Think back to the Pittsburgh Penguins’ back-to-back Stanley Cup runs of 2016 and 2017. Former general manager Jim Rutherford acquired players like Carl Hagelin, Justin Schultz and Ron Hainsey.
These weren’t exactly household names, but they were depth players that did their jobs and contributed to the team’s historical milestone, as Pittsburgh was the first team to win back-to-back titles since the Detroit Red Wings in 1997 and 1998.
Now, think about the times in which the Penguins made some of the league’s biggest splashes at the league’s trade deadline. Recall Jarome Iginla and Brenden Morrow in 2013, Derick Brassard in 2018 and even Marian Hossa back in 2008.
With these moves, the Penguins won the deadline, but no Stanley Cups. That’s not to suggest that there is a direct correlation between splash moves and postseason failure. But think about it.
Iginla and Morrow joined a team that went a perfect 15-0-0 in the month of March and finished the shortened 2013 season with a 36-12-0 record, the best record in the Eastern Conference.
Why mess with such chemistry, especially when both players joined new teams at season’s end?
Brassard joined a 2017-18 squad that won eight of 12 games in the month of February. Brassard scored just 12 goals in 54 games across parts of two seasons before being traded out of Pittsburgh less than a year after being acquired.
Again, why mess with such chemistry, especially for a team trying to win its third consecutive Stanley Cup?
Ron Hextall, the team’s newly-appointed general manager, made the right call by not making splash moves at this year’s trade deadline.
The only new Penguin will be Jeff Carter, a two-time Stanley Cup champion with 19 points in 40 games with the Los Angeles Kings this season. All it cost the Penguins were two future mid-round draft picks. Not too bad.
Carter brings experience and leadership to the team, but he will know his role. He won’t have to handle the type of expectations that Hossa, Iginla, Morrow and Brassard did. He’ll likely be a bottom-six forward and nothing more.
Adding a guy like the 36-year-old Carter not only brings experience, but it brings much-needed depth. The team is currently without forwards Evgeni Malkin, Kasperi Kapanen and Brandon Tanev, all who are dealing with longer-term injuries.
Despite the injuries to key players, the Penguins haven’t missed a beat. Since the start of March, the team has gone 16-5- 1, all but solidifying a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for a league-best 15th consecutive season.
Entering Thursday, the Penguins are an overall 27-13-2 with 56 points. They are currently in third place in the league’s MassMutual East Division, trailing Washington by four points and the Islanders by two.
In eight meetings with the Islanders this season, the Penguins won six. If the current standings hold, the two teams will meet up in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the second time in three seasons. New York swept Pittsburgh in the 2019 Eastern Conference Quarterfinals.
In six battles with the Capitals this year, the Penguins were victorious on four occasions. The two teams will play a pivotal two-game set in Washington, D.C., on April 29 and May 1.
Given this, it’s clear that the Penguins have had and can continue to have success against their two biggest threats in the East Division.
By steering clear from the league’s biggest trade bait — like Buffalo’s Taylor Hall or St. Louis’ Mike Hoffman — Hextall made the right call.
If there’s anything the team has learned in the success it’s had over the past 10 to 15 years, it’s that the Stanley Cup isn’t won at the deadline. It’s won when a team can capture lightning in a bottle at exactly the right time.
If the past 23 games are any predictor, the Penguins may be capturing that lightning once again.
Comments