Penguins look to future after three-peat bid ended by Capitals

PITTSBURGH -- When the Pittsburgh Penguins talked Monday, their thoughts and words were on the present.
Their hopes of winning the Stanley Cup for a third consecutive season ended when they lost to the Washington Capitals 2-1 in overtime in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Second Round, and that was the immediate focal point.
Their current run of playoff success is over, but their chances to keep winning in the future aren't.

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"You look forward," center Evgeni Malkin said. "We see a great team and good coaching staff, great organization. You look forward, get a little more rest, work hard and be back next year, be better next year."
The Penguins will have their core for the next several seasons. Center Sidney Crosby, 30, is signed through 2024-25. Malkin, 31, and right wing Phil Kessel, 30 are signed through 2021-22. Right wing Patric Hornqvist, 31, has a contract through 2022-23. They're just as secure at defenseman, with 31-year-old Kris Letang (2021-22), 27-year-old Justin Schultz (2019-20), 26-year-old Brian Dumoulin (2022-23) and 23-year-old Olli Maatta (2021-22) signed to long-term contracts. Goaltender Matt Murray is 24; his contract ends in 2019-20.
Crosby had 21 points (nine goals, 12 assists) in 12 playoff games. Jake Guentzel, 23, whose contract runs through next season, also had 21 points (10 goals, 11 assists). Hornqvist had 11 points (five goals, six assists) in 10 games. Malkin missed three games with a lower-body injury and finished with eight points (four goals, four assists) in nine games).
The talent is there, and it's there for some time. So is the desire to win the Cup again.
"Stakes are high in this organization," 26-year-old forward Tom Kuhnhackl said. "Obviously we're disappointed with the early exit. But I'm sure with this team, in this locker room here, it's not going to take long for us to get back at it next year."

Perhaps the Penguins just ran out of gas this season; that's understandable, considering how much hockey they've played during the past three seasons (307 games; 246 in the regular season, 61 in the playoffs). They also didn't get the balanced scoring that was so critical to their success in 2016 and 2017. The top line of Guentzel, Crosby and Hornqvist scored 24 of Pittsburgh's 42 playoff goals.
Coach Mike Sullivan said he would re-evaluate in the coming days.
"I think sometimes we learn more from our failures than we do our successes," Sullivan said. "We have to digest it, see what we can learn from it, so we can be better next season."
The Penguins were unable win the Stanley Cup for the third consecutive year.
"We thought we had the chance to do something special," Schultz said.
This one will sting for a bit. But the future looks bright for the Penguins, who know they'll have their successful roster, and more opportunities to win, for some time.
"Oh yeah, 100 percent," said forward Carl Hagelin, 29. "It's not like we got outplayed every game against Washington. They scored some timely goals, and that was the difference in the series. We have our core coming back for next year, but it's hard to think about that right now."