Pierre for GM? Is it really that crazy?

As you may know (if you haven't been living under a rock for the past 2 weeks) that Pierre McGuire had his second interview with the Penguins for the open GM position. As I was scrolling through twitter when it got covered yesterday, it kind of boggled my mind that so many people would have that much backlash for a man as smart as Pierre McGuire.

We should start by saying that the 4 of us that contribute to this blog, may be the only 4 people in the country who actually like Pierre McGuire. If you get past the fact that he is a little creepy, the man knows hockey more than just about anyone.

So we wanna look at this from the aspect of, is Pierre McGuire really that bad of a candidate that everyone thinks he is?

Let's start by looking at the list of other potential candidates.

Jason Botteril - Pittsburgh Assistant GM (Interim)
Tom Fitzgerald - Pittsburgh Assistant to the GM
Julien BriseBrois - Tampa Bay Assistant GM
Paul Fenton - Nashville Assistant GM
Jeff Gorton - New York Rangers Assistant GM
Norm MacIver - Chicago Assistant GM
Dave Poulin - Toronto (something)

Let's now cross a few names off of the list.
Jason Botteril and Tom Fitzgerald. By keeping those two around, the Penguins would go from making a big change to crawling back into the pool. Botteril will be an excellent GM some day, but not in Pittsburgh. He would be deemed as someone who is exactly like Ray Shero, and that's exactly what the Penguins need to get away from. Fitzgerald would be the same considering he was Shero's assistant. Nothing wrong with the two of them, but I'm not sure if one of those two are chosen, it really resignates in much, they may keep Dan Bylsma, and the entire organization remains stale.

Paul Fenton. Cross him off because you don't want to continue down the Nashville track. That was Shero's biggest weakness. He tried to build the Penguins like the Predators. Build on D and forget about Forward even though he had two superstars at Center. Fenton should be immediately crossed off.

That leaves us to Pierre, BriseBrois, Gorton, MacIver, and Poulin. BriseBrois or Poulin seem like the likely candidates, but are they really that much better than Pierre? Another question would be, will an Assistant GM be ready to become the GM of a team already? I know the same question would revolve around Pierre, but it's really no difference.

Which one of those guys do you think know hockey more than Pierre McGuire? I get it that BriseBrois, Gorton, MacIver, and Poulin aren't necessarily househould names and some of you may just be hearing these names for the first time, but are they really that much better than Pierre?

Pierre would more than likely be a world class scouter and more than likely could help fill the needs of this roster. He also has a pretty good working relationship with many General Managers in the NHL currently and that definitely would be a good thing for the Penguins. One would also tend to believe that Pierre would find a good coach to replace Dan Bylsma.

Another thing to consider is that Pierre has very close ties in the Penguins organization and also was a part of the 1991 and 1992 Stanley Cup teams in Pittsburgh and it would be deemed that he would be pretty close with Mario Lemieux.

In closing, Pierre McGuire may not be the best candidate for General Manager of the Pittsburgh Penguins, but he's also not that much of an idiotic choice as well.

We aren't really sure what is going to pan out over the next couple of days as the Penguins should announce by mid week who the GM is, but we won't be surprised and we definitely won't hate the fact that it could be Pierre.

Go Pens.

Game Day. Banner Night. EASHL

5 Living rooms across Western Pennsylvania, 9:14PM.

Television: HDMI 1 or 2 (check local listings)

   Well since we've been posting many serious things regarding the Penguins and what we believe their approach to the offseason should be, we've decided to share with you, the valued reader, some light but very serious news. Tonight is Thursday, which means on NHL 14 it is banner time. Every week a new playoff opportunity arises where our team We Pucked Your Mom is able to compete and dominate and a raise a banner or be shafted by EA (NHL picks our fate beforehand). Either way, tonight is the night. Four games separate our team @ZackMorris82 @YouMeAndDupuis @Kingling43 @Bobbles412 and @TwitterlessJosh from greatness. The stakes are high and we're here to inform you because you care so much. 

