DK: Tell me, please, why all of this is just some fun fluke
Tell me, please, what I’m missing.
Tell me, beyond random, reckless speculation all summer long about trades that never came to pass, why these Penguins were supposed to be some lottery-level, lucky-to-sniff-the-Stanley-Cup-playoffs catastrophe in the 2025-26 NHL season.
Hello? Anyone?
OK, I'll keep going ...
Tell me why, and be specific, I'm not supposed to take absolutely anything seriously about a 5-2 start, all five of those Ws coming in regulation, the third-highest point total in the league, the fourth-best goal differential at plus-7, the sixth-ranked power play, the 13th-ranked penalty-kill, the eighth-highest goaltending save percentage at .914, and a league-leading two shutouts.
Because what I’m seeing, including this 5-1 crunching of the previously streaking Canucks tonight at PPG Paints, one that saw five different skaters score and 11 get at least a point, that saw Sidney CrosbyovertakeMario Lemieux in all-time regular-season/playoff points with a sizzling wrister, that saw Evgeni Malkin slide into the league's top-five for points with a classic rush to set up Anthony Mantha, that saw Kris Letang's two assists get him to 600, that saw Justin Brazeau run up his fifth goal already and set up two others, that saw Ben Kindel and Harrison Brunicke keep defying their age at the far end of that spectrum, that saw that saw Arturs Silovs stop 23 of 24 shots to stick it to his old employer, that turned a 1-1 tie at the first intermission into a second period so dominant for the home team that they'd score all three goals and register 13 of the 16 shots, and so dispiriting for the visitors that Vancouver captain Elias Pettersson would remark afterward, "Um, they came to life" ... yeah, I've gotta say, my friends, it ain't exactly aligning.
So tell me. I'm waiting.
But better make it good, because this was what Rickard Rakell had to tell me afterward when I asked him in a cool, confident room when it'd be OK for all the rest of us to take this seriously: "I mean, I think everybody in this room is, like, really not surprised at all. I think it started with everybody feeling really good in training camp because we felt like this was going to be a team game for us. And that's what everybody's bringing right now."
With that, he both glanced and gestured around the room.
"It doesn't matter if you're on the fourth line or the third pairing, everybody's doing a really good job with what they're supposed to do. We can play against any line on the other team, match up, whatever you need. Obviously, we make mistakes in the game, but we're having great confidence in our goalies."
He paused, then, unwittingly, echoed something Sid had told me in New York after that rousing opener against the Rangers.
"I mean, we know it's gonna come. We feel like we're we're so close ... to feeling like it's gonna be even better. Like we're just so close on passes connecting into the slot, little things like that. But even when it doesn't we're fine. We just keep going. We get everybody back on a roll. And I think we're a tough team to play against because of that."
Anyone care to argue?
Still waiting.
But I've also got a lot left to say:
• To reiterate the stance I'd expressed all summer, this team's got a ton to gain from succeeding as soon as possible, and that'd mean -- say it with me and out loud -- making the playoffs. Success breeds success. And for anyone who doesn't think success matters toward development, I'll share the following three words Kindel told me last night when I mentioned the 5-2 start: "This is awesome."
For him and Brunicke and all the rest, too. They grow up right. And they grow up faster.
• Think they might regress?
My 20-second Kindel tutorial from a single shift in this one:
1. The kid reads Tyler Myers' breakout like a cheap novel at center red, then turns the attack.
2. On a two-on-one with Filip Hallander, he opts to shoot rather than defer. Rookies don't do this. Heck, players wearing this sweater don't do this.
3. Once the puck's kept in the zone, he coolly allows it to go under his stick behind the Vancouver net so that it'd reach an even more open Hallander back there. It's a dummy play. Mario did this. Rookies don't.
4. He races back in front to position himself for a redirect/rebound of the point shot.
That's ... not normal.
I mentioned my No. 3 selection up there to Kindel and asked if he knew he was only 18 years old, to which he humbly responded, "Thank you."
• The best players are still the oldest ones, but that's fine because it's also the most powerful sign of how much they've bought in. Per my conversations, they've fed off the energy of the kids, and not just Kindel and Brunicke but also those from camp. And they've really fed off the Dan Muse system that demands both support and smarts in all zones.
Here's something dreadfully dull, but watch it, anyway:
It's a four-goal lead late in the third, and Geno backhands a puck not far enough for a dump. Big whoop. But look at how he reflexively retreats right out of the frame. That's because he adopts a Muse formation for when possession's lost. It'd normally be a 1-2-2, but Mantha in this case falls further back because Conor Garland tries to cheat behind him. So if the Canucks are about to score, they'll have to slip through only a half-dozen humans.
This is known as ... protecting a lead.
