malkin also has 18 goals, with one coming Tuesday, and four total in 26 games since Dec. 31.

Letang has 37 points (seven goals, 30 assists) in 60 games, second among Penguins defensemen behind Erik Karlsson with 43 points (seven goals, 35 assists), and nearly in line with last season when he had 41 points (12 goals, 29 assists) in 64 games.

Still, they feel more could be done.

“Obviously we don’t feel great about it,” Letang said. “The only thing we can do is turn the page and look forward to tonight to bounce back. ... The same thing is on the line. It’s within reach. So it’s the same goal for us.

“They’re all going to be important until the end. We want to make our way through this and get [into the playoffs]. We have to win the most we can.”

Letang is in an unfamiliar position with the Penguins. Disappointment has become more common though.

Pittsburgh last won a playoff series in 2018, eliminating the Philadelphia Flyers in the Eastern Conference First Round. It then lost four straight opening-round series before missing the playoffs last season for the first time since 2005-06.

But those lows, like the highs, are important. It’s what could provide an edge, coach Mike Sullivan said.

“They’re an accomplished group,” Sullivan said. “They’ve had a lot of successes. They’ve had a lot of disappointments. I think that offers all of us a certain perspective that maybe other teams don’t have. So I’d like to believe that would help us in these circumstances. But I believe these guys are proud guys and I know where their intentions are.

“They’re going to do everything in their power to help this team win. So I think that’s where we’re at. I think our players are well aware of the circumstance we’re in. We’ve just got to focus on that one game right in front of us.”