Random Penguins Fodder

[Pitts]

Matt Nieto has been a good (not great) hockey player on other teams.
Noel Acciari has been a good (not great) hockey player on other teams.
Lars Eller has been a good (not great) hockey player on other teams.

Thus far, they look like a fraction of their former selves.

On that same note, we've watched many players leave Pittsburgh only to become better players elsewhere.

At what point do we question "the system" that Pittsburgh is running and why the endless merry-go-round of players moving through the bottom 6 never play up to their potential/career production levels?

To your point, the Sully miss on McCann…McCann has scored 70 goals in 160 games since leaving the Penguins. That is a 35 goal per season rate over 2+. I am sure this is an unfair assessment because there has to be examples of jettisoned players who perform poorly after leaving the Penguins. It always comes down to placing players on lines to find the best chemistry experiments. When the Penguins have been successful recently, it was because the third line was effective.

McCann is a bad example. In Seattle, he gets to be a top line player and is gifted tons of ice time due to lack of overall talent. Still, his numbers rose pretty much every season whit the Pens. The Pens had (and still do not) no room on the roster to gift him such playing time and responsibility. Sometimes, things just don't work out. I do not think that is necessarily a reflection on the team, system, coach, etc.

[Three Stars]

Matt Nieto has been a good (not great) hockey player on other teams.
Noel Acciari has been a good (not great) hockey player on other teams.
Lars Eller has been a good (not great) hockey player on other teams.

Thus far, they look like a fraction of their former selves.

On that same note, we've watched many players leave Pittsburgh only to become better players elsewhere.

At what point do we question "the system" that Pittsburgh is running and why the endless merry-go-round of players moving through the bottom 6 never play up to their potential/career production levels?

To your point, the Sully miss on McCann…McCann has scored 70 goals in 160 games since leaving the Penguins. That is a 35 goal per season rate over 2+. I am sure this is an unfair assessment because there has to be examples of jettisoned players who perform poorly after leaving the Penguins. It always comes down to placing players on lines to find the best chemistry experiments. When the Penguins have been successful recently, it was because the third line was effective.

McCann is a bad example. In Seattle, he gets to be a top line player and is gifted tons of ice time due to lack of overall talent. Still, his numbers rose pretty much every season whit the Pens. The Pens had (and still do not) no room on the roster to gift him such playing time and responsibility. Sometimes, things just don't work out. I do not think that is necessarily a reflection on the team, system, coach, etc.

McCann was also a complete non-factor in 3 playoffs with the Pens. They could have used his production down the lineup 3 different years and didn’t get it. Hence, they cut ties with him.

[Pitts]

Hinostroza & Hellberg up. Nedeljkovic on IR
https://pittsburghhockeynow.com/pittsbu ... arter-sit/

[KG]

Hinostroza & Hellberg up. Nedeljkovic on IR
https://pittsburghhockeynow.com/pittsbu ... arter-sit/

With Hinostroza being recalled we now have 13 forwards, meaning JMFC can sit! Big question is if Sully will do it. If not, wonder if KD will step in....it's like a plot of a soap opera.

[Coffey Break]

Hinostroza & Hellberg up. Nedeljkovic on IR
https://pittsburghhockeynow.com/pittsbu ... arter-sit/

With Hinostroza being recalled we now have 13 forwards, meaning JMFC can sit! Big question is if Sully will do it. If not, wonder if KD will step in....it's like a plot of a soap opera.

I would be utterly stunned and shell-shocked if there is any change to the the lineup. It's simply not the Sullivan Way.

I will just never understand how Hinistroza, Poulin, Puustinen, etc. could possibly be any worse than Jeff freakin Carter (at 1/3 of the cost basically). Dude handles pucks like hand grenades, skates like he's stuck in molasses and a complete black hole on offense. It's hard not to imagine how much of an anchor he is to both Nieto and Acciari (2 guys who have been pretty solid bottom 6ers historically) and how much they would benefit from having someone on that line that can keep up and drive possession.

