Let's Go PENS!

[thesteelcity]

I heard PM interviewed on Wed and Tom McMillan had his on Tues.

 

[hamster]

Please tell me that the Pierre McGuire report is a joke.

I can see them interviewing him. Hiring him, now that would be different story.

 

[Rod Farva]

Scuds will be the mentor. His name is twice on the Cup. We might not be able to afford Nisky in free agency. Time to bring up the young guns. That's why we drafted them so high, right?

Next year is a transition year. Embrace it.

Keeping Nisky would have to include moving Letang.....Bring Back Mike (for coach)

 

[Spike]

Josh Yohe ‏@JoshYohe_Trib-Tomorrow marks one week since Ray Shero was dismissed. All remains quiet in Penguins land. Draft is 5 weeks away.

 

[hamster]

Josh Yohe ‏@JoshYohe_Trib-Tomorrow marks one week since Ray Shero was dismissed. All remains quiet in Penguins land. Draft is 5 weeks away.

There is an interim GM. The Pens weaknesses are apparent. I'm sure they have a real good idea who they want to move. Now it is about skillfully making the deals with out breaking the bank.

 

[Sarge]

My money is on Jason Botterill for the GM job. Anyone external who is worth a **** already has a job.

 

[scstillerfan]

Hell, move Letang to wing. He's a better scorer than most wingers we have now and he plays offense better than defense.

I agree, would be a better investment, and free up a spot for a real defensive specialist.

 

[Spike]

Pierre was asked about what changes the pens needed, i believe he said they would need a dynamic winger, some more scoring from the bottom lines, and the GM would have to make a decision on MAF.

I don't want Pierre, but if he does get the job it does seem like he has some of the same concerns that lots of us have.

 

[jitter77]

I have never been a fan of Letang. I still scratch my head about making england a winger and not letang. I think Letang would be OK if we had other DEFENSEmen. Orpik and Glass are about the only guys I see hitting people. I do not want a team of thugs, but we have very few guys who will dish out the punishment and they seem to get benched. I would say try to move letang and if no good offers are out there then maybe try him at winger. Even if its just a test in a preseason game or something.
Fleury is still a ? to me. I do not blame him for the rangers series and I think he played decent overall this year in the playoffs. Obviously his out of net play is horrendous, but that should be able to be fixed with coaching. He does tend to let in some soft ones, but I think all goalies do. The ones that bother me are when the Pens battle back to tie a game or take the lead then 30 secs later fleury gives up a goal. If they move fleury id be fine with it, and if they keep him id be fine too.
Basically we need to move some of the fancy players and get meaner and tougher. I think that is our major problem.

 

[Spike]

more scuttlebutt..


Neal denies he asked for trade out of Pittsburgh

In the wake of their stunning playoff collapse, the Penguins have been the subject of many trade rumors and on Friday, one of them took to social media to deny the whispers.

James Neal, the subject of “reports” claiming he demanded a trade out of Pittsburgh, addressed the rumblings via Twitter:

James Neal @jneal_18 All of these rumors couldn't be further from the truth. I love being a Pittsburgh Penguin. I hope to remain a Penguin and win as a Penguin.

http://prohockeytalk.nbcsports.com/2014/05/23/neal-denies-he-asked-for-trade-out-of-pittsburgh/

 

[Spike]

CEO David Morehouse held conversations with several potential candidates last week, but talks are expected to progress toward formal interviews this week.

Morehouse is said to have spoken with the following people:

◦PAT BRISSON – one of the NHL’s most powerful agents, including the representative for Penguins captain Sidney Crosby
◦JASON BOTTERILL – the Penguins’ interim GM and the assistant GM under Ray Shero for the last five seasons
◦JULIEN BRISEBOIS – Tampa Bay’s assistant GM
◦DAVE POULIN – Toronto’s vice president of hockey operations

Morehouse is also said to have spoken with his NHL contacts about – and possibly directly with – the following potential candidates:

◦NORM MACIVER – Chicago’s assistant GM
◦RICK DUDLEY – Montreal’s assistant GM
◦JEF GORTON – New York Rangers’ assistant GM
◦DON SWEENEY – Boston’s assistant general manager
◦PAUL FENTON – Nashville’s assistant general manager
◦GEORGE MCPHEE – Washington’s former GM

Shero was fired May 16. Morehouse said then he would not comment publicly during the process to find a replacement.

As of the middle of last week, the Penguins were said to target having a new general manager within two weeks. They want to provide the new general manager time to make a decision on head coach Dan Bylsma before the NHL Enty Draft on June 27-28. Bylsma has two years remaining on his contract, and Penguins ownership is said to be growing comfortable with the potential for him to return for next season.

Morehouse said the new general manager would determine the statuses of Bylsma, his assistants and all members of the hockey operations department.

Morehouse is spearheading the general manager search, though majority co-owners Mario Lemieux and Ron Burke have relied on their trusted league colleagues regarding potential candidates. That group is said to have included Montreal GM Marc Bergevin, Maple Leafs Sports & Entertainment CEO Tim Leiweke, Tampa Bay owner Jeff Vinik, and Brisson.

Penguins ownership is said to prefer the new general manager to have a successful background in scouting and development, believing the franchise needs to improve most in those areas.

http://blog.triblive.com/chipped-ic...o-excel-at-scoutingdevelopment/#axzz32q4D2h00

 

[Rod Farva]

Penguins ownership is said to prefer the new general manager to have a successful background in scouting and development, believing the franchise needs to improve most in those areas.

