2009-10 NHL Season Preview: Pittsburgh Penguins

by James Mirtle on Sep 26, 2009 7:00 AM CDT Comment 13 comments

Gene J. Puskar - AP

Who's in: Nate Guenin, Brent Johnson, Chris Lee, Jay McKee, Mike Rupp
Who's out: Philippe Boucher, Mathieu Garon, Hal Gill, Miroslav Satan, Robert Scuderi, Petr Sykora, Mike Zigomanis

Outlook: Another top team tight against the salary cap and forced to watch some incumbents leave for big paydays, the Penguins had to settle for bargains in the summer to replace the bodies lost.

Two of the team's top four minute munchers in Rob Scuderi and Hal Gill both signed lucrative free agent contracts elsewhere, while bit parts like backup Mathieu Garon and forwards Petr Sykora and Miro Satan were not offered contracts. The good news was that GM Ray Shero was able to re-sign a couple of his key cogs, reupping with both Bill Guerin and Ruslan Fedotenko for a combined $3.8-million on one-year deals.

Replacing Scuderi and Gill on defence was another matter, however, and the only newcomer on that front is veteran shot block king Jay McKee, who signed for a song after being bought out by the Blues. As a result, expect to see a lot of youngsters Kris Letang and Alex Goligoski on the back end and some growing pains on the penalty kill without Scuderi's steadying influence.

In terms of offensive gains, a full season of Chris Kunitz, Guerin and Sergei Gonchar in the fold should be enough to replace Sykora and Satan's dwindling contributions, while the if it ain't broke mentality makes sense when it comes to loading the minutes up on Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Jordan Staal.

There may be a small Stanley Cup hangover given they've lost some depth, but expect the Penguins to be in the thick of the Eastern Conference title race all season nonetheless.

X-factor: Kris Letang

For a more in-depth Penguins preview, visit PensBurgh
For more NHL analysis, check out the McKeen's Hockey Yearbook

Poll

Where will the Pens finish in the Eastern Conference this season?

1

92 votes

2

73 votes

3

72 votes

4

58 votes

5

16 votes

6

6 votes

7

0 votes

8

0 votes

9

0 votes

10

0 votes

11

1 votes

12

0 votes

13

0 votes

14

0 votes

15

14 votes

332 votes | Poll has closed

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Comments

#1, but an Eastern Conference Finals loss to Washington or Philadelphia.

by red army line on Sep 26, 2009 9:24 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Washington?

Doubt that they’ll make it that far with that defence corps let alone the fact that the-ODORE is their number #1 netminder. I think Washington is a little overrated at this point for there are too many players on that squad that disappear come playoff time. Knuble was an excellent pick-up but their defence…is weak. 1st round exit unless they draw the NYRangers again, and even then I wonder this time around.
Why is everyone forgetting about Boston?

It's never about the eventual destination, but rather the long journey and its challenging obstacles that are presented and what it takes to overcome them, that makes the taste of success all the more worthwhile!!!

by hawks61 on Sep 26, 2009 10:20 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Boston lost Kessel. That’s why. And Thomas is what, 36?

The defense, while missing a stud shutdown defenseman, is underrated (hey, look, Pittsburgh doesn’t have one either. And they won a championship) and deep. Injuries are no excuse, but I have to doubt that they’ll lose half the roster to injury again this season (I remember them beating Boston while dressing 10 AHL call-ups. Of 18 skaters). Obviously I have a hometown bias but with all the negative crap they get it’s making them underrated again. Sometimes the team puts it together. I hope with another year of growth plus Knuble will make them more consistent. And don’t forget that they almost beat Pittsburgh.

To get back on topic, I would be surprised to see PIT win it all again. They don’t look head and shoulders above the rest like Detroit did two years ago. In fact, I doubt any team repeats under the salary cap.

by red army line on Sep 26, 2009 1:26 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Brooks Orpik, while not a “stud”, is a better shutdown defenseman than anyone the Capitals have.

by Afino on Sep 26, 2009 3:35 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I recognize that. But he’s still not a stud, which is why I fail to see the reasoning why the Caps “need” a stud defenseman. Just some growth from guys like Schultz, Alzner, and Morrisonn or under-the-radar trade/signing will do the trick.

Anyways this is the Pens preview. Let’s not get Caps vs Pens here.

by red army line on Sep 26, 2009 3:38 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

To be the MAN, you must BEAT the man!

Time will tell if the losses of Satan, Sykora, Scuderi, and Gill will ultimatley hinder the Penguins. But the additions of McKee and Brent Johnson will definitely help the Penguins in their quest to repeat as Champions of Lord Stanley’s Mug. Crosby and Malkin are still the best one-two punch in the game and don’t be suprised if Staal has a monster year and picks up some of the slack that Satan and Sykora left behind. Kunitz will also help in this area but Guerin could become a question mark due to his age. Not to mention that Fleury should have a bounce back regular season as well, look for him to have Vezina calibre numbers this season.
All in all, the Penguins look good, scary good and should be at or near the top all season long.

by hawks61 on Sep 26, 2009 10:28 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

The loss of Satan, Sykora, Scuderi, and Gill, doesn’t look to be too big of a deal to me. I expect them to be the top team in the east again….

Blue and Gold (of Buffalo)

by Ebscer on Sep 26, 2009 11:28 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I dunno how McKee fits it, but I was very very impressed with Scuderi during the postseason. He was a great addition by Los Angeles and a big loss for Pittsburgh. Scuderi is an underrated loss.

by red army line on Sep 26, 2009 1:27 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Everyone is entitled to their opinion but seriously, how can anyone pick them to finish 15th? As of this comment four people already have.

Follow the Penguins on SBN @ Pensburgh.com and twitter.

by FrankD on Sep 26, 2009 2:41 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Coyotes 1st? Avs 1st? Bs 15th? Some people are haters or superlovers.

by red army line on Sep 26, 2009 3:38 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Although I guess they’re guessing the Pens pull a Therrien with Bylsma and Crosby, Malkin, Gonchar, and Fleury all go down, Staal implodes, Johnson can’t get it done, and Guerin retires mid season as the Pens are forced to recruit Lemieux back to the squad (and I don’t mean Claude).

by red army line on Sep 26, 2009 3:40 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I know that’s why I picked 15, but I can’t speak for everyone

Follow the Penguins on SBN @ Pensburgh.com and twitter.

by FrankD on Sep 26, 2009 5:10 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I’m assuming it’s Philly fans, who were also upset at the ridiculous amount of people who voted for the Flyers to finish 15th and this is their retaliation. Or else there’s a group of people that are picking everyone to finish 15th. lol

To be fair, when the Flyers finished 15th in 2006-07, a lot of people thought they’d win their division. I remember thinking in the pre-season that I didn’t think they’d make the playoffs that year… but I was way out of step with the common opinion. I also didn’t think they’d make it back the next year, so it’s not like I’m some super genius or something.

Hockey blogging can't get any flatter.

by saskhab on Sep 27, 2009 3:23 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

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