[Three Stars]

Why does there have to be this manufactured drama with Sullivan and/or Dubas? Is this a coping mechanism?

It’s ok that the team is simply not as good as we want it to be. It doesn’t mean that Sullivan has it out for anyone, or that he’s wrestling behind the scenes with leadership, or that he’s doing things deliberately to piss off fans.

I’d actually root for the latter. “I’m playing Jeff Carter just to piss off LGP.COM, rather than trying to get something useful out of him before we turn the page for good. All of my decisions are there to make you mad. Hashtag Dealwithit. *sunglasses*”.

[Pitts]

LOL! I agree. The standard is the standard ... or something.

If Jeff Carter is the root of the problem, this team is literally F'd.

[Admin]

Based on his skating speed, Carter is not the problem.

[maopens]

Jeff Carter.

We've all been there. Every guy who played pick-up league anything has eventually found hmself staring at the other end of a basketball court, questioning how it suddenly seems so far away, and determined that it's half-court basketball from now on. Full-court was just too much effort at this age. Maybe I need new shoes? Maybe I should stretch out my hamstrings first? Probably shouldn't have had that plate of lasagna before heading to the court?

He's old (for this professional sport). His gas tank doesn't hold much anymore. His fuel warning light is illuminated once he puts on his pants and then labors to add socks and shoes.

Back in my military days, we had a term for those guys who were clearly riding out their time until retirement. He's ROAD. Retired On Active Duty.

[Pitts]

He's ROAD. Retired On Active Duty.

That is the most apt description I've seen yet.

[DelPen]

Interesting cap management to get the maximum relief before putting Ned on LTIR. He definitely looked hurt after he tried to skate out to stop the shot on his pass to no one at the point before a goal.

If Carter is not the one to sit then Sullivan needs to go.

[DelPen]

And I just saw Sullivan’s quote that Vinnie will drive to Pittsburgh, take the warm up but probably not play. **** this guy.

[FLPensFan]

Two quick comments from Dejan's Friday Insider:

--Don't sleep on Ryan Shea. From what DK says, the coaches really like what they have seen so far...and they like it more than what they've seen from Ryan Graves to date.

--Sullivan said DOC's game last night may have been his best game in the NHL so far.

[Cow_Master66]

Jeff Carter.

We've all been there. Every guy who played pick-up league anything has eventually found hmself staring at the other end of a basketball court, questioning how it suddenly seems so far away, and determined that it's half-court basketball from now on. Full-court was just too much effort at this age. Maybe I need new shoes? Maybe I should stretch out my hamstrings first? Probably shouldn't have had that plate of lasagna before heading to the court?

He's old (for this professional sport). His gas tank doesn't hold much anymore. His fuel warning light is illuminated once he puts on his pants and then labors to add socks and shoes.

Back in my military days, we had a term for those guys who were clearly riding out their time until retirement. He's ROAD. Retired On Active Duty.

Half-court hoops is way more taxing than full court...

[Three Stars]

[Pitts]

Connor Garland wants out of Vancouver ...

[FLPensFan]

Connor Garland wants out of Vancouver ...

He wants out, and I think Vancouver is VERY willing to move his salary. Last rumors I heard from my buddy in Vancouver, was that Chicago has the most interest. CBJ may have had interest as well, as there was also a 3-team deal out there.

EDIT: Speaking to my buddy in Vancouver, says they aren't looking to move Hoglander at this point, and Canucks already have an overload of LHD so acquiring POJ probably won't happen.

[KG]

Connor Garland wants out of Vancouver ...

Garlands contract is the sticking point. 2 more years at $4.95Mill. Don't see how we can make that work, unless you know who agrees to get traded...

[Sams_Dog]

Why does there have to be this manufactured drama with Sullivan and/or Dubas? Is this a coping mechanism?