Don't make me speak ill of Mike Sullivan, but this wasn't exactly his strong suit. Blowing big leads and conceding odd-man breaks were the opposite of his strong suit.
These guys aren't doing that. Once there's a lead, they're driving it home, right into the garage.
• As an older player or two or three falls out of favor -- and by older, I'm referring to those in the late-20s who've been acquired in part to become trade assets, like Anthony Beauvillier was -- they can be cast off, like Danton Heinen just was in being waived to Wilkes-Barre.
And when that happens, or even without making a roster move, someone younger and ideally better can come up and take those NHL minutes. I fully expect to see significant presences in this context principally from Ville Koivunen (at least if he's gotten over whatever ate him up in those first two games), Rutger McGroarty (once all the way in the clear), and Owen Pickering (once he summons up the snarl management wants to see from someone his size), plus Tristan Broz, Avery Hayes and anyone else who'd rise up.
Most uplifting part of this: Each such promotion should represent a legit individual upgrade.
Team wins. Development wins.
• That said, it'd be dumb to dismiss the chance that one or more of those twenty-somethings could break out and become part of the Pittsburgh plan.
Brazeau's 27. He's also logged only 102 NHL games, which would point to yet another tale of a big boy -- he's 6-6, 237 -- being a late bloomer, as a certain Kevin Stevens once was in these parts. So would the manner in which he's scored most of his five goals ...
... flashing a finish that doesn't necessarily fit the stereotype of his frame.
I asked him afterward if maybe he, like his new team, are both bucking expectations:
"I've kind of lived out my whole career, where I'll never let anybody say anything about my game," he replied. "I believe I can contribute on every level. Sometimes it takes a little longer to figure it out, timing and stuff like that. But once I've figured out and understand stuff, I can make a lot of plays."
And of the team: "You know, I think we've got a good group in here. We're a team that ... we don't really listen to the outside noise or what's going on. I think we have a lot of different elements to the team, guys who bring something different, and we're winning games different ways. We didn't have our best start tonight, but we stuck with it."
Imagine if he's authentic. Or if both are.
• I get Kyle Dubas' stance that he won't forfeit any piece of the franchise's future -- prospects or draft picks -- and I share it. No matter what comes of the next few months, no one should be planning a parade. Dubas wants bona fide contention, and that's as it should be.
But there's nothing about spending most of the remainder of the $13 million he's accrued in cap space that'll dent, much less damage his plan. Gobble up someone else's high-paid left-handed defenseman. Or two left-handed defensemen. Or three, but that's my final offer.
It'll require creativity, but he's got that.
• Ownership's likely to change sooner rather than later, as I've reported exclusively. Anyone new, but doubly so if it's Mario, won't want to be sitting on cap space. And they, like Rakell and everyone else in that room, will want to make the playoffs. I'm positive it'll be spent.
• Making playoffs would mean, naturally, that others would miss. I'm hardly about to deep-dive into some far-flung forecast, but I'm plenty comfortable assessing in the here and now that the NHL's general balance has swung back to the West, with apologies to the two-time defending champion Panthers. Given Florida's immense challenge in three-peating, coupled with Aleksander Barkov likely to miss all season, I'd place as many as three teams -- Avalanche, Golden Knights, Jets -- over anyone in the East, and I might even consider the Stars and Oilers.
Who's near that tier in the East?
Panthers, of course. Hurricanes. Devils. Canadiens. Senators without Brady Tkachuk?
There's room at or near the bottom of the eight who qualify. That's my emphasis.
• Other personnel factors conspire toward a brighter immediate future, and I'd be remiss if not rattling a few of those, as well: Bryan Rust's not about to stay stuck on zero goals. ... Kevin Hayes keeps getting closer to returning from his shoulder injury, and he'll be better -- and bigger -- than whoever he replaces. ... The left-handed defense can't/won't hold up like this for long, and that'll either buy opportunities for Matt Dumba/Connor Clifton or a return of a souped-up Ryan Graves or for someone, anyone else. ... There's always the Sergei Murashov variable.
• And speaking of goaltending: Who knows what'll come of Silovs, who's getting his first extended look at this level? Who ever knows what'll come of Tristan Jarry?
All I've got on that front for now: Both have been terrific, and Jarry's been a bit better than that. Bodes well at the most important position in a bunch of ways.
• Should I mention that this team could be 7-0 if not for utterly awful officiating in the two losses? Or should I pretend those calls/non-calls against the Rangers and Ducks didn't occur?
• Should I mention that the two resident living legends look like they could play forever?
Look, it's early. It's seven of 82. The eighth of 82 will be in Sunrise tomorrow against those champs. We'll all be seeking more solid answers for some time.
Sure is fun to posing the questions, though, isn't it?
