Prospects, Trades, & More: 4 Reasons to Keep Watching the Penguins Season

The clamor over USA vs Canada will die down, and we will be left with the final 25 games of the NHL regular season. The games for the Pittsburgh Penguins could well become a soulless trudge as hopes fade and trade deadline activity rips away a couple of productive players, truly signaling to all involved that there will be no playoff push this year.

If the Penguins were to give general manager Kyle Dubas pause, they would first need a pair of wins this weekend against the Washington Capitals and then the next two games against the Philadelphia Flyers, both in regulation. Should the Penguins win three in a row, it may signal to Dubas that there is some fight left in the tea, and he could delay deals.

Could, anyway.

We’ve not seen the Penguins be able to put that kind of necessary winning streak together since early December. They tried in vain before the Four Nations Face-Off break but were short in a couple of games.

There is also the pending matter of Sidney Crosby. His arm injury appeared to worsen through the Four Nations tournament, and he attempted only a few shots in four games. Even Evgeni Malkin referred to it after practice Wednesday. If the Penguins are without Crosby for a couple of games or longer, the life raft of playoff hopes that is adrift at sea without an interested search party will quickly lose air.

Fans may ask for reasons to continue upon the slog with the team that will not reward them with shiny glory. However, the answers are simple.

4 Reasons to Watch the Rest of the Penguins Season

1. Fun to Watch Effort

The first reason to care about the rest of the Penguins’ season is that they aren’t out of it yet, and they’re going to the mat to get back into the hunt.

They don’t have a choice, and just as you could bet a few donuts on Crosby winning in a Team Canada sweater, you can also believe the Penguins have some fight left.

They may not be good enough, and injuries might rob them of the ability to make a real push, but as you saw in the games leading to the break, the effort won’t be a problem. The Penguins played high-energy, tough hockey without Crosby in the final two games before the break.

Many of you and I shared the same view: it was fun to watch, even if they beat the Rangers but lost to the Flyers.

2. Showtime

There will be a couple or few prospects getting their best or last chance to claim an NHL roster spot. Emil Bemstrom is first up, and he’s with the team this week, indicating he’ll get a chance on the ice, probably ahead of veteran Matt Nieto. Bemstrom is 25 and washed out with his last two opportunities, first with Columbus, then last season with the Penguins.

He’s flipped a switch this season and is playing his best hockey.

Based on assistant general manager Jason Spezza’s comments, Sam Poulin and Vasily Ponomarev are probably next in line, especially if the Penguins are filling a bottom-six role. Poulin has been a slow build, finding his niche and overhauling his game to fit himself into the NHL mold.

He was the Penguins’ 2019 first-round pick, the first one they kept since 2012 (Kasperi Kapanen, the 2014 first-round pick, was traded one year later as part of the Phil Kessel deal).

Ponomarev is also 23 and getting a little bit long in the tooth to be a prospect, too. He’s recently begun pushing the envelope, trying to carve out a niche as a tough winger, though his efforts have been a little misguided and hurt the team.

For Poulin, you may witness his last chance. For Ponomarev, his best chance before the wave of prospects behind him catches up.

Bemstrom is probably the one to keep an eye on. If he puts the puzzle pieces together, the Penguins could have a middle-six winger.

Then, there is the rest of the crew. Reading tea leaves, the organization won’t be calling up players for a weekend peek-a-boo at the big show but for real when they are ready.

Add Owen Pickering to the list of players on the watch list. He could be here any day, especially if the team trades Matt Grzelcyk. The Penguins 2022 first-rounder has a real chance to be a solid contributor, but a locker room character that brings people together.

Before you ask, my gut feeling is that Rutger McGroarty and Ville Koivunen are next year’s arrivals.

3. Goaltending

This is also Alex Nedeljkovic’s big chance to assert himself as a goaltender who can carry the responsibilities of being a No. 1 goalie.

Or, if young players are your interest, Joel Blomqvist will get a good look, too. The Penguins’ March schedule is something just short of hellacious, so both goalies will get plenty of starts.

Nedeljkovic isn’t quite the character that Marc-Andre Fleury is, but he’s a solid leader with a good sense of humor. He doesn’t take life too seriously but takes his job quite seriously. Because of his scrappy attitude and on-ice presence, he’s easy to root for.

This is his big chance.

4. The Trades

We know they are coming. We just don’t know who, what, or when. In fact, today begins the two-week countdown to the deadline, so it’s time to buckle up. Dubas could be in on some young players who are ready for the NHL or acquire some new blood, much like he did with Michael Bunting in the Jake Guentzel trade.

We don’t know what’s going down as GMs had a moment to breathe during the tournament. Will a few of them see the rising cap as a green flag to go for a player such as Erik Karlsson or Rickard Rakell, and what will Dubas get in return?

The players hate the silly season because family members and friends can’t help but send them every rumor and every trade-talk report, but we can have fun with it. (I wonder if players’ families are as gullible as the thousands of people who like Facebook-based sites with big clickbait headlines?)

Dubas’s reformation of the roster and turn toward the next chapter begins now.