Lines: (Via EASHL Morning Skate)

        I Jatted On Your Mom - Ur Mom Is Alesbian - Your Moms Vagissmelly

Ur Moms Fav EASHL Player - Ur Snatch Is So Loose

Scrub Goalie

About us: 

   

@Bobbles412

   Led by our solid first line right winger Your Moms Vagissmelly (which is indeed German, like Goc) is not only a locker room presence but a physical force on the rink as well.  Known more taking 344353 strides to hit someone than his goals, he indeed keeps opponents in check. Look out for the words "!#%$ U Pink" and "Goodnight Moon" when he's coming after you. However Vagissmelly is riding a 6 game point streak with 9 goals over the last 4 contests. Look for him to be a force in the playoffs tonight. 

@ZackMorris82

  Next on the roster is I Jatted On Your Mom which is Austrian (much like Thomas Vanek. He is a solid first line left winger with the natural knack for glitch goals and pissing off other EASHL opponents. I Jatted On Your Mom has maybe scored three goals in which there was no glitch effort, and maybe has four career assists. He is known as a sniper rather than a passer, so when he has the puck look for the shot. In addition, Jatted On Your Mom is also a pro at taking 349634 strides to kill opponents and his second home is often in the penalty box. Look for Vagissmelly and Jatted On Your Mom to lead the team in PIMS tonight. 

Vagissmelly and Jatted On Your Mom lay the boom

@Kingling43

  Ur Mom Is Alesbian is a top center in EASHL Division 8. Alesbian which is Swiss (like Streit) is known for his two-way game (hehehe) as well as driving hard to the net and picking up the garbage. It is no coincidence that his number is 69 because he likes it dirty, picking up loose (hehehe) rebounds in front of the net. Also, his faceoff percentage is better than Brandon Sutter's in the post-season. Alesbian is also known to lower the boom too, so when he's on the ice look out for the words "Goodnight Moon" before he takes 34353 strides to kill you. Alesbian was also this month's "Mustache Boy" for his inability to convert on shootouts during our OPTIONAL practices (no jab at Bylsma there). Lastly, look for Alesbian to be a physical force (hehehe) in the playoffs tonight as he is known to take the occasional five minute penalty.

@YouMeAndDupuis

  Ur Moms Fav EASHL Player (the only player with American dissent on this team) is probably the smartest out of all the degenerates on the team. Known for barely taking runs at pink (who is the most hated opponent color on NHL 14), his blazing speed and back-checking abilities, much like Kris Letang except Ur Moms Fav EASHL Player has never had a stroke. Ur Moms Fav EASHL Player is also known for his long reach (hehehe) and his ability to stop breakaways with that poke check. He is a locker room presence, just like Craig Adams but 3425345% better. The only flaw in his game is his ghetto ass connection in which he disconnects in 3/5 games a night, however even his CPU player leads by example like him. Look for Ur Moms Fav EASHL Player to bring some solid defense to the table tonight as well as his ability to lead by example.

@TwitterlessJosh

  The newest member to We Pucked Your Mom is Ur Snatch Is So Loose (which is Finnish, like Maatta). He was a brought in at the EASHL trade deadline for literally nothing, much like the Niskanen and Neal for Goligoski deal, we won this one). Ur Snatch Is So Loose is a solid two-way (hehehe) defenseman, known more for his offensive abilities. His ability to jump up in the rush makes We Pucked Your Mom a threat both offensively and defensively. Not known to lower the boom too much, look for him and Ur Moms Fav EASHL Player to log the most ice time tonight. 

