Sabres to go after Starting goalie and top 4 D-Men, while Penguins also to look for a starter and to rework their bottom six.
Offseason plans, The Sabres may try and add a top 4 defender and a starter in net and may try to extend Dahlin, while Pittsburgh will probably also look for a starter, they will also retool their bottom six and may move Carter and Pettersson.
Buffalo Sabres
Significant Pending UFA:
LW,C Z.Girgensons 10-8-18 80GP
RW,LW V.Hinostroza 2-9-11 26GP
LD L.Pilut 1-2-3 17GP
LD J.Daives 0-0-0 1GP
RD A.Strand 0-0-0 5GP
G M.Subban 0-00 REC 0.00 GAA .000 SV%
Significant Pending RFA:
C T.Jost 7-18-25 71GP
RW L.Rousek 1-1-2 2GP
C,RW M.Pekar 0-0-0 0GP
LW B.Murray 0-0-0 0GP
LD/RD K.Clague 0-4-4 33GP
Current draft capital for Sabres in 2023: 8
1RD BUF
2RD BUF, PHI
3RD LA
4RD BUF
5RD BUF
6RD BUF
7RD BUF
What lead the Sabres to missing the playoffs this year: now Buffalo surprised a ton of people this year by making it very interesting for the last wildcard spot in the East and just ever so slightly missing out and they are obviously heading in the right direction but there were a few reasons that they wound up missing.
Number one has to be the fact that they are a young team that wasn’t supposed to compete for a playoff spot and they actually did quite good, as I do think that some of the younger teams with less experience in high pressure games might make more mistakes, as the Sabres entire top 4 is pretty young, their two main goalies this year are both pretty young, and they have a very young forward core with a couple of good top 9 rookies, so this was a very young team that surprised a lot of teams and due to the fact that they have a younger team I think they were a bit more primed to make mistakes and I think that was a strong reason they miss the playoffs this year but it was a good learning experience for them this year and hopefully with a bit more experience behind them, they can play a bit better next year and maybe make less mistakes to help them get into the playoffs.
Secondly would be the bad 8 game losing streak they had early on in the season. Now the team like previous seasons started out well and in their first ten games they were able to jump out to a good 7-3-0 start, but just like previous seasons after their great start they would drop the next few games as after their good first 10 games they would drop the next 8 games going 0-8-0 in their 8 games following their first ten, and although they were able to come back from that sour streak and challenge for a playoff spot, I have a feeling that if they didn’t have that 8 game losing they may have made the playoffs, because if they just won one of those games and lost in OT and got at least 3 points over that stretch they would’ve been able to leapfrog Florida for the last playoff spot in the east, so although they showed a ton of resiliency by coming back after this poor run of play, I definitely think if they didn’t have this 8 game losing streak and had won a couple of games over that stretch of time then Buffalo may have been a playoff team, so that is another reason I feel the Sabres missed the playoffs.
And lastly I think would be the injuries early on to their D-Corp (especially their top 4). Now this was during the time of their 8 game losing streak, early on in the season, but there were a lot of injuries that happened to the Sabres, now guys like Dahlin and Power only missed a couple of games but by the seasons end Jokiharju and Samuelsson had both missed a big chunk of the season as Jokiharju missed 22 games and Samuelsson missed 27 games due to injuries and on top of those two missing significant time this year, 3rd pair defensemen Bryson who only played 59 games and Lybushkin who only got into 68 games both also missed big portions of the season due to injuries and the Sabres didn’t have that deep of a blueline this year so when those guys went out it put more pressure on the younger players and I think that contributed to them not only missing the playoffs but also having a bad defence as they were 7th lowest in GA and while the team was one of the best offensive teams in the NHL this year putting up 296 goals which was 3rd in the NHL, the defensive mistakes cost them some games and I think the injuries on the blueline were another big reasons the Sabres weren’t able to make the playoffs this year.
So in my eyes the fact that the Sabres had a more younger team that was prone to make some mistakes, the injuries to key pieces of the teams blueline for big parts of the season and the teams 8 games losing streak following their first 10 games were all major reasons for the Sabres to miss the playoffs for the 12th straight season this year, but they have a very promising group and I think with a little tinkering in the offseason this team will be set up to finally break that streak and make the playoffs next year.
5 ways of how the Sabres can improve in the offseason.
