Remember Jim Rutherford's scathing Las Vegas review of his Penguins to that stage?
The one in mid-December in which he proclaimed he wanted to see better performance by the season's midpoint or "we have to consider changing things up?"
Well, we're way past the midpoint, obviously. And we might even be past the team's greatest worries, given that the 6-3 victory Thursday night over the Wild raised the January record to 8-3, given that even the three losses stayed tight, and given that pretty much every facet is clicking.
Things are going OK.
But apparently not OK enough to fully suit the GM just yet, judging by our one-on-one talk after the game at PPG Paints Arena.
"Starting with the first part of January, there were signs we were starting to play the way we were capable," Rutherford told me. "That's continued."
He paused, but his expression had powerfully suggested that wasn't it.
"I don't think it changes what I feel, what's necessary going forward. I think we have depth at all positions except center. And if we can add one more without taking anything out of our lineup, at this point, that'd be my preference."
Right. The long-awaited third-line center.
Rutherford didn't elaborate on what he meant by "without taking anything out of our lineup," so it's open to interpretation. If he moved Ian Cole, who suited up Thursday night only because Matt Hunwick was unavailable to injury, that wouldn't be taking anyone out of the lineup. If he used draft picks, that would qualify, too.
But there are two problems, as Rutherford acknowledged:
1. Cap space.
The Penguins are currently $1,280,738 under the NHL's salary cap, which, if it's considered they can't realistically use every penny, would basically allow them to get one of Chad Ruhwedel's thighs in any deal. So, if Cole's $2.1 million salary isn't moved, there isn't anyone who can be acquired.
2. There are no candidates.
"No market," as Rutherford described it to me. One can read that a lot of different ways, as well, but my understanding in this setting was that there are still precious few sellers. And that makes sense. The latest standings show that, of all 15 teams out of the playoff picture, 10 are within at least 10 points of the edge, and seven are within four points. So almost nobody has cause to punt away pieces.
The NHL's trade deadline is Feb. 26, precisely a month away. More teams will fall back, and more will decide to sell.
I've sensed a frustration within the Penguins for months about not being able to add any center depth beyond Riley Sheahan. Carter Rowney's long-term injury hasn't helped. And neither has the occasional annoyance of needing to move Jake Guentzel to the middle -- Mike Sullivan's got no use for that -- or trying other odd things.
That might explain Rutherford's closing remark in our talk.
"It's going to take time," he said. "But we'll get our center."
MORE PENGUINS
• Speaking with Jim Rutherford the other night, I get the distinct impression that he -- and the organization -- isn't just paying lip service to a rotation of backup goalies behind Matt Murray, who will return to his starting role at the end of the All-Star break. Though Tristan Jarry, reassigned to Wilkes-Barre for the weekend, has the edge, they are intrigued by Casey DeSmith. From purely a stats perspective, DeSmith -- who backstopped the Penguins to a 6-3 win over Minnesota on Thursday -- has been the best of the three. A notoriously streaky goalie, the Penguins might want to keep him around coming out of the break. That's a change from Dec. 19 when Rutherford was so concerned about organizational depth at the position that he acquired Michael Leighton from Arizona. -- Chris Bradford
• There are reports of two potential third-line center options whom the Penguins have shown interest in: the Senators' Jean-Gabriel Pageau and the Oilers' Mark Letestu. The 25-year-old Pageau is the sexier option. Penguins fans will certainly remember him from last year's playoffs when he scored eight goals in 19 games as the Senators pushed Pittsburgh to the limit in the Eastern Conference Final. But he hasn't been able to replicate that this season though with just six goals (15 points) in 42 games. Pageau, who is owed $6.7 million over the next two years of his current contract, certainly makes sense. But a better argument could be made for Letestu, who played parts of his first three NHL seasons in Pittsburgh (2010-12). The soon-to-be 33-year-old has slowed down a little but still has eight goals in 48 games this season and could be that veteran presence in the room that has served the Penguins so well in past Cup runs. -- Bradford
• One thing I've noticed in being around the Penguins more, both home and road, is the voice that Patric Hörnqvist has in the room. I have a feeling he's been the loudest guy in the building since he was a toddler, but he clearly feels comfortable speaking his mind to his teammates, even when reporters are within earshot. It's not always kind, I can tell you that much. More to the point, he's clearly part of the leadership group at this stage, which makes Rutherford's decision about whether to extend him another contract all the more interesting. At age 30, Hörnqvist probably has at least a couple of near-peak seasons left, but the huge contracts given to power forwards T.J. Oshie and Milan Lucic in recent years aren't exactly in the Penguins' price range. -- Matt Gajtka
• It's starting to wear off a bit, but DeSmith definitely has that regular-Joe air about him, maybe more so than any professional athlete I've covered in my time with this website. I put that in the category of 'refreshing.' Almost all rookies have that approachable air about them, but DeSmith brings unassuming to an art form. No doubt that helps him fit in the dressing room. -- Gajtka
STEELERS