Notes:

• First game is at 9:14PM Eastern just so you're aware
• Live tweeting will conducted by any team member who is currently in the penalty box
• Mustache Boy will take place prior to the night's first playoff game because we're the "Get Along Gang" and do not care
• F U Pink, we're coming for you   

If you take offense to this post well then:

   Lastly, we will leave you with words of inspiration from our captain @Bobbles412 with a rendition of Mario Lemieux's speech prior to game 7 in Detroit, but way better in our opinions. 

#BecauseItsTheBanner  

State Of The Penguins Address.

*Warning: This post depicts our views as armchair GMs.  If you aren't into that sort of stuff, well. 

 Viewer discretion is advised.

The Penguins are a mess.  Plain and simple.  No sugar coating it.  No way around it.  No hiding it.  They are a mess whether you want to admit it or not.  "But they've made the playoffs 9 years in a row!!!111!!!11!"  Ok well how many times have they been to the Finals since 09?  If we could use one picture to describe the current state of the Pens it would be this one: 

If we wanted to take time and use photo shop we would have photo shopped David Morehouse's head and a Pens logo onto the picture below and used it:

 

But we are too lazy.  If anyone wants to do that for us though we'll give you a high five and a shout out on twitter or something.  Maybe even 5 bucks.  Anyways back to the Pens.  Since 09 this team has bowed out of the playoffs in the 2nd, 1st, 1st, 3rd, and 2nd rounds.  3 of those rounds they led in the series.  2 of them they were up 3-1.  1 of them they were swept.  1 they were embarrassed by the Flyers.  The Penguins now are turning into what the Washington Capitals were.  A regular season juggernaut followed by a playoff flameout.  It's become frustrating.  It's become infuriating.  You watch this team all season and they give the false hope that this could be the year, especially the last 2, only to fall flat on their faces.  The 4 of us that contribute to the blog were all at game of the Rangers series this year.  I can't speak for Zack or Nate but I know Andrew and I sat in the arena just starring.  At the ice.  The ceiling.  Our rally towels.  Disappointed, angry, and quite frankly fed up with the garbage we had just watched and have become accustomed to for the past 5 season.  The Penguins need change and they need it NOW.

The Pens need change in attitude.  This team and organization have become soft.  They, like Mario Lemieux put it, lack grit and character.  They need to change from top to bottom.  They've started that change by firing Ray Shero.  But that's not enough.  They need to continue that change going forward or else we will be right back here next year, pissed off at another Penguins flameout.  But what else can the Pens do to change?   *Here is the part you anti arm chair GMs should probably stop reading.  

Here are 5 things the Pens need to do to push that change and make this team better moving forward.

1. Fire Dan Bylsma.  This should have been done already.  If you would have asked Pens fans last Friday who they would have taken, Bylsma or Shero, most of them would have taken Shero and fired Bylsma.  The few that said keep Bylsma and fire Shero probably would have used "Bylsma won a cup" as their reason.  Regardless the Pens need change behind the bench.  Dan Bylsma has lost this team and the book is out on how to beat his system.  And he is too stubborn to adjust and make changes when his system gets shut down.  It's his way and no one is gonna tell him otherwise.  Dan Bylsma has got to go or have fun with flaming out in the 2nd round every year.

2. Shoot David Morehouse.  Most of you will probably be like "wtf?"  Well listen up.  David Morehouse is a jack ass.  Plain and simple.  And this jack ass wants to have a bigger role in the Pens hockey operations.  This should scare you.  Quite frankly it terrifies us.  We could go into it but we don't have the time to dig a bunch of shit up.  So instead read this post on David Morehouse that our good friends at the Pensblog wrote yesterday.  You can find it HERE.  Frightened yet?

