Penguins Training Camp Outlook
"There were times I know a lot of people had us had us dead to rights because of our lineup, but we found a way to win," he said at the end of the year. "There's a special drive to this group and chemistry that we like."
They're going to be challenged in that regard right from the start, as Pittsburgh will be without both Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin to begin the 2021-22 campaign. Crosby underwent a wrist procedure on Sept. 8 that is expected to keep him out for a minimum of six weeks, while Malkin is still recovering from knee surgery that took place at the conclusion of last season.
"We're not going to replace Sid and Geno, obviously, so we need different guys to step up on any given night," Hextall said. "I think we've got some guys from within that we're excited about."
It'll certainly be a group effort from the top on down to make up for their absences. Here's a look at where the Penguins stand heading into training camp,
which opens on Thursday, Sept. 23
at UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex.
FORWARDS
Pittsburgh's center depth is usually its biggest strength, but removing the one-two punch of the Two-Headed Monster is obviously a big blow to that. In the meantime, Hextall said the Penguins will be relying on Jeff Carter and Teddy Blueger to play well in larger roles, especially with the departures of Freddy Gaudreau and Jared McCann.
That's exactly what Carter did upon arriving in Pittsburgh at the trade deadline last season with Malkin out, registering nine goals in 14 regular-season games and four goals in six postseason games. The Penguins will be relying on the 36-year-old veteran to bring more of the same on the ice, along with his calm and composed demeanor off the ice.
As for Blueger, it'll be interesting to see what he can deliver with more minutes and responsibility. Penguins assistant general manager Patrik Allvin said this summer that he thinks Blueger still has another step to climb, and head coach Mike Sullivan agrees, especially considering how underrated his two-way game is. "I think his offensive game has really grown in the time that he's played here in the NHL, and we think it's only going to get better," Sullivan said. 'So we're real happy with the traction he's made on the offensive side, and I think everybody's well aware how solid he is defensively."
From there, Hextall named a few players capable of slotting in at center, starting with Evan Rodrigues. Both management and the coaching staff love the versatile forward, who has a good skill level and is able to play anywhere in the lineup. He's stepped up at center several times during his tenure with the Penguins.
After that, Hextall said both Radim Zohorna and Brian Boyle - two big power forwards who both stand at 6-foot-6 - are going to have opportunities that probably wouldn't be there in a normal circumstance. Zohorna, 25, impressed Penguins brass during his rookie season with his ability to quickly transition to the smaller ice surface and adapt his game accordingly, collecting two goals in eight games with Pittsburgh. "Big Z" has a lot of potential and could learn a lot from Boyle, who is attending camp on a professional tryout contract. In addition to bringing a ton of size, the 36-year-old brings a ton of experience, as he's played over 800 games across 12-plus NHL seasons.
The Penguins are pretty deep at the wing, with Jake Guentzel, Bryan Rust, Jason Zucker, Kasperi Kapanen and Zach Aston-Reese all returning. And Brock McGinn and Danton Heinen, both signed to one-way contracts in the offseason, are a couple of solid new additions that should help make up for the losses of McCann and Brandon Tanev. The team will need all of those guys to try and find another level to their offensive contributions in the absence of Crosby and Malkin's production.
There should be some healthy competition for the rest of the spots. In addition to someone like Sam Lafferty, Hextall singled out Dominik Simon and Michael Chaput as guys who will be in the mix. And what's exciting is that there are a few young players who could make serious bids for time with Pittsburgh this season.
Drew O'Connor appeared in 10 games with the Penguins, and is hungry for more. Hextall said they hoped Filip Hallander would challenge for a spot, and that's exactly what the 21-year-old forward
is intent on doing
.The Penguins feel that Kasper Bjorkqvist, their second-round pick in 2016, has all the intangibles to become an NHL player. Sam Poulin, Pittsburgh's first-round pick in 2019, and Nathan Legare, the third-round pick that year,
have so much talent and so much potential
.
"You go down the list of some of our guys, and there's more than people realize," Penguins director of player development Scott Young said.
