Penguins Wrap: Defending the Power Play; Jobs Fair Underway

The first full week of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ earliest offseason in more than a decade was relatively uneventful, at least on the surface.

Fenway Sports Group officials are assessing various issues that will have a profound impact on the future of the franchise — who the candidates to succeed Ron Hextall as general manager and fill other management niches are, how the front office will be structured, etc. — but there was no significant public movement on any of those fronts.

That doesn’t mean there was a shortage of Penguins-related subjects to be discussed, however.

Here’s a look back at the early days of the Penguins’ offseason:

Sunday

Mike Sullivan offers a staunch defense of the Penguins’ power play, which finished in the middle of the NHL pack despite the presence of at least two future Hall of Famers and 36-goal man Jake Guentzel on the No. 1 unit.

Monday

Projecting the Penguins’ roster and salary-cap situation for next season.

An analysis of how each Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman and goaltender performed during the 2022-23 season. (+)

Tuesday

Whatever changes the Penguins make before next season, their core of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang should remain intact.

Four more candidates worthy of consideration for the Penguins’ GM job.

Wednesday

An analysis of how the Penguins’ forwards performed during the past season. (+)

A report by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman lays out the asking price the Pittsburgh Penguins declined to pay to acquire J.T. Miller from Vancouver during the past season.

Thursday

Defenseman Jan Rutta is recovering from core-muscle surgery performed this week in St. Louis.

Former Pittsburgh Penguins GM Ray Shero should get serious consideration to be the liaison between the Hockey Ops department and the business side of the franchise, regardless of what the position is called.

Friday

A look at what led to the Penguins’ front-office changes, and where the road to finding replacements for Ron Hextall and/or Brian Burke might be headed.

Saturday

The Pittsburgh Penguins face plenty of questions as they prepare for their first draft after the firing of Ron Hextall.