It’s ok that the team is simply not as good as we want it to be. It doesn’t mean that Sullivan has it out for anyone, or that he’s wrestling behind the scenes with leadership, or that he’s doing things deliberately to piss off fans.

I’d actually root for the latter. “I’m playing Jeff Carter just to piss off LGP.COM, rather than trying to get something useful out of him before we turn the page for good. All of my decisions are there to make you mad. Hashtag Dealwithit. *sunglasses*”.

I think Sullivan deserves a lot of criticism for continuing to play Carter. No matter how you look at it - eye test, scoreboard, advanced stats - he doesn’t belong in the lineup. Sullivan is deliberately choosing to ice a lineup that is not the best lineup and decreasing the odds of the team winning. I really wish some media person who put him on the spot about it. They ask but then they accept the standard BS answer. DK I think challenged him on it once. It makes no sense. There has to be a reason that he plays him. At this point it’s fair to demand an answer.

[Three Stars]

Why does there have to be this manufactured drama with Sullivan and/or Dubas? Is this a coping mechanism?

It’s ok that the team is simply not as good as we want it to be. It doesn’t mean that Sullivan has it out for anyone, or that he’s wrestling behind the scenes with leadership, or that he’s doing things deliberately to piss off fans.

I’d actually root for the latter. “I’m playing Jeff Carter just to piss off LGP.COM, rather than trying to get something useful out of him before we turn the page for good. All of my decisions are there to make you mad. Hashtag Dealwithit. *sunglasses*”.

I think Sullivan deserves a lot of criticism for continuing to play Carter. No matter how you look at it - eye test, scoreboard, advanced stats - he doesn’t belong in the lineup. Sullivan is deliberately choosing to ice a lineup that is not the best lineup and decreasing the odds of the team winning. I really wish some media person who put him on the spot about it. They ask but then they accept the standard BS answer. DK I think challenged him on it once. It makes no sense. There has to be a reason that he plays him. At this point it’s fair to demand an answer.

Jeff Carter's impact on the last several games has either been slightly negative or mildly positive. He's the 4th line right wing. He's no longer bleeding chances against because his coach is severely limiting his minutes. All he really does anymore is skate fast, exist as a big body, win an unusually high number of faceoffs, and get breakaways that he doesn't finish. If they can continue to minimize his minutes and have him win an unusually high number of faceoffs, that's a good thing no matter what. There is such a thing as a faceoff specialist. The Pens are currently among the very best faceoff teams in the league and he's one of the reasons why. If they were losing faceoffs, I'm fairly sure there would be hand wringing about it around here.

Sitting 3.125 million dollars of cap space on the bench doesn't mean that they can then summon 3.125 million dollars of players to replace Carter. He's not getting demoted or waived because that's impossible. He's not getting traded unless he wants to be, and I'm fairly sure that his family just bought a house in Pittsburgh. If he retired at this very moment then his cap space would still be in place for the rest of the year. Carter will either be in the lineup and hopefully quasi-useful, or he's a pure drag on their finances just to make the fans whine less and feel better about themselves...until they start whining about 3.125 million dollars of dead cap space in the press box.

[FLPensFan]

Prayers up for former Penguin Adam Johnson, who was playing for the Nottingham Panthers in England, when he took a skate to the throat.

Players sent to locker room, building was cleared, and CPR was performed on the ice. No further update has been given yet on Johnson's status. I believe this all took place in the last 2 hours.

[Daniel]

Why does there have to be this manufactured drama with Sullivan and/or Dubas? Is this a coping mechanism?

It’s ok that the team is simply not as good as we want it to be. It doesn’t mean that Sullivan has it out for anyone, or that he’s wrestling behind the scenes with leadership, or that he’s doing things deliberately to piss off fans.

I’d actually root for the latter. “I’m playing Jeff Carter just to piss off LGP.COM, rather than trying to get something useful out of him before we turn the page for good. All of my decisions are there to make you mad. Hashtag Dealwithit. *sunglasses*”.