DEFENSEMEN
The Penguins are fortunate to have their franchise defenseman still in the lineup. Kris Letang is coming off an excellent 2020-21 campaign, where he tied for third among all NHL blueliners with 45 points (7G-38A) in 55 games and posted a plus-19 rating. "As far as performance, I thought it went pretty well," Letang said at the end of last year. "I thought I stayed pretty consistent all year."
The 34-year-old will be leading a blue line that is virtually the same as last year. Brian Dumoulin, Mike Matheson, Marcus Pettersson and John Marino are all back, with Cody Ceci being the only notable departure. And when it comes to the two youngest members of that group -Pettersson, 25, and Marino, 24 - Hextall believes they can find another level to their games.
"We feel in some ways like there's more upside in those two players, which could really help solidify our defense," Hextall said.
When it comes to challenging for that sixth and final spot, there are a number of internal candidates in the mix, starting with some guys who have been playing professionally for a while:
Chad Ruhwedel:The 2017 Stanley Cup Champion has spent the last five seasons in the Penguins organization and appeared in 17 games for Pittsburgh last year. The coaching staff raves about his professionalism, as he always stays game ready. And when he does get in the lineup, he brings a reliable, simple approach to the game.
Mark Friedman: The 25-year-old has a history with Hextall, who drafted him in the third round of the 2014 NHL Draft when he was general manager of the Flyers. Friedman didn't see much time due to injury last year, but when he was in the lineup, he showcased some offensive skill - potting two goals in five contests - along with an element of scrappiness to his game.
Juuso Riikola: He has spent the last three seasons with Pittsburgh after signing here as a free agent and has appeared in 75 career NHL games with the club, including two last year. He's a solid skater who boasts one of the best shots on the team, and has even filled in at forward a couple of times when called upon.
Veterans in the mix include Mt. Lebanon native Matt Bartkowski,
attending camp on a professional tryout contract
, and Taylor Fedun, who has played parts of seven seasons in the NHL. Then there's P.O Joseph, who is someone that Young said is "really, reallyclose" to breaking through for more time with Pittsburgh after playing in 16 games last year. He worked tirelessly this summer to add strength so that he could better handle the physical demands of the NHL.
GOALTENDING
Tristan Jarry's first season as the Penguins' No. 1 netminder was filled with ups and downs, and unfortunately, it ended on a low point. But as Hextall said, they wouldn't have been in a position to win the division title without him. And they are confident the 26-year-old will bounce back with the help of new goaltending coach Andy Chiodo, who was promoted from goaltending development coach to replace Mike Buckley.
"For me, I'm less interested in considering or thinking about what happened, other than from the standpoint of learning what worked and maybe what could be improved upon," Chiodo said. "But regardless of last year's outcome, it's a new day. He's got another season to prepare for that doesn't have a memory. The puck has no idea what happened last year. The puck is going to come at him the same way. And I think our responsibility is to be in the present, have a growth mindset, get better every single day, and keep building and growing. Our focus is to be where your feet are, and here we are. Let's get better and provide our team with good, honest, hardworking daily routines and provide our team with quality goaltending."
Casey DeSmith's year didn't end the way he wanted it to either, as he was unable to dress for the postseason due to injury and underwent successful bilateral core muscle injury repair in June. But he should be good to go for training camp, and will be looking to build off his solid 2020-21 campaign, where he posted an 11-7 record and two shutouts.
The Penguins added some veteran depth behind Jarry and DeSmith by signing Louis Domingue to a one-year deal. The 29-year-old netminder has played 140 games in the NHL over the past seven seasons with Arizona, Tampa Bay, New Jersey, Vancouver and Calgary. His best season came in 2018-19 with the Lightning when he went 21-5-0, including an 11-game winning streak, marking a team record at the time.
There's also a chance that Filip Lindberg
could be in the mix
. The 22-year-old joined the Penguins as a free agent after a fantastic season with UMass, where he posted sparkling numbers while backstopping the Minutemen to the NCAA national championship.