James Carey Lauder USA Today Sports
.1) Move Comrie and UPL, bring in a new goalie to pair with Levi.
Now after a good year of goaltending in Buffalo, could the Sabres move both of Comrie and UPL if they can get a more experienced starter to tandem with Levi this year.
Now the Sabres were pretty good in goal last year and adter starting out with Comrie and Anderson as their tandem they would call up Ukka Pekka Luukkonen with Comrie injured and Luukkonen played well enough to remain on the NHL roster even after both Comrie and Anderson were healthy and the Sabres ran with a three headed monster in goal up until about three weeks before the season ended when they signed top goalie prospect Levi to a ELC and he would play a majority of the games to finish the season, so when the year ended the Sabres had 4 goalies on their roster, but I expect that too change this offseason. Now Craig Anderson had retired after the season so it is quite simple in that sense as he won’t be with the Sabres next year, but then there is the question of who will be the tandem next year.
Now the Sabres showed their trust in Levi by having him play meaningful games down the stretch when they were chasing a playoff spot, so in my eyes you have to keep him up at the NHL level next year at least as the backup, but would a tandem with Comrie who is more of a 1B or UPL who doesn’t have a ton of experience be the best thing for the Sabres if they were to try and compete for a playoff spot next year, I don’t really think so, so in my eyes if they were to move Comrie to a team who needs another goalie or keep him as their 3rd stringer, and then move UPL in a trade to acquire a more NHL level starter to help in Net with Levi might make more sense. Now I think Comrie will 100% be gone at some point in the offseason and although I have seen some people say the Sabres should just have a Levi-Luukonen tandem next year I just think that tandem would be too young and inexperienced for a team competing for a playoff spot, so if they could go out and get one of Hart from Philly, Hellebuyck from Winnipeg who I have seen be linked to Buffalo a lot in the past few weeks, Gibson in Anaheim or Vladar in Calgary and move UPL in a trade for one of these goalies I think that would be the best move for Buffalo as it would give them a goalie who can start for the next year or two to give Levi a bit less playing time until he is ready in a year or two to be the Sabres starter in Net.
So in my eyes if the Sabres want to compete for a playoff spot next year then they need to move Comrie and most likely UPL as well and bring in a experienced goalie who can be the Sabres starter for the next year or two with Levi being their backup and I think this team will improve a lot on the defensive which they weren’t really good at this past year if they were to acquire a starting goalie in the offseason.
.2) Add a veteran top 4 defender.
Now the Sabres have a pretty good and young top 4 D-Corp on their team right now and it definitely learned a lot and grew last season, but if they added one more top 4 defender to the mix could that put them over the top.
Now the Sabres showed last year that they have what looks to be a solid group on the defensive side with a solid top 4 in Samuelsson, Power, Dahlin and Jokiharju with the team and those four definitely make up one of the best top four’s in the NHL right now, but I do think they could wind up moving Jokiharju and we will get more into that later, but I believe that this team could benefit tremendously if they were to add a top 4 defender. Now the team already has a pretty good D-Corp that should be there for years to come, but there really isn’t any veteran presence on that defence, as all the defenders that are signed in Buffalo are currently under 30 and only Lyubushkin who was just signed last offseason is older then 25 at 29 years old, so they have a extremely young D-Corp and they were definitely a bit inexperienced with Samuelsson being a regular for the first time in his career and Power as a rookie, but if they add a top 4 defender who is a bit older then some of those other guys and has some more experience then I think it could really help the young Sabres, and if I am looking at the trade market I wonder about guys like Tanev in Calgary, Parayko in St.Louis, Murphy in Chicago and maybe Karlsson in San Jose as those are all more veteran type defenders who I think could round out the Sabres D-Corp while if you look at the free agent market I think guys like Klingberg, Severson and Shattenkirk could be intriguing option to help the Sabres round out their top 4 and once again they are all more veteran options then the players they have right now and would bring some experience to that backend, so in my eyes the Sabres have a solid D-Corp already and if they can just make a few adjustments and add another top 4 Defender to this team who has a bit more experience then their current group I think that defence would take some major strides next year after being a bottom 10 team this year in the goals against department.
David Kirouac USA Today Sports
.3) Move one or both of Olofsson and Jokiharju.
Now I don’t think there are too many players the Sabres would be keen on moving right now, but a couple options I could see the Sabres consider moving on from this offseason would be top 9 forward Olofsson and 2nd/3rd pair defender Jokiharju.
