Assessing the Penguins Heading into the Trade Deadline
On the current roster
In a cap world, there are always areas that management would like to fill in. But overall, Hextall said he feels pretty good about the depth of their team. Particularly the defense, which has been mostly healthy all season. The Penguins used the same group of six for months, beginning in November and going all the way until February when Mike Matheson was sidelined with an upper-body injury.
When it comes to the forwards, Hextall is well aware that the depth scoring present in Pittsburgh's game for about the first half of the year has since dried up. Right now, Pittsburgh's top line of Jake Guentzel, Sidney Crosby and Bryan Rust - along with Evgeni Malkin - are pretty much the only members of the roster producing consistently.
"I think when you're not scoring, you need to dig in a little bit more and get to the net. So I think we can do a better job of that," Hextall said.
And while he doesn't want to overreact to that lack secondary scoring, as players go through ebbs and flows in a season - "we know those guys have scored. We know they're going to pick it up," Hextall said - he also acknowledged that the Penguins would like to add a little bit up front.
Hextall noted that the Penguins also have some guys in the American Hockey League who could potentially come up and contribute in that regard. Drew O'Connor, Radim Zohorna and Kasper Bjorkqvist have all played some NHL games, while there's a chance Valtteri Puustinen - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's leading scorer who was recently recalled - could make his debut soon.
"There are some things that we can do internally here that we'll continue to evaluate," Hextall said.
But Hextall also said they are certainly monitoring the possibility of finding an external solution.
"It's something that we'd like to add, but with the cap situation and asset-wise and fit-wise, it's all got to fit together," Hextall said. "So we'll continue to look. I don't feel like I have to do anything, but if we can get better, we're certainly going to try."
On the state of the market
Hextall said the Penguins have talked to some teams, and he has no idea whether anything is going to flesh out, because the market has been relatively quiet.
"Typically, the first deal that happens sets the market to a degree," he said. "There hasn't been a ton that's happened yet, so it's hard to gauge."
Hextall said the Eastern Conference in particular is in a bit of a unique situation, as there's such a gap between the playoff teams and non-playoff teams. Washington currently holds the second Wild Card spot with 72 points, and behind them is Detroit with 59 points.
"So I think that's made for a few more sellers, but I think there's also a lot of teams that are up against the cap, so it makes it difficult," Hextall said. "It's going to be an interesting deadline. I think it always is. I anticipate there being a lot of moves, but who knows. The market, sometimes it also drops off the last day or two. So we'll just keep a pulse on it and we'll keep conversations going, and see if there's a way to help us improve."
On the team identity
Hextall has been with the team for just over a calendar year, after being hired on Feb. 9, 2021. And what stands out to him the most about the Penguins since taking over is that they may not be the biggest team, but they're willing to play through anything.
"I love the way we play," Hextall said. "We play fast, we play hard, we play through."
And while Hextall said of course, he would love to add a big power forward who's 6-foot-2, 220 pounds and skilled, that's not the way it works. He prefers the style the Penguins play under Mike Sullivan, centered around their puck pursuit game that creates turnovers and possession.
"The way that we play, to me - history tells you it's been successful here in Pittsburgh," Hextall said. "I would envision things being the same."
On contract talks
Three members of Pittsburgh's core leadership group - Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang and Bryan Rust - are all set to be unrestricted free agents at the end of this season. Hextall said while talks are ongoing, there's nothing to report.
"Obviously, Geno and Tanger are two of our top priorities. Hopefully at some point, we can we can make something happen that that works for both sides along with Rusty," Hextall said. "So we'll continue those talks."
Hextall did say there is a chance that conversations could be halted at the trade deadline to allow the players to focus on hockey.
"But we will work, and if we got to pick them up after this season, we'll do that," Hextall said.