I think Sullivan deserves a lot of criticism for continuing to play Carter. No matter how you look at it - eye test, scoreboard, advanced stats - he doesn’t belong in the lineup. Sullivan is deliberately choosing to ice a lineup that is not the best lineup and decreasing the odds of the team winning. I really wish some media person who put him on the spot about it. They ask but then they accept the standard BS answer. DK I think challenged him on it once. It makes no sense. There has to be a reason that he plays him. At this point it’s fair to demand an answer.

Jeff Carter's impact on the last several games has either been slightly negative or mildly positive. He's the 4th line right wing. He's no longer bleeding chances against because his coach is severely limiting his minutes. All he really does anymore is skate fast, exist as a big body, win an unusually high number of faceoffs, and get breakaways that he doesn't finish. If they can continue to minimize his minutes and have him win an unusually high number of faceoffs, that's a good thing no matter what. There is such a thing as a faceoff specialist. The Pens are currently among the very best faceoff teams in the league and he's one of the reasons why. If they were losing faceoffs, I'm fairly sure there would be hand wringing about it around here.

Sitting 3.125 million dollars of cap space on the bench doesn't mean that they can then summon 3.125 million dollars of players to replace Carter. He's not getting demoted or waived because that's impossible. He's not getting traded unless he wants to be, and I'm fairly sure that his family just bought a house in Pittsburgh. If he retired at this very moment then his cap space would still be in place for the rest of the year. Carter will either be in the lineup and hopefully quasi-useful, or he's a pure drag on their finances just to make the fans whine less and feel better about themselves...until they start whining about 3.125 million dollars of dead cap space in the press box.

I'd rather the 3.125 million + about $900K for a player who can do better than break even. Carter might be at a 60% faceoff mark, but that's only for 15 faceoffs. I'm sure the team will be okay without his 9 faceoff wins.

Seriously, other than his 9 faceoff wins and 6 shots what does he do to help the team and how is that better than what literally anyone at WBS can do?

[Antonio]

It's funny because it's not 9 face off wins. The implication there, incorrectly, is that he achieves 60 percent compared to an alternative player who would achieve 0. Anyone else is likely about 50 percent so we are talking 1 to 2 incremental wins a game, maybe.

[Pitts]

Why does there have to be this manufactured drama with Sullivan and/or Dubas? Is this a coping mechanism?

It’s ok that the team is simply not as good as we want it to be. It doesn’t mean that Sullivan has it out for anyone, or that he’s wrestling behind the scenes with leadership, or that he’s doing things deliberately to piss off fans.

I’d actually root for the latter. “I’m playing Jeff Carter just to piss off LGP.COM, rather than trying to get something useful out of him before we turn the page for good. All of my decisions are there to make you mad. Hashtag Dealwithit. *sunglasses*”.

I think Sullivan deserves a lot of criticism for continuing to play Carter. No matter how you look at it - eye test, scoreboard, advanced stats - he doesn’t belong in the lineup. Sullivan is deliberately choosing to ice a lineup that is not the best lineup and decreasing the odds of the team winning. I really wish some media person who put him on the spot about it. They ask but then they accept the standard BS answer. DK I think challenged him on it once. It makes no sense. There has to be a reason that he plays him. At this point it’s fair to demand an answer.

Jeff Carter's impact on the last several games has either been slightly negative or mildly positive. He's the 4th line right wing. He's no longer bleeding chances against because his coach is severely limiting his minutes. All he really does anymore is skate fast, exist as a big body, win an unusually high number of faceoffs, and get breakaways that he doesn't finish. If they can continue to minimize his minutes and have him win an unusually high number of faceoffs, that's a good thing no matter what. There is such a thing as a faceoff specialist. The Pens are currently among the very best faceoff teams in the league and he's one of the reasons why. If they were losing faceoffs, I'm fairly sure there would be hand wringing about it around here.