Now first with Olofsson, he had a rough start to his career with the Sabres as he wasn’t able to make the team consistently for a couple of years there, but since then has really rounded out into a great top 9 goal scoring, power play specialist, as in 3 of the last 4 years he has hit the 20 goals mark and the 40 point mark, including this past year when he had a career high 28 goals in 75 games and looks like he may eventually be a 30 goal scorer, so he is a good forward, but there were trade talks around him last offseason before he signed his 2 year extension and he is entering the final year of that contract now and will be a UFA next offseason and I don’t think he would re-sign with the Sabres for his next deal, so I think the Sabres move him for a decent package as I could see tons of teams looking for a middle six forward who could be a 30 goal scorer and isn’t on that bad of a deal, so I think lots of teams would have interest and it would open a spot on the team for a younger player like Rosen or Kulich and would give them some more cap space so in my opinion Olofsson is a name to watch out for in Buffalo.
And then you have defender Jokiharju. Now Jokiharju was acquired from Chicago a couple of seasons ago after not fitting in too well there and he has actually been a pretty good top 4 defender in Buffalo the past few years as he hasn’t been the best offensive defensemen and has suffered through some injuries over the past couple of years, but he has really shown that he can be a good top 4 defender in Buffalo, especially this past year when he was always in the top 4, even sometimes playing with Dahlin but I do believe he could be traded this offseason, because as I talked about above I think the Sabres are going to try and get a more veteran top 4 defender and I think if they do that not only would that kick Jokiharju out of the top 4 but I also think they could use him as a trade chip to get that new defender that could benefit them as I think Jokiharju could be a good top 4 defender especially on a rebuilding team, so in my eyes although Jokiharju is a good top 4 defensive defensemen and has worked well in Buffalo, I think he could be moved to help them get a defensive upgrade at some point in the offseason, so even though they are coming off good years and are still pretty young, don’t be too surprised in my opinion if Olofsson or Jokiharju were traded by Buffalo.
.4) Continue to give young guys NHL opportunities such as Rosen, Kulich and Johnson.
Now over the past few seasons the Sabres have started to hand the team over to the younger players and now they have 3 stud defensemen, two young goalies and a boatload of good young top 9 forwards on the team that seems like they will backstop this team back to the postseason in the next couple of years, and I think they should continue to do that by adding a couple more young players to the team next year.
Now we know for a fact that Levi will most likely be with the team, likely in the 1B role for Buffalo, but I think there are a handful of other young players who could make the Sabres roster next year. First I think forwards Rosen, Savoie and Kulich will all get a shot at the NHL level next year, whether it is a short stint or remaining there for the year as both Rosen and Kulich are players coming off of fantastic seasons in the AHL (Kulich had 46PTS in 62GP, and Rosen had 37PTS in 66GP) and Savoie had a monster season in the WHL having 95 points in 62 games and eventually I could see all of them be solid top nine forwards, and the Sabres do have a solid top 9 already and I am not sure they would want to add too many young players to the roster right now, so I don’t think all will play consistently at the NHL level, but I do think at least a one of them will wind up being in the NHL full time next year, while on the defensive side of the puck, Ryan Johnson has recently signed his ELC and might be another young option for the Sabres at the NHL level next year, although I think with the good blueliners they already have and the fact that he could probably use another year of development, I think that Johnson would most likely spend next year in the AHL but I wouldn’t guarantee it, so in my eyes I think the Sabres should continue to add youth to the team next year, and on top of having Levi one of their goalies next year, I also think young forwards like Kulich, Rosen or Savoie could all get NHL shots next year and maybe even Johnson, but I do think the Sabres will continue to add youth to this team next year.
.5) Try and give Dahlin a contract extension.
And finally this one here I don’t think is as pressing to be getting done right now this season, but something I do wonder about the Sabres considering doing this offseason would be getting Dahlin who is arguably their best defensemen and a guy entering the final year of his deal signed to a new contract extension when they can.
