Penguins One-Timers: Bogus Rumors, Letang’s Age, and Holding Hope

If you go down a deep enough internet rabbit hole, you will not only find out that the earth is some sort of donut, the moon is made of metal, and birds are fake, but you’ll also see plenty of NHL trade rumors from random keyboards that are taken as gospel truths.

It seems we’ve truly reached a tipping point in society, where trust isn’t earned by truth but received when embracing the things that aggressively contest accepted reality.

Did you know that the Penguins are going to trade Evgeni Malkin to the Dallas Stars?

I read it on the internet. It must be true. People who don’t cover teams, have never covered teams, and don’t even cover hockey games can have sources and report stories that those shills who cover teams can’t report, right?

It must be true. The rumor has popped up in multiple places.

Would you care to bet on it?

Fans are anxious for the quick turnaround and return to Stanely Cup glory, and they want it to be true. Therefore, purveyors and promulgators of possibility press on with the preponderance of poppycock. Malkin has been asked about it in the past. He’s here. He’s committed to the Penguins. As he winds down his career, he has passed on numerous opportunities to leave and fought to stay. Malkin has been separated from his family for enormous amounts of time in order to stay, and it seems silly that he would open the door to leaving just a year and a half from the finish line.

Also, his family isn’t in Dallas, but his hockey family is in Pittsburgh.

A couple of days before Marcus Pettersson was traded, he brought up the media paradigm shift and how it makes the silly season tougher for players because rumors can fly from all angles, and the audience is seemingly receptive to anonymous or tangential accounts. They can’t just ignore the newspaper or turn off sports radio anymore.

See also: Sidney Crosby trade rumors.

Kris Letang

While Malkin skates toward the end of his career, it seems defenseman Kris Letang has taken a step in that direction, too. Or, rather, Letang has lost a step in that direction,

It was a second-period moment against the Nashville Predators Saturday that clearly encapsulated the burst Letang no longer possesses when his pass at the offensive blue line was blocked. He had to retreat to retrieve the puck at center ice, but the forward was able to catch Letang far too easily despite no lack of effort by the Penguins’ defenseman.

Letang has three years remaining on his six-year deal after this season, which has always seemed too many, but the reality of age looks like it is tapping Letang on the shoulder. While Crosby is able to adjust his game to his strengths, such adjustments are much tougher for a defenseman.

To get ahead of many reactions, Letang’s contract is a 35+, which means it doesn’t matter if he retires before the end of the deal or not. It doesn’t matter if the Penguins eventually waive him (they can’t without his permission); his salary will count 100% against the cap until the end of the contract.

Letang is on pace for his lowest per-game output since he was a fresh-faced third-pairing defenseman with more talent than execution in 2009-2010. He had 27 points in 73 games that season and has only 20 points after 54 games this season. He hasn’t registered less than 1.5 points per 60 since 2010 and has just 1.1 this year.

Further into his production analytics, he’s been on the ice for 2.8 goals-for/60, which ties for the lowest of his career, and 3.5 goals-against/60, which is the worst of his career.

In response, Letang has limited his mistakes and hasn’t tried to do too much, but is that enough for a top-pairing defenseman?

We’ve written it before, but former GM Ron Hextall could not have mangled those Malkin and Letang contract negotiations worse than he did. The Penguins could have given Letang six years and a full no-movement clause without making the deal an impenetrable 35+ contract.

Since current Penguins GM Kyle Dubas and Fenway Sports Group ownership are in “the mode of being impatient,” the Penguins might still be saddled with Letang’s cap hit when the organization is turning the corner on their retool.

New Hope

It would surely seem a long shot of long shots for the Penguins to make another playoff push this season. Other teams are getting better, such as the Detroit Red Wings and New York Islanders, and others won’t be performing the embarrassing swan dives that befell the Eastern Conference contenders last season.

Yet there is an air of optimism in the Penguins’ room that feels more genuine than whistling past the graveyard.

They’ve won two in a row, both games over subpar opponents who aren’t likely to make the playoffs this season. But just in case, the Penguins need 68% of their remaining points to reach 90.

However, Columbus needs just 53% of their remaining points to get there.

If the mark is 95 points, the Penguins need a ridiculous 77%, while Columbus and others need about 62%.

Just don’t tell the Penguins.