3. The Roster. The makeup of the Pens roster needs to change.  Big time.  Let's start with the UFAs.  F all of them.  Don't resign a single one.  Brooks Orpik is washed up and can barely go anymore.  F Matt Niskanen.  He's a locker room cancer and quite frankly he sucks.  Let him go get 6 million a year from Buffalo.  F the rest of the UFAs.  They really aren't even worth listing.  Now the RFAs.  Brandon Sutter and Simon Despres.  Resign both of them.  Brandon Sutter played some of his best hockey after the trade deadline.  He was a force in the playoffs.  He was the Pens bottom 6 last year.  Plus.  He's only gonna get better.  Bring him back.  We'll get to Simon Despres a bit later but we wouldn't think twice about resigning him.  Also.  You have to extend Marc Andre Fleury this Summer.  He exercised his playoff demons this season and was the big reason the Pens had any chance at being 1 win away from the Eastern Conference Finals.  He has 1 year left on his current deal but still.  Extend him this Summer.  He's earned it.  Also.  F Craig Adams.  He's another locker room cancer that brings nothing to this team at all.  F him.  You also have to make a trade or two.  Only player we would have no problem trading, (For the right price), is James Neal.  Before you say "HE'S DA ONLY SCORING WINGER WE HAVE DOE!!!1!!!11!!" read what we say next.  If you trade James Neal it can't be for some draft picks and some degenerate prospect.  The only way we trade James Neal is if you are getting an established scoring winger, like a Phil Kessel, in return.  That is the only way.  The 209584634986406 offensive zone penalties and the stupid, suspendable hits have made it easy for us to be ok with trading James Neal.  But like we said.  As long as it's for an established scoring winger.  Oh.  And get Crosby and F ing winger.  Like Mark Madden said.  Sid has only played with a World Class Winger once.  And that was for 3 months when the Pens got Hossa.  

4. Utilize Your Young Talent.  I know.  Sounds like a foreign concept right?  But the Pens need to utilize their young talent better.  Something Dan Bylsma refused to do.  Or when he did do it and they messed up, the rode press box for a month and a half.  Instead of giving guys like Deryk Engelland, Craig Adams, Joe Vitale, Tanner Glass, and Brian Gibbons reach arounds in between every shift, use guys like Beau Bennett, Robert Bortuzzo and Simon Despres more and use them the right way.  No Beau Bennett on 3rd line LW.  That's not his position.  They only way these young guys are going to get better and develop is by playing them and playing them the right way.  No one is above coaching.  All players need it.  But when one of these guys Fs up and makes a mistake.  Don't sit them at the end of the bench.  Don't make them eat press box nachos for a month and a half.  Play them, correct them, tell them what they need to do to get better and not make the mistake a common thing.  Mistakes happen in hockey.  No one is above it. Let these guys play through their mistakes and get better as players as opposed to getting pissed off.  Don't make these kids the next Alexi Morozov

Which brings us to our final point.

5. Utilize Kris Letang Better.  "Baaaaaaah. But Letang sucks and isn't worth his contract. Herrrrrrrrr derrrrrrrrrrrrrrr"  F.  Off.  Dan Bylsma hasn't used Kris Letang properly at all.  He's not on the power play and forces him to play with a shock collar on so when Letang tries to help the offense Bylsma zaps him and makes him sit in the neutral zone.  Take the damn training wheels off of Kris Letang for the love of God.  The kid is at his best when he can roam freely and chip in offensively.  He's defense isn't perfect but it's solid.  With the right coaching Kris Letang could go back to the form we saw in 2012 and most of 2013.  Use him on the power play.  Use him on the penalty kill.  He is the best D man on your team and has the ability to be one of the best D men in the league.  Use him the right F ing way!

So that's our list of the 5 things the Pens could do to change this bumpy road they are currently on.  You may agree.  You may disagree.  Whatever.  But if your solution here is "Trade Fleury or Trade Letang" well then we'll let our buddy Stone Cold respond to you:

All in all the Pens need change desperately. Change You Can Believe In.  Hopefully it comes sooner rather than later. 

Till next time.