Now Dahlin was the first overall pick back in 2018 and had been a pretty decent top 4 defensemen in Buffalo before this year, as he had hit the 40 point mark a couple of times early in his career and then had a 53 point season during the 21-22 season and he did well but he had his coming out party this year as he put up a staggering 15 goals and 73 points (both career high’s) in 78 games and he looks like in a couple years time he could be a point per game defensemen, so if he continues to play this good for the Sabres his preuve is only going to get higher, so maybe the right move for Buffalo would be to sign him now instead of later. Now he will be entering the final year of a 3 year bridge deal with the Sabres that has a $6 Million dollar cap hit and I think after the year he had he is in for a big payday, as I think a long term deal could look something like a 6-8 year deal for Dahlin and would probably have a AAV of between $8-9 Million dollars as Dahlin was a outstanding defensemen this year and I feel he will only get better, so maybe signing him to a long term extension this offseason would be better, and we have seen the Sabres do that in the past year, signing Thompson, Cozens and Samuelsson to long term deal before their current ones expire. So I am definitely not saying that this is guaranteed to happen this offseason as I feel given he is a RFA he could wait to sign until next year, but in my opinion if I am Buffalo, I am trying to lock him up long term as soon as I get the opportunity when he is eligible for a extension on July 1st.
So in my opinion the Sabres should try to add a starting goalie and move on from UPL and Comrie, and then add a veteran top 4 defensemen who can work with the younger D-Corp, consider moving on from Olofsson and Jokiharju, while also adding more younger players like Rosen or Kulich and maybe even consider extending Dahlin on a long term deal and I think if the Sabres were able to do most of this in the offseason, as they could add a bit more youth as well as strengthening their backend and maybe extending their best defensemen long term, I have no doubt that not only should the Sabres be in the playoff race again next year, but they could also have a serious chance to end the longest current playoff drought in the NHL.
If you liked this blog post, then check out my YouTube video on the Sabres offseason here. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nP_7ma2_Yps&t=1s
Pittsburgh Penguins
Significant Pending UFA:
LW,RW J.Zucker 27-21-48 78GP
C,LW N.Bonino 10-9-19 62GP
LW,RW D.Heinen 8-14-22 65GP
RW,LW J.Archibald 6-6-12 62GP
LW,RW D.Caggiula 0-0-0 4GP
LD/RD D.Kulikov 3-13-16 67GP
LD B.Dumoulin 1-24-25 82GP
G T.Jarry 24-13-2 REC 2.90 GAA .910 SV%
G D.Tokarski 1-2-0 REC 3.45 GAA .897 SV%
Significant Pending RFA:
LW D.O’Connor 5-6-11 46GP
LW,C R.Poehling 7-7-14 53GP
C F.Hallander 0-0-0 2GP
LW J.Gruden 0-0-0 3GP
LD/RD T.Smith 1-3-4 9GP
G F.Lindberg 0-0-0 REC 0.00 GAA .000 SV%
Current draft capital for Penguins in 2023: 6
1RD PIT
3RD NJ
5RD PIT
6RD PIT
7RD TOR, FLO
Why did the Penguins miss the playoffs: now for Pittsburgh they were the closest team to a playoff spot that missed as they were 9th in the east and every so slightly just missed out on a playoff spot, and there were definitely a few reasons as to why the Penguins were the team out of the playoffs instead of a team like the Isles or Panthers.
Now first would be that the Pens didn’t get enough depth scoring on their team to make the playoffs. Now the big boys came through especially in key moments for the Penguins with all of their top 6 players including Crosby, Malkin, Guentzel, Zucker, Rakell and Rust all hitting at least 20 goals and 45 points this year, but their depth scoring was almost not existent as the third line of the Penguins was particularly disappointing as Kapanen and McGinn only combined for 17 goals and 36 points before they were moved at the deadline and good deadline acquisition Mikael Granlund didn’t have a good showing in Pittsburgh only putting up 5 points in 21 games, and by the seasons end only Carter, Heinen and Kapanen before he was dealt hit the 20 point mark for Pittsburgh, and only Carter and McGinn before he was traded hit the double digit goal mark, so the Penguins had very little luck getting solid depth scoring from their team and we all know how important it is to have good depth scoring to make the playoffs and they didn’t have much this year and I would definitely say that the teams lack of depth scoring played a huge role in them missing the playoffs this year.