THE ASYLUM
DK: Tell me, please, why all of this is just some fun fluke
Tell me, please, what I’m missing.
Tell me, beyond random, reckless speculation all summer long about trades that never came to pass, why these Penguins were supposed to be some lottery-level, lucky-to-sniff-the-Stanley-Cup-playoffs catastrophe in the 2025-26 NHL season.
Hello? Anyone?
OK, I'll keep going ...
Tell me why, and be specific, I'm not supposed to take absolutely anything seriously about a 5-2 start, all five of those Ws coming in regulation, the third-highest point total in the league, the fourth-best goal differential at plus-7, the sixth-ranked power play, the 13th-ranked penalty-kill, the eighth-highest goaltending save percentage at .914, and a league-leading two shutouts.
Because what I’m seeing, including this 5-1 crunching of the previously streaking Canucks tonight at PPG Paints, one that saw five different skaters score and 11 get at least a point, that saw Sidney Crosby overtake Mario Lemieux in all-time regular-season/playoff points with a sizzling wrister, that saw Evgeni Malkin slide into the league's top-five for points with a classic rush to set up Anthony Mantha, that saw Kris Letang's two assists get him to 600, that saw Justin Brazeau run up his fifth goal already and set up two others, that saw Ben Kindel and Harrison Brunicke keep defying their age at the far end of that spectrum, that saw that saw Arturs Silovs stop 23 of 24 shots to stick it to his old employer, that turned a 1-1 tie at the first intermission into a second period so dominant for the home team that they'd score all three goals and register 13 of the 16 shots, and so dispiriting for the visitors that Vancouver captain Elias Pettersson would remark afterward, "Um, they came to life" ... yeah, I've gotta say, my friends, it ain't exactly aligning.
So tell me. I'm waiting.
But better make it good, because this was what Rickard Rakell had to tell me afterward when I asked him in a cool, confident room when it'd be OK for all the rest of us to take this seriously: "I mean, I think everybody in this room is, like, really not surprised at all. I think it started with everybody feeling really good in training camp because we felt like this was going to be a team game for us. And that's what everybody's bringing right now."
With that, he both glanced and gestured around the room.
"It doesn't matter if you're on the fourth line or the third pairing, everybody's doing a really good job with what they're supposed to do. We can play against any line on the other team, match up, whatever you need. Obviously, we make mistakes in the game, but we're having great confidence in our goalies."
He paused, then, unwittingly, echoed something Sid had told me in New York after that rousing opener against the Rangers.
"I mean, we know it's gonna come. We feel like we're we're so close ... to feeling like it's gonna be even better. Like we're just so close on passes connecting into the slot, little things like that. But even when it doesn't we're fine. We just keep going. We get everybody back on a roll. And I think we're a tough team to play against because of that."
Anyone care to argue?
Still waiting.
But I've also got a lot left to say:
• To reiterate the stance I'd expressed all summer, this team's got a ton to gain from succeeding as soon as possible, and that'd mean -- say it with me and out loud -- making the playoffs. Success breeds success. And for anyone who doesn't think success matters toward development, I'll share the following three words Kindel told me last night when I mentioned the 5-2 start: "This is awesome."
For him and Brunicke and all the rest, too. They grow up right. And they grow up faster.
• Think they might regress?
My 20-second Kindel tutorial from a single shift in this one:
1. The kid reads Tyler Myers' breakout like a cheap novel at center red, then turns the attack.
2. On a two-on-one with Filip Hallander, he opts to shoot rather than defer. Rookies don't do this. Heck, players wearing this sweater don't do this.
3. Once the puck's kept in the zone, he coolly allows it to go under his stick behind the Vancouver net so that it'd reach an even more open Hallander back there. It's a dummy play. Mario did this. Rookies don't.
4. He races back in front to position himself for a redirect/rebound of the point shot.
That's ... not normal.
I mentioned my No. 3 selection up there to Kindel and asked if he knew he was only 18 years old, to which he humbly responded, "Thank you."
• The best players are still the oldest ones, but that's fine because it's also the most powerful sign of how much they've bought in. Per my conversations, they've fed off the energy of the kids, and not just Kindel and Brunicke but also those from camp. And they've really fed off the Dan Muse system that demands both support and smarts in all zones.
Here's something dreadfully dull, but watch it, anyway:
It's a four-goal lead late in the third, and Geno backhands a puck not far enough for a dump. Big whoop. But look at how he reflexively retreats right out of the frame. That's because he adopts a Muse formation for when possession's lost. It'd normally be a 1-2-2, but Mantha in this case falls further back because Conor Garland tries to cheat behind him. So if the Canucks are about to score, they'll have to slip through only a half-dozen humans.
This is known as ... protecting a lead.