Go Pens

FIRESALE: Everyone Must Go, Well, Almost Everyone

As you know this is how the 2014 Pittsburgh Penguins season ended:

The Penguins were up 3-1 and blew it. Just like 2011. Flamed out of the playoffs 5 straight years by teams they should have beat. Clearly the Dan Bylsma and Ray Shero model isn't working so it's time for changes to be made, otherwise we're just gonna be frustrated each and every year and keep wasting years of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin's Prime. Since we are Armchair GM's unlike this other Penguins blog, we are gonna take a look at who should stay and who should go, in our own expert opinions.

Changes will start from the Top and we're gonna start with Ray Shero.

Ray Shero has been a pretty decent GM here, in fairness to him, he did trade for Chris Kunitz before the 09 Cup as well as get Pascal Dupuis with Marian Hossa. He also acquired James Neal and Matt Niskanen for a used up Alex Goligoski who needed a new change of scenery. We always say #InSheroWeTrust, but can we actually trust Shero? Let's look at a list of Ray Shero's draft picks since he became GM here in 2006.

2006 - 2nd Overall - Center Jordan Staal

2007 - 20th Overall - Center Angelo Esposito

2008 - No Pick

2009 - 30th Overall - Defenseman Simon Despres

2010 - 20th Overall - Forward Beau Bennett

2011 - 23rd Overall - Defenseman Joe Morrow

2012 - 8th Overall - Defenseman Derrick Pouilot

2012 - 22nd Overall - Defenseman Olli Maatta

2013 - No Pick

Let's look at this a little further and look at his Second Round Picks since 2006.

2006 - 32nd Overall - Defenseman Carl Sneep

2007 - 51st Overall - Center Kevin Veilleux

2008 - No Pick (First Pick this year was 120th Overall [Round 4])

2009 - 61st Overall - Defenseman Philip Samuelsson

2010 - No Pick

2011 - 54th Overall - Defenseman Scott Harrington

2012 - 52nd Overall - Center Teodors Blugers (WHO?!)

2013 - 44th Overall - Goalie Tristan Jarry

How many of those picks have worked out? Staal is the only one who had significant time with the Penguins because Despres and Bennett won't get there chance with current management. Maatta had a solid rookie season but you can't judge his career and how good that pick was on one season. Pouilot is supposed to be good but in 9 years, he traded the first round pick away twice, drafted 4 defenseman, and traded one away (who ended up bagging groceries in Norway or something but still). In the 2nd Round, Carl Sneep was awful, drafted Veilleux who has done nothing and TJ Galiardi went 4 picks later and Wayne Simmonds went 10 picks later. 2008, first pick was pick 120 and he took Nathan Moon. Gustav Nyquist went at 121. Scott Harrington looks like a good pick as does Philip Samuelsson but they're in the stockpile of Defensemen the Penguins have.

Look at some of the trades Shero made, some have been duds, some just didn't work out, some of that could be because of Dan Bylsma, but in reality, the Penguins lack of forward depth boils down to Ray Shero. Shero also did a horrible job getting Crosby and Malkin legit wingers to play with. Sure he gave Sid, Kunitz, and he gave Malkin, Neal, but who else have they played with? Lee Stempniak, Pascal Dupuis, Jussi Jokinen, Brian Gibbons are not top 6 forwards no matter what Ray Shero and Dan Bylsma want to tell you. Shero has whiffed on some big names too. Hossa, Parise, Jagr to name a few and as well as missed out on Ryan Kesler at this trade deadline. Not to mention some of the Free Agents Ray Shero left walk, Jarome Iginla, Max Talbot, Matt Cooke, Tyler Kennedy, Dominic Moore (who has eliminated the Penguins 3 times in Game 7's in Pittsburgh since 2009) to name a few. Yes we hated Tyler Kennedy, but you mean to tell me Tyler Kennedy isn't as good as Brian Gibbons?

In Our Opinion, Ray Shero needs to go.

Who we want to see replace him: We really have no idea, but the Penguins are soft and turning into the Nashville Predators because of Ray Shero.