Now stats wise the team was pretty average as they were basically the middle of the pack for all of the major stats including goals for and against, and the power play and PK, but I think one other problem the team ran into this year that played a factor in them missing the playoffs was the fact that they had quite a few injuries to their defence. Now they were one of the deeper teams on the defensive side going into this year but they had a few key guys out for a while, as Letang suffered a stroke and was out 18 games due to it, Petry suffered a significant injury that kept him out of the lineup for 21 games, Marcus Pettersson was also injured at some points in the season and missed 14 games, then 3rd pair defensemen Rutta who was in his first season with Pittsburgh suffered a injury and was only held to 56 games played this year, while deadline acquisition Kulikov was supposed to come in and help be a good shutdown defender on the 3rd pair but only played in 6 games before going down with a injury and missing the rest of the season due to it so with so many guys missing time, especially Petry and Letang who are solid top 4 defenders so the loss of these players at inopportune times really did hurt the Penguins and I feel that if some of these guys are a bit more healthy, especially late in the year, then maybe they wind up making the playoffs and so I believe that the defensive injuries to the Pens were a significant reason as to why the Penguins missed the playoffs.
And finally I think the biggest reason the Penguins missed the playoffs this year was the fact that they held their playoff fate in their hands and couldn’t get the wins they needed. Entering Tuesday April 11th their was one spot in the eastern conference playoffs up for grabs between the Isles and Penguins as the Isles had the tie break, were at 91 points and had one game left against the Habs, while the Penguins were at 90 points and had two games left against two of the lowest 3 teams in the NHL in Chicago and Columbus and getting two wins was definitely not out of the question for Pittsburgh and then they would play the Hawks on the 11th and in their biggest game of the season they were a no show as they would lose to the Hawks and drop a all important game that guaranteed the Panthers a playoff spot and then the next day the Isles would beat the Habs and lock in their spot in the playoffs and even in the final game of the year, Pittsburgh would lose in OT to the Jackets and had they won both those games they would’ve made the playoffs, but they came up absolutely short against two of the lowest teams in the NHL, and as much as the other two things contributed to them missing the playoffs, these two crucial loses wound up costing the Penguins a playoff spot this season.
So in my eyes the two loses at the end of the season against bottom dwelling teams, the multitude of injuries on the blueline that team suffered and the lack of depth scoring they had this year all contributed to the Penguins missing the playoffs this year, but they were the team that was closest to the playoffs that didn’t make it in the east and if they can do a bit of tinkering in the offseason they should be able to make the playoffs next year.
5 Ways of how the Penguins can improve in the offseason.
.1) Bring in a new starter.
Now for the Penguins after a lot of problems in net, they currently have starting goalie Jarry as a pending UFA and although he is a good starter he hasn’t worked well the past couple of years in Pittsburgh and maybe it is time the Penguins go in a different direction and find a new starting goalie.
Now the Penguins have been running with a Jarry-DeSmith tandem for the past couple of years and they had been able to make the playoffs but always were bounced in the 1RD and Jarry always seemed to get injured at the most inopportun times and then this year the team wasn’t even able to make the playoffs so as much as they have kept this duo intact over the past couple of seasons, I think it may be time to break it up and move on from Jarry and bring in a new starting goalie. Now Jarry has still been quite a good goalie for Pittsburgh as he has gone 4 straight years with a better then .900 SV% and a lower then 3.00 GAA but if he plays too much he always runs the risk of being injured and I think the Penguins might look for a little bit more stability and perhaps better play from a different goalie, so while I do think it is possible they bring him back and keep him the Penguins starter, in my eyes he will most likely hit the free agent market and the Pens will go and look elsewhere for a new starter. Now there are a few different ways I could see the Penguins go as they try to look for a new starter, and I think it is less likely they take a look in the free agent market but if they were they would probably look at a guy like Talbot or Andersen as both have been starters in the past and could be really good additions for the Penguins, but I think they would more then likely go the trade route and the most likely options I see are Hellebuyck or Gibson as both are more veteran type goalies who are elite level starters playing on teams that they usually have to carry on their back and both could be available for the right price this offseason and I think those two would be the two likely targets for Pittsburgh, and I could see some other goalies maybe be of interest to Pittsburgh including Demko, Swayman or Hart but I think those ones are a lot less likely to be moved then the other two, but after running with Jarry for a couple years now and not getting past the 1st round, I think changing their starter might be the smart move and either Hellebuyck or Gibson might be the play for them but I would love to hear which goalie you think the Penguins should go after this offseason.
.2) Move Carter and Pettersson, and consider moving Petry and Granlund.
Next the Penguins may need to move some players to try and retool their roster and I think Carter and Pettersson are most likely going to be traded at some point with guys like Petry or Granlund possibly also being moved.