So the first name mentioned is a freaking agent?

Bylsma has two years remaining on his contract, and Penguins ownership is said to be growing comfortable with the potential for him to return for next season.

*sigh*

 

[thesteelcity]

Caps moved quickly and hired Barry Trotz. Not that I wanted the Pens to hire him, but it's an option the new GM doesn't have now. It's going to come down to if there's an option better than Bylsma out here and it will turn out there isn't. Will they try to lure Babcock next year when his contract is up or go in a different direction regardless? Gonna be interesting.

 

[SteelerFan448]

Good move for the Caps. Babcock would be an very interesting option for the Penguins, but we will see. Maybe that is their plan looking ahead.

 

[hamster]

Here is what I'm thinking........................Bylsma is staying....for at least another year. Botterill stays as interim GM. Babcock comes in as GM next year. The Babcock era begins.

If Babcock extends at Detroit, my theory becomes worthless.

 

[Spike]

A few dummies from the Pittsburgh media are talking about keeping Bylsma and running down Babcock - must have got the word from the top.

Potentially keeping everyone BUT Shero?? How ****** up is that?


If the new GM doesn't fire Bylsma, he should be fired on the spot.

 

[hamster]

The rap on Bylsma is that he couldn't win in the playoffs. One can make an argument that Shero didn't put together a team built for the playoffs. One could argue that he put that team together last year, but Bylsma misused the talent provided(ie. Iginla). One can argue that Disco should be Coach of the Year, for succeeding despite the injuries, and with a cast of AHL players. On the other hand, if Disco lost the locker room, as reported, then his expiration date has expired.

I happen to believe that the Penguins team needs a good flushing, both in terms of coaching staff, and player personnel.The GM hire will be the key to rebuilding. I hope they find a good one.

 

[Vader]

There is no reason Bylsma should be kept. His teams have underperformed for several years now. They lost a 3-1 lead while dominating for all 3 wins. They had back to back shutouts. Then they go home leading 3-1 and just went to ****. He has to go. This team needs fresh leadership.

 

[Djfan]

There is no reason Bylsma should be kept. His teams have underperformed for several years now. They lost a 3-1 lead while dominating for all 3 wins. They had back to back shutouts. Then they go home leading 3-1 and just went to ****. He has to go. This team needs fresh leadership.

Agreed. That is leadership, even if Sid shares in the blame. Not sure where or why Sid's will got off the bus, but it sure seemed to. The team culture seems askew.

 

[jitter77]

The rap on Bylsma is that he couldn't win in the playoffs. One can make an argument that Shero didn't put together a team built for the playoffs. One could argue that he put that team together last year, but Bylsma misused the talent provided(ie. Iginla). One can argue that Disco should be Coach of the Year, for succeeding despite the injuries, and with a cast of AHL players. On the other hand, if Disco lost the locker room, as reported, then his expiration date has expired.

I happen to believe that the Penguins team needs a good flushing, both in terms of coaching staff, and player personnel.The GM hire will be the key to rebuilding. I hope they find a good one.

While i understand your "argue" points and may have agreed in the past, but I have to look at team USA. They pretty much stunk in the olympics and the medal game was embarrassing. He had an all-star cast then and the players just didnt seem too enthused to be playing. I was a supporter of Bylsma until the end of this year. I think he wore out his welcome and its time to move on. I dont have a problem with the Shero firing, but it seems he is more of a scapegoat than anything. Shero was great at making trades, but he struggled with the drafting / building a team aspect. I guess drafting failures mainly fall on the GM, but its a more than one guy problem. I still think that there was enough talent on the team to win but it was mismanaged. The few guys who brought real toughness were benched. The defensive discipline was also lacking and players did not seem to be held accountable. I would put the season more on coaching than the GM, but a good gutting would not hurt either.

 

[Spike]

Well the Rangers are moving on to the finals....I guess hockey is America's sport now

 

[Spike]

At least Malkin is happy

Alex Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin have fun in photos with Putin

Following a disappointing Olympics, hockey-mad Russia has been in quite the celebratory mood this week. The Russians won the 2014 IIHF World Championships in nearby Belarus and have been feted in Moscow almost as if they won the Stanley Cup.

http://www.cbssports.com/nhl/eye-on...ins-malkins-awesome-poses-with-vladimir-putin

 

[Confluence]

Well the Rangers are moving on to the finals....I guess hockey is America's sport now

Rangers have 13 Canadians, 7 Yanks, 5 Swedes and a couple Czechs. No Captain, but all three Assistants are Canadian. Pretty sure the only ones with Olympic GOLD MEDALS are Nash and St. Louis, both Canadians. I think the Swedes got medals too, but who cares if they aren't gold?

And 1 Norwegian -- Zuccarello --- I figured he was the only local guy.

 

[hamster]

Rangers have 13 Canadians, 7 Yanks, 5 Swedes and a couple Czechs. No Captain, but all three Assistants are Canadian. Pretty sure the only ones with Olympic GOLD MEDALS are Nash and St. Louis, both Canadians. I think the Swedes got medals too, but who cares if they aren't gold?

And 1 Norwegian -- Zuccarello --- I figured he was the only local guy.

I think what Spike was saying is that because it is a NY team in the final, it will be overkill in the US media.

Now back to your seal clubbing, eh.

 

[Spike]

I think what Spike was saying is that because it is a NY team in the final, it will be overkill in the US media.

Now back to your seal clubbing, eh.

Amen


Sid won Gold for Canada - then he left his legs in Sochi

yea verily