Next let's look at everyone's favorite, Dan Bylsma

Get to our game. Grind bitches down. What more do we have to say? 5 straight years of playoff disappoint because of Dan. We'll give him a pass in 2011, but thats it. We don't expect them to win 6 straight Cups (counting 2009) but 0 Cup Finals and only 1 Conference Finals appearance since winning the Cup is unacceptable. Players like Brian Gibbons, Deryk Engellend, and Joe Vitale getting favoritism over Simon Despres, Beau Bennett, and Robert Bortuzzo is just ridiculous. Craig Adams and Rob Scuderi are washed up, but it's a pecking order with Dan and they can play over players who are playing better because you can't bench veterans. He did make a few adjustments this year, but that's only a few more than the previous 4 years. He had no backup plan and teams figured out his style in 2010 yet he continued to play the same way for 5 straight years. No accountability for his players.

It's obvious that Dan Bylsma has to go.

Who we would like to see replace Bylsma: Mike Babcock. The Penguins would have to buy him out, but he seems like a perfect fit here.

Who probably replaces Bylsma: Barry Trotz. Assuming Shero stays as GM, you would think Trotz comes to Pittsburgh because of the Nashville connection.

Time to look at the Penguins Roster.

First the goalies.

According to CapGeek this is the Penguins Goalie Situation contract wise moving forward.

Goaltenders (3)
Fleury, M. »		$5,000,000	$5,000,000	UFA
Vokoun, Tomas »	35+ LTIR	$2,000,000	UFA
Zatkoff, Jeff »		$537,500	$600,000	$600,000	UFA

One would think Vokoun is gonna either retire or sign somewhere else, he is 38. Jeff Zatkoff is signed to a respectable deal for a backup so there shouldn't be any questions about him moving forward. The big one is Marc-Andre Fleury.

Fleury is coming off of his second best postseason of his career. He showed us all that he is the goalie the Penguins can rely on. He also plays behind one of the worst defensive teams in the league and still managed to put together a .915 save percentage and is basically the only reason the Penguins even had a chance in Game 7. Fleury is entering the final year of his deal and will make $5 million next season. Some speculation is that the Penguins might hold off or that they might trade him.

What we would do: Give Fleury an extension right now. He was one of the only Penguins to show up every single game this postseason. A new coach with a tighter defensive style will only inflate Fleury's numbers too. 

Defense.

Here is what the Penguins defensive situation looks like this year

Defensemen (9)
Martin, Paul »		$5,000,000	$5,000,000	UFA
Orpik, Brooks »		$3,750,000	UFA
Letang, Kris »		$3,500,000	$7,250,000	$7,250,000	$7,250,000	$7,250,000	$7,250,000	$7,250,000	»
Scuderi, Rob »		$3,375,000	$3,375,000	$3,375,000	$3,375,000	UFA
Niskanen, Matt »		$2,300,000	UFA
Maatta, Olli »	EL SR	$894,167	$894,167	$894,167	RFA
Despres, Simon »	EL	$840,000	RFA
Bortuzzo, Robert »		$600,000	$600,000	RFA
Engelland, Deryk »		$566,667	UFA

As well as Philip Samuelsson is a RFA

For starters, here is what likely should and will happen.

Kris Letang should be 100% safe, if you think about trading him, you're probably a moron. Kris Letang is the Penguins best defenseman and he's coming off of some of the best hockey that he's played in his life. Paul Martin is about 95% safe and should be considered their second best defenseman.

Brooks Orpik has played his last game as a Penguin. He's injured and when he played, he really didn't play well. The Penguins should let him walk. Matt Niskanen has also likely played his last game as a Penguin. Niskanen could demand nearly $6 million on the open market. Matt Niskanen could make more next year than the Penguins second best defenseman, Paul Martin. Also, Good Riddance Deryk Engelland. I'm not even gonna discuss Engellend.

