Penguins Perspectives: It's On
Welcome to Penguins Perspectives, a weekly column by KDKA-TV Digital Producer Patrick Damp. Each Friday, Patrick will talk about the week that was, the week to come, what to watch for, and more.
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Well, Kyle Dubas did the thing.
While it doesn't have the same ring from eight years ago, "Erik Karlsson is a Pittsburgh Penguin" carries the same significance, if not more, as "Phil Kessel is a Pittsburgh Penguin."
That's because it signals to the rest of the league - Pittsburgh is going all-in. Again. As they should.
Sure, these are not the Sidneys Crosby, Evgenis Malkin, Kris Letang, and Eriks Karlssons of the 2010s, but they're still great, bordering on elite, players.
Erik Karlsson just finished a masterpiece 100-point season with a rebuilding, in the basement, barely competitive San Jose Sharks club.
Into their mid-30s, Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby played 82 games while producing at a point-per-game pace.
Despite everything the universe has thrown at Kris Letang, strokes, sudden loss of loved ones, and injuries, he still finds ways to produce at a level that makes him a bonafide number-one defenseman.
Both Kris Letang and Erik Karlsson are extreme net positives on puck possession, simply put for the non-analytics crowd, when they are on the ice, their team has the puck, and the other team is chasing them.
Now, for the Pittsburgh Penguins, should both remain mostly healthy, they'll have one of them on the ice for around 80-percent of the game.
Sounds like quite a luxury.
Kyle Dubas in just a couple of short months has taken the Pittsburgh Penguins from stagnant and stale to exciting and expanded a window.
The bottom-six forwards once again can possess the puck, chip in some goals, and defend effectively.
The defense is mostly set with other players such as Marcus Pettersson, Ryan Graves, and now a battle for simply two spots with several fighting for them in Chad Ruhwedel, PO Joseph, Ty Smith, and a handful of others.
Sure, Tristan Jarry needs to prove he's worthy of the contract he received but as we have seen, when he stays healthy, he's at the very least serviceable and that's all a Penguins' goaltender needs to be.
All of this to say…it's on.
Kyle Dubas has more than done his job. He's given a roster a facelift that takes them from the playoff bubble to a possible contender. A franchise looking like it was going to go quietly into the night after 16 years of greatness now appears to have a couple of tricks left up its sleeve.
Now, it's on.
While Crosby, Malkin, and Letang have already given us so much over the last two decades, it's on them now.
It's on Erik Karlsson to have maybe not another 100-point, Norris-caliber season, but something similar.
It's on "The Big Three" to stay on a similar pace, scoring around a point-per-game, and providing the moments only they can to a city that's come to expect their greatness.
It's on Mike Sullivan to showcase yet another master class on how to manage a roster filled with talent in order to facilitate a championship run.
It's on those supporting players - Reilly Smith, Rickard Rakell, Noel Acciari, Lars Eller, Matt Nieto, Bryan Rust, and others to be able to step up on the nights when Crosby and Malkin are checked by opposing defenses.
An era filled with errors was wiped out in just months and that never happens. Kyle Dubas should absolutely be lauded for his quick and efficient work, but now he's given the coach and the roster the tools to get back to Lord Stanley's Table.
When players report to Cranberry in just about a month…it's on.