Don't make me speak ill of Mike Sullivan, but this wasn't exactly his strong suit. Blowing big leads and conceding odd-man breaks were the opposite of his strong suit.
These guys aren't doing that. Once there's a lead, they're driving it home, right into the garage.
• As an older player or two or three falls out of favor -- and by older, I'm referring to those in the late-20s who've been acquired in part to become trade assets, like Anthony Beauvillier was -- they can be cast off, like Danton Heinen just was in being waived to Wilkes-Barre.
And when that happens, or even without making a roster move, someone younger and ideally better can come up and take those NHL minutes. I fully expect to see significant presences in this context principally from Ville Koivunen (at least if he's gotten over whatever ate him up in those first two games), Rutger McGroarty (once all the way in the clear), and Owen Pickering (once he summons up the snarl management wants to see from someone his size), plus Tristan Broz, Avery Hayes and anyone else who'd rise up.
Most uplifting part of this: Each such promotion should represent a legit individual upgrade.
Team wins. Development wins.
• That said, it'd be dumb to dismiss the chance that one or more of those twenty-somethings could break out and become part of the Pittsburgh plan.
Brazeau's 27. He's also logged only 102 NHL games, which would point to yet another tale of a big boy -- he's 6-6, 237 -- being a late bloomer, as a certain Kevin Stevens once was in these parts. So would the manner in which he's scored most of his five goals ...
... flashing a finish that doesn't necessarily fit the stereotype of his frame.
I asked him afterward if maybe he, like his new team, are both bucking expectations:
"I've kind of lived out my whole career, where I'll never let anybody say anything about my game," he replied. "I believe I can contribute on every level. Sometimes it takes a little longer to figure it out, timing and stuff like that. But once I've figured out and understand stuff, I can make a lot of plays."
And of the team: "You know, I think we've got a good group in here. We're a team that ... we don't really listen to the outside noise or what's going on. I think we have a lot of different elements to the team, guys who bring something different, and we're winning games different ways. We didn't have our best start tonight, but we stuck with it."
Imagine if he's authentic. Or if both are.
• I get Kyle Dubas' stance that he won't forfeit any piece of the franchise's future -- prospects or draft picks -- and I share it. No matter what comes of the next few months, no one should be planning a parade. Dubas wants bona fide contention, and that's as it should be.
But there's nothing about spending most of the remainder of the $13 million he's accrued in cap space that'll dent, much less damage his plan. Gobble up someone else's high-paid left-handed defenseman. Or two left-handed defensemen. Or three, but that's my final offer.
It'll require creativity, but he's got that.
• Ownership's likely to change sooner rather than later, as I've reported exclusively. Anyone new, but doubly so if it's Mario, won't want to be sitting on cap space. And they, like Rakell and everyone else in that room, will want to make the playoffs. I'm positive it'll be spent.
• Making playoffs would mean, naturally, that others would miss. I'm hardly about to deep-dive into some far-flung forecast, but I'm plenty comfortable assessing in the here and now that the NHL's general balance has swung back to the West, with apologies to the two-time defending champion Panthers. Given Florida's immense challenge in three-peating, coupled with Aleksander Barkov likely to miss all season, I'd place as many as three teams -- Avalanche, Golden Knights, Jets -- over anyone in the East, and I might even consider the Stars and Oilers.
Who's near that tier in the East?
Panthers, of course. Hurricanes. Devils. Canadiens. Senators without Brady Tkachuk?
There's room at or near the bottom of the eight who qualify. That's my emphasis.
• Other personnel factors conspire toward a brighter immediate future, and I'd be remiss if not rattling a few of those, as well: Bryan Rust's not about to stay stuck on zero goals. ... Kevin Hayes keeps getting closer to returning from his shoulder injury, and he'll be better -- and bigger -- than whoever he replaces. ... The left-handed defense can't/won't hold up like this for long, and that'll either buy opportunities for Matt Dumba/Connor Clifton or a return of a souped-up Ryan Graves or for someone, anyone else. ... There's always the Sergei Murashov variable.
• And speaking of goaltending: Who knows what'll come of Silovs, who's getting his first extended look at this level? Who ever knows what'll come of Tristan Jarry?
All I've got on that front for now: Both have been terrific, and Jarry's been a bit better than that. Bodes well at the most important position in a bunch of ways.
• Should I mention that this team could be 7-0 if not for utterly awful officiating in the two losses? Or should I pretend those calls/non-calls against the Rangers and Ducks didn't occur?
• Should I mention that the two resident living legends look like they could play forever?
Look, it's early. It's seven of 82. The eighth of 82 will be in Sunrise tomorrow against those champs. We'll all be seeking more solid answers for some time.
Sure is fun to posing the questions, though, isn't it?
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