• Le'Veon Bell told ESPN that the Steelers have set a deadline of Feb. 20 to get a new deal done with the running back. Why that date? That is the first day teams can begin placing the franchise tag on potential free agents. That date might be an unofficial date, but it wouldn't necessarily end negotiations if something isn't done by then. The Steelers would then have until March 6 to decide whether or not to place the franchise tag on Bell once again or allow him to become a free agent. Of course, the cost of the tag this year would be $14.5 million. That's 120 percent of his franchise cost of $12.1 million last season. Free agency opens March 14. The fact the Steelers have already opened contract talks shows the team is serious about getting something done. Remember, they got their new deal done with last year's top priority, Antonio Brown, on Feb. 27. And Bell is the top priority this year. -- Dale Lolley
• While the Steelers' coaching staff is in Orlando preparing for the Pro Bowl, the entire scouting staff and several other front office personnel are in Mobile, Ala., for the Senior Bowl. There's not much info trickling out of there just yet, but the Steelers met with Tennessee's Cameron Sutton and Youngstown State defensive end Derek Rivers in Mobile last year. They loved them both and wound up taking Sutton in the third round. This is the time of year to start tracking meetings and visits to Pro Days. In addition, the 30 official pre-draft visits also will be noteworthy. Last season, for example, the Steelers brought in quarterback Joshua Dobbs, linebacker Keion Adams and James Conner among their official visits. But those won't start until later in the process. -- Lolley
• If you want to keep an eye on practice squad players or guys who spent the season on injured reserve, look no farther than Adams, linebacker Farrington Huguenin, receiver Marcus Tucker and tight end Jake McGee. Adams, a seventh-round draft pick, suffered a shoulder injury in training camp, but had showed some promise before the injury. The other three spent the entire season on the practice squad and flashed at times. -- Lolley
PIRATES
• Anytime a team in any sport goes through a spate of hamstring injuries -- generally seen as the most preventable kind -- it should raise red flags that change will occur with the athletic trainers. The Pirates rearranged what they call their Sports Performance Team by moving Todd Tomczyk, their head athletic trainer of the past six seasons, into a new position called Director of Sports Medicine. There was no elaboration for why that was needed, but the main job went to Bryan Housand, a 17-year veteran in the system. Be sure that Housand's top priority will be teaching Gregory Polanco how to stretch and chug fluids at the same time. -- Dejan Kovacevic
• José Osuna won't be playing third base for the Pirates anytime soon. He was set to get more reps at third base — a position he was learning during his Venezuela Winter League season — during spring training, but the club will likely give Colin Moran as much time there as possible to prepare him for the major leagues. Barring injury, Osuna will likely be headed back to Triple-A to continue his work at third. -- Lance Lysowski
• Sure, pitchers and catchers report to spring training in less than three weeks, but there is still plenty of time for a Josh Harrison trade to be completed. An industry source told me at the Winter Meetings last month that the Pirates were indeed aggressively shopping Harrison, so a trade is even more likely now that Gerrit Cole and Andrew McCutchen are gone. -- Lysowski
• I spoke to industry sources and Pirates players to see if John Jaso did indeed retire to sail on his boat around the world. None had heard from the man or heard of his whereabouts. -- Lysowski
PITT
• When offensive tackle Bryan O'Neill declared for the draft, some questioned the move. But he was a standout at the Senior Bowl practices this week, showing the footwork to possibly play left tackle in the NFL. O'Neill also has good size, at 6-6 1/2, 298 pounds. This isn't considered a great draft for offensive tackles, the second year in a row that has happened. Given the dearth of good offensive linemen in the league, it appears O'Neill might have made a good decision. -- Lolley
• Watching Pitt's basketball team this season is, well, frustrating. The Panthers blew a double-digit lead to North Carolina State Wednesday night at home largely because their very young lineup just doesn't know how to win. The Panthers built that lead by attacking the basket and either kicking out for a three-pointer or getting points in the paint. But they played very passively down the stretch, and it appeared, at times, nobody knew who was supposed to take a shot. Part of the problem with having a young team is that nobody knows exactly who the "man" is on this team. The Panthers are over halfway through their season and they still don't seem to know their roles. -- Lolley
PENN STATE
• Mike Gesicki's official measurements at the Senior Bowl were impressive. The athletic tight end is 6-5 3/8 with 34-inch arms that lead to a 82 3/8-inch wingspan. One downer, though, was his weight. He came in at just 242 pounds. That shows up in his blocking. But he made several nice catches in practice. Still, with his size and catch radius, if Gesicki runs well at the NFL Scouting Combine next month, he could be taken early in the second round, if not at the end of the first. -- Lolley
• Safety Marcus Allen came in at 6-2, 215 pounds. Given the current state of the NFL and what teams are now doing with hybrid players, it makes you wonder if some teams might look at him as a player who could convert to an inside or coverage linebacker. -- Lolley
• Corner Christian Campbell also showed good size at just over 6-0 and 205 pounds. The most impressive thing, however, was his 80-inch wingspan, which is more in line with what would be expected on a much larger man. -- Lolley
• No former Penn State player helped himself more in the past two weeks than receiver DaeSean Hamilton. Hamilton impressed enough at the East-West Shrine Game that he was a late add to the Senior Bowl, a sure sign that he's rising on draft boards after posting the kind of numbers in his senior season that were reminiscent of Chris Godwin's stellar junior year. -- Audrey Snyder