Sitting 3.125 million dollars of cap space on the bench doesn't mean that they can then summon 3.125 million dollars of players to replace Carter. He's not getting demoted or waived because that's impossible. He's not getting traded unless he wants to be, and I'm fairly sure that his family just bought a house in Pittsburgh. If he retired at this very moment then his cap space would still be in place for the rest of the year. Carter will either be in the lineup and hopefully quasi-useful, or he's a pure drag on their finances just to make the fans whine less and feel better about themselves...until they start whining about 3.125 million dollars of dead cap space in the press box.

I'd rather the 3.125 million + about $900K for a player who can do better than break even. Carter might be at a 60% faceoff mark, but that's only for 15 faceoffs. I'm sure the team will be okay without his 9 faceoff wins.

Seriously, other than his 9 faceoff wins and 6 shots what does he do to help the team and how is that better than what literally anyone at WBS can do?

Point is, you are not going to get that cap space this year no matter how many times anyone says it. Not one penny of it. So, he plays.

[Daniel]

Why does there have to be this manufactured drama with Sullivan and/or Dubas? Is this a coping mechanism?

It’s ok that the team is simply not as good as we want it to be. It doesn’t mean that Sullivan has it out for anyone, or that he’s wrestling behind the scenes with leadership, or that he’s doing things deliberately to piss off fans.

I’d actually root for the latter. “I’m playing Jeff Carter just to piss off LGP.COM, rather than trying to get something useful out of him before we turn the page for good. All of my decisions are there to make you mad. Hashtag Dealwithit. *sunglasses*”.

I think Sullivan deserves a lot of criticism for continuing to play Carter. No matter how you look at it - eye test, scoreboard, advanced stats - he doesn’t belong in the lineup. Sullivan is deliberately choosing to ice a lineup that is not the best lineup and decreasing the odds of the team winning. I really wish some media person who put him on the spot about it. They ask but then they accept the standard BS answer. DK I think challenged him on it once. It makes no sense. There has to be a reason that he plays him. At this point it’s fair to demand an answer.

Jeff Carter's impact on the last several games has either been slightly negative or mildly positive. He's the 4th line right wing. He's no longer bleeding chances against because his coach is severely limiting his minutes. All he really does anymore is skate fast, exist as a big body, win an unusually high number of faceoffs, and get breakaways that he doesn't finish. If they can continue to minimize his minutes and have him win an unusually high number of faceoffs, that's a good thing no matter what. There is such a thing as a faceoff specialist. The Pens are currently among the very best faceoff teams in the league and he's one of the reasons why. If they were losing faceoffs, I'm fairly sure there would be hand wringing about it around here.

Sitting 3.125 million dollars of cap space on the bench doesn't mean that they can then summon 3.125 million dollars of players to replace Carter. He's not getting demoted or waived because that's impossible. He's not getting traded unless he wants to be, and I'm fairly sure that his family just bought a house in Pittsburgh. If he retired at this very moment then his cap space would still be in place for the rest of the year. Carter will either be in the lineup and hopefully quasi-useful, or he's a pure drag on their finances just to make the fans whine less and feel better about themselves...until they start whining about 3.125 million dollars of dead cap space in the press box.

I'd rather the 3.125 million + about $900K for a player who can do better than break even. Carter might be at a 60% faceoff mark, but that's only for 15 faceoffs. I'm sure the team will be okay without his 9 faceoff wins.

Seriously, other than his 9 faceoff wins and 6 shots what does he do to help the team and how is that better than what literally anyone at WBS can do?

Point is, you are not going to get that cap space this year no matter how many times anyone says it. Not one penny of it. So, he plays.

3 step plan to not play Jeff Carter:
Step 1: have 13 forwards
Step 2: have 7 defensemen
Step 3: scratch Carter

The $3.125M is wasted cap space whether Carter is forward number 12 or forward number 13. Granted I think Sullivan is the biggest problem with the Penguins, so I guess it doesn’t matter whether Carter plays or not.

After watching that Adam Johnson video, whether Jeff Carter plays or not is nothing compared to what happened abroad.