So now Carter just came off of his 2nd full season in Pittsburgh and it wasn’t a good one for him, as after he had a solid 45 points in his first full season with Pittsburgh 2 years ago which was his highest point total since the 16-17 season he took a major point drop this past year, only hitting 13 goals and 29 points in 79 games and basically centering the 3rd line for most of the season which didn’t play too well as we talked about before, it just wasn’t a good year for Carter, and now entering the final year of his contract at a $3.13 Million dollar cap hit, I think the Penguins may move on from him and either try and get a cheaper option or a young player in their system to be the 3rd line Center next year for them, as that depth scoring was atrocious last year and Carter was a big part of that and I wouldn’t be too surprised if the Penguins moved on from him and went in a different direction.
Then with Pettersson, ever since coming over from Anaheim in the 18-19 season, he hasn’t been that bad of a defensemen, as he has consistently put up around 20 points in his 4 full seasons with Pittsburgh (excluding the shortened season) and he has even been playing in the top 4 at different points in time for Pittsburgh as a solid 2nd pair defensemen, but I do think that the $4 Million dollar contract he signed with Pittsburgh a few years ago is not the best and with Pittsburgh being one of those teams strapped for cap right now, I could see him be moved to try and free up some cap space as the Penguins do have some young defenders who might be able to take over his spot in the lineup in guys like POJ or Smith, and I think if they moved his contract to a team who needs a defender and are able to get his $4.03 Million dollar cap hit for the next two seasons off of their books, it might help their cap situation, so don’t be too surprised if you hear Pettersson’s name in the rumour mill and maybe even traded this offseason.
And lastly I also think Granlund or Petry could also be moved by Pittsburgh. Now for Granlund the Penguins move Kapanen and McGinn off of their roster before the deadline to make room to add Granlund as a good depth scorer from Nashville and they were hoping he would help ignite their depth scoring and he wound up only having 5 points in 21 games to d finish the season with Pittsburgh and didn’t fit in well, and although he is still a good player, he is also making $5 Million for the next two years and paying a 3rd line player $5 Million is not ideal so they may look to trade him to a team who could use him more in their top 6, while Petry played in his first season with the Penguins after being acquired from Montreal in the offseason last year and he was supposed to come in and be a good 2nd pair defensemen behind Letang, and although he didn’t do half bad and did hit 31 points this season, he also was being mentioned in trade rumours at the deadline and I think the Penguins weren’t overly thrilled with his performance and although I could see him getting traded cause he does have a high cap hit, I think the new people in Pittsburgh might see him as a good piece on their defence and keep him, so in my eyes the Penguins are going to try and retool this offseason and will need to clear some cap space to do that, so I would expect Carter and Pettersson who didn’t have great seasons last year as well as maybe deadline acquisition Granlund and Petry as well to be moved and don’t be too shocked in my opinion if the Penguins moved a couple of players this year.
.3) Try and give Guentzel a contract extension.
Now just like with Buffalo and Dahlin that we talked about earlier, this isn’t as pressing a matter as some other things the Penguins have to take care of are, but I do wonder if the Penguins try and work out some sort of contract extension with top 6 forward Jake Guentzel.
Now Guentzel has become a integral part of the Penguins team over the past couple years, as he usually plays the past couple years on line 1 with Crosby and Rust, and has been putting up some extremely impressive numbers over the past few years, as he has hit the 70 point mark in 3 of the last 5 years and was over a point per game in 4 of the last 5 years and that was including his career high of 84 points and 40 goals in the 21-22 season, and even though he had a bit of a lower point total this year (36 goals and 73 points in 78 games), he was still a extremely big piece of the Penguins offense and I think the Penguins would really like to retain him. Now Guentzel is in the final year of his 5 year contract that he signed back in the 19-20 that has a cap hit of $6 Million dollars per season, but Guentzel will definitely need a major bump in pay raise as with him hitting 70 points multiple times and also hitting 40 goals twice he has shown he can be a lethal top 6 forward and in my eyes with him being a UFA next offseason the Penguins may want to get a contract extension in place this year when he is eligible July 1st, and in my eyes a extension for Guentzel would probably have him signing somewhere between $7.5-9 Million dollars on his AAV on a 6-8 year contract, and given how big of a piece he is to the Penguins I think they would be willing to pay that, so once again I don’t think it is a guarantee as they may wait until next year, but I don’t think it is out of the question that the Penguins try and extend Guentzel this offseason, and definitely leave a comment giving your opinion on if Guentzel would sign a extension this offseason with Pittsburgh.
