Pittsburgh made the biggest splash this offseason in trading for the Norris Trophy winner. Will that be enough to secure another championship?
were going to do something dramatic in the offseason after missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in 16 seasons. The team's management, including new president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas, would occasionally let Crosby in on their plans during the summer, including potential trade targets. Which was only appropriate, given that any moves they made were in service of sliding a fourth Stanley Cup ring onto the captain's hand.
Crosby understood the obstacles in acquiring Karlsson. Could the Penguins outbid other suitors? Could they make the necessary financial moves to create the salary cap space for Karlsson's considerable contract: $11.5 million against the salary cap through 2026-27? Would Karlsson waive his full no-movement clause for a trade to Pittsburgh?"I've been pretty transparent about it: This was a hockey decision and nothing else.
The player forever known as"Sid The Kid" is 36 years old and in his 19th season. His hair now has some stately gray in it -- not the full, but just enough to signify the passage of time. His last Stanley Cup win was in 2017, and the Penguins have only won a single playoff round since then, including their postseason miss in 2022-23.For other franchises, this lack of championship success with an aging roster -- the average age of the 2023-24 Penguins is 30.
Because this isn't the first time Erik Karlsson has walked into a new dressing room to find a stall occupied by a franchise defenseman.During their four seasons together in San Jose, there was a cottage industry of speculation about their relationship off the ice, to the point where Karlsson was asked about it three minutes into his introductory press conference in Pittsburgh.
The plan is to have one of Karlsson or Letang on the ice every time Crosby or Malkin are out there. Sullivan noted that power-play time was"very important to star players," and that Karlsson and Letang are no exception. The Penguins hoped to use both defensemen on the same power-play unit to start the season, but Sullivan said there would other options if that configuration doesn't produce.
Sullivan said the challenge for him and the team is to make Karlsson feel like he's part of the Penguins' foundation, rather than an add-on. He said Karlsson's ability to break the puck out of the zone and keep possession offensively"a part of playing defense" in the NHL."His skating ability is second to none. So it makes him have the ability to have good gaps in the offensive zone and in the neutral zone and chase down players and not let guys get wide on him," Ferraro said."So I actually think he's a very good defensive player because of how good he is offensively.
"When you have a player like Erik that just commands the puck as much as it does when he's on the ice, you spend a whole lot less time defending. So there's an element of that part of his game," Sullivan said."But as far as his play away from the puck, I just don't subscribe to that narrative that he can't defend. I know he's very capable. We're going to challenge him to grow.
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