First thing I have to say about this one is that Game 6 between the Penguins and Islanders was easily one of the craziest and most exciting games of the first round. Non stop action, high stakes but the thing that really made it stand out was the fans. Nassau Coliseum was an electric factory, it wasn’t at full capacity but it certainly felt like it. You have to think that the more fans are allowed in games the more these games are going to pick up and the momentum change will be noticeable. Nevertheless, the crowd certainly had an impact on the game as the Islanders came out on top in front of their home crowd.
We knew going into this that it was going to be a great series, the Penguins were the best team in the division all throughout the season and the Islanders have an experienced core mixed with some young talent. They have a great goalie duo with great chemistry in Semyon Varlamov and Ilya Sorokin. Adam Pelech may be one of the most underrated defenseman in the NHL and he’s finally beginning to gain that recognition. The Islanders fourth line is also a huge reason for the teams success, we talk about grit and experience often and whether or not they're as significant a factor as some think. This fourth line proves how important it really is. Matt Martin, Casey Cizikas and Cal Clutterbuck might be the best fourth line in the league, they can go up against any line in the league, play well in both ends of the ice, win faceoffs, puck battles and provide secondary scoring.
The Penguins put up a real good fight and have a lot of guys that play similar styles to that fourth line. I remember at the beginning of the season, talking to a buddy of mine who’s a Penguins fan and saying how they have an interesting group of guys. Players like Jared McCann, Brandon Tanev and Mark Jankowski really filled out this Penguins team. Adding Jeff Carter at the deadline really helped them out as well, up and down the line up, the Penguins were solid. For the most part…
Tristan Jarry is undoubtedly going to be a hot topic of conversation for the foreseeable future. Typically, you can’t really blame the goalie when things go wrong because before they do, five other guys are typically making a mistake first. However, that Game 5 overtime really hurt the Penguins and unfortunately, that was on Jarry. When you’re a goalie and go to play the puck, you need to be confident and you need to have a clear decision of where you’re putting it. Jarry handled the puck, panicked and shot it right at Josh Bailey. That’s a mistake you simply can’t make in double overtime, let alone at any point in a playoff game. You have to wonder if looking back, the Penguins wished they held onto Marc-Andre Fleury. Things really didn’t work out with Murray after winning that last cup and now doubt surrounding Jarry will certainly begin to spark.
Going forward, the Penguins really don’t have much to worry about going into the off season. Cody Ceci, who had a surprisingly great year will become a UFA so they will have to make a decision on him but aside from that, Evan Rodrigues, Colton Sceviour and Freddie Gaudreau are the only upcoming UFA’s. I think the Pens will look to bring Gaudreau back as he seems to be a well liked guy who seems to have fit in well in Pittsburgh. Other than that, I don’t think they have any pressing matters in that regard, nor do they have a ton of cap space to work with. Zach Acton-Reese, Mark Jankowski, Teddy Blueger, are the RFA’s General Manager Ron Hextall will have to worry about giving new contracts to, it’ll take some number crunching but shouldn't be too difficult to pull off.
I think the biggest question for Hextall will be how “all in” does he want to be going into next season and does he feel that he can do that keeping much of the same team he currently has? The fact of the matter is, as long as Sid, Malkin and Letang are Penguins, they’re going to look to compete. The lack of draft picks and prospects that Pittsburgh has is definitely concerning however and I think it’s in Hextall’s nature to lean towards building towards the future rather than sacrificing it. It will be interesting to see if he looks to make any moves to clear up cap space while bringing in some future assets. Even if he turns around and uses that cleared up space to spend some money in free agency, he’ll still be in a good position to keep this team competing.
Either way, I’m always going to bet on the Penguins, as long as they still have that core of Sid leading the way, they’re going to be a threat. I think it’s worth exploring trade options on a couple guys, Brian Dumoulin being one of them. Pierre-Oliver Joseph had a good showing this season and could very well be ready for a more consistent role next season. If the Pens move Dumoulin for some draft picks and either a prospect or someone on a two way deal, that will clear up over $4 million in cap space, giving them more flexibility in bringing guys back or bringing in free agents.
Chris Feldman
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