.4) Re-work their bottom six.
Now one of the major problems these Penguins had this offseason and one of the major reasons they didn’t make the playoffs this year was their extreme lack of depth scoring on the team this past year and I think they would have to try and fix their bottom six this year so that it is more productive next year.
Now I think the reworking of their blueline has to start by moving the only player that is still on the team from that awful 3rd line last year and that is Carter, because as we talked about earlier I think the Penguins may go in a different direction and I could Carter be dealt, then they had a couple good young bottom six forwards who I think could remain with the team next year and that Alex Nylander who toward the end of the season was almost a regular on the 4th line and I think could be a solid 4th line forward next year, and then you also have O’Connor who came in when there was injuries and played quite well and I think could be a solid consistent NHL forward next year, and then you also have Poehling who played his first year in Pittsburgh and did great and I think should remain in the Penguins bottom six and I wouldn’t be surprised if young prospect Sam Poulin also was a consistent NHL forward next year maybe on the third line, then I think they round out the rest of the roster depending on what happens with Granlund, as I could see him be dealt and them go after 2 or 3 bottom six forwards, but if he remains then I could see them go after only 1 or 2 bottom six forwards, and some players I could see the Penguins bring in to help their bottom six would be maybe JVR, Pacioretty or Nyquist who are still good bottom six forwards who would probably take less money then they had on their previous contracts and would really help the Penguins get some more scoring from their depth players, so in my eyes retooling their bottom six has to be a priority for the Pens this season as it would help them get some secondary scoring next year immensely.
.5) Have young players such as Poulin, O’Connor, Smith and Pickering make the NHL team.
Now I think the Penguins do have one of the older cores in the NHL right now and I think infusing some young players into the lineup would really help the Pens and I think they could add some more younger players to their roster next year.
Now the Penguins are one of the older teams in the league and I think adding some youth to their team would be smart on their part, and as I was talking about earlier I think there are a couple of young players who had a taste of NHL action last year who could be regulars next year and one of those guys is Drew O’Connor. Now O’Connor signed as a UFA after being undrafted and hasn’t gotten into a abundance of games up to this point in his NHL career, but the games that he has gotten into he has produced quite well and although I don’t think he will be a high end forward any time soon, I wouldn’t be overly shocked if he was able to carve out a nice bottom six role with the Pens next year, and then probably their best forward prospect in Sam Poulin who was a former first round pick who has only played a grand total of 3 NHL games which were all this year and doesn’t even have a goal, but he has been a pretty good play in Juinors and the AHL and I think maybe playing with a couple of older players on the 3rd line next year he might be able to play quite well so I would think he could be in the lineup next year, then on the defensive end they have a young player in Ty Smith who was mostly in the AHL last year except for a few games but before last year when he was dealt to Pittsburgh, he had played a couple of years in the NHL with Jersey and did pretty and in my opinion I would be quite surprised if he wasn’t at least able to carve out a 3rd pair role for him with the Pens next year, as I think he should definitely be in the NHL, and on top of those three, having a smaller chance to make the roster but someone I could see make it would be Owen Pickering who was the Penguins 1RD pick from last year, a really big defensive prospect who had a really good year in juniors this past season and while I do think he is more likely to be back in Juniors or the minors, I do think that if he shows enough in training camp he may be able to make the 3rd pair possibly, and although I do think that is a long shot I definitely think the Penguins will at least consider it, and I think adding youth will be a big part of the Pens offseason this year and if guys like O’Connor, Poulin, Smith and maybe Pickering make the roster I think the Penguins will be much better off next year.
So in my eyes getting a new starting goalie and moving on from Jarry, reworking their bottom six, adding some more youth to the team, moving on from guys like Carter and Pettersson and maybe even extending Guentzel should all be priorities this offseason and I have a good feeling that if they are able to most of this stuff and get some improvements this offseason they should still be able to compete for a playoff spot next season and maybe if the few changes work in their favour, they will be able to make the playoffs and maybe go on a run, but I think a quick retool should be the Penguins offseason plans this year, but let me know in the comments section what you think the Pens should do this offseason.
And if you like this blog post, then check out my YouTube video about Pittsburgh’s offseason right here. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_CdcLnozPuQ
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