By letting Orpik, Niskanen, and Engellend go, that leaves some holes in the Penguins defense core. Fixing it is simple.

Let Bortuzzo take over Orpik's role. He is as good as Orpik is right now, plus he plays with more of a skill set and has a long reach, give the kid a chance and I'm sure he will thrive. Re-sign Simon Despres and actually give him a shot. Buyout Rob Scuderi (even if it costs you a buyout price). If that happens you still have one open roster spot for a defenseman but you have a few options.

Option #1: Promote Brian Dumoulin to play 6th defenseman minutes with Olli Maatta.

Option #2: Promote Derrick Pouilot and let him learn at the NHL level.

Option #3: Sign a young FA defenseman and deal a young prospect for a Top 6 Winger.

So if you choose Option #3, let's look at the list of FA Defenseman there are this year.

UFA

Player	Pos	Team	Age	Cap Hit	Expiry
Boyle, Dan »	D	SJS	37	$6,666,667	2014 (UFA)
Timonen, Kimmo »	D	PHI	39	$6,000,000	2014 (UFA)
Markov, Andrei »	D	MTL	35	$5,750,000	2014 (UFA)
Pitkanen, Joni »	D	CAR	30	$4,500,000	2014 (UFA)
Zidlicky, Marek »	D	NJD	37	$4,000,000	2014 (UFA)
Meszaros, Andrej »	D	BOS	28	$4,000,000	2014 (UFA)
Quincey, Kyle »	D	DET	28	$3,775,000	2014 (UFA)
Salo, Sami »	D	TBL	39	$3,750,000	2014 (UFA)
Orpik, Brooks »	D	PIT	33	$3,750,000	2014 (UFA)
Mitchell, Willie »	D	LAK	37	$3,500,000	2014 (UFA)
Schultz, Nick »	D	CLB	31	$3,500,000	2014 (UFA)
Tallinder, Henrik »	D	BUF	35	$3,375,000	2014 (UFA)
Robidas, Stephane »	D	ANA	37	$3,300,000	2014 (UFA)
Klesla, Rostislav »	D	BUF	32	$2,975,000	2014 (UFA)
Greene, Matt »	D	LAK	31	$2,950,000	2014 (UFA)
Morris, Derek »	D	PHX	35	$2,750,000	2014 (UFA)

There are also others, but I'm not posting them all, to see the full list go to CapGeek

RFA

Player	Pos	Team	Age	Cap Hit	Expiry
Schultz, Justin »	D	EDM	23	$3,775,000	2014 (RFA)
Gudbranson, Erik »	D	FLA	22	$3,200,000	2014 (RFA)
Subban, P.K. »	D	MTL	25	$2,875,000	2014 (RFA)
Del Zotto, Michael »	D	NAS	23	$2,550,000	2014 (RFA)
Kulikov, Dmitry »	D	FLA	23	$2,500,000	2014 (RFA)
Franson, Cody »	D	TOR	26	$2,000,000	2014 (RFA)
McBain, Jamie »	D	BUF	26	$1,800,000	2014 (RFA)
Schilling, Cameron »	D	WAS	25	$1,775,000	2014 (RFA)
Petry, Jeff »	D	EDM	26	$1,750,000	2014 (RFA)
Erixon, Tim »	D	CLB	23	$1,750,000	2014 (RFA)
Krug, Torey »	D	BOS	23	$1,704,167	2014 (RFA)
Demers, Jason »	D	SJS	25	$1,500,000	2014 (RFA)
Tanev, Chris »	D	VAN	24	$1,500,000	2014 (RFA)
de Haan, Calvin »	D	NYI	23	$1,470,000	2014 (RFA)
Ellis, Ryan »	D	NAS	23	$1,440,000	2014 (RFA)
Sustr, Andrej »	D	TBL	23	$1,350,000	2014 (RFA)
Schmidt, Nate »	D	WAS	22	$1,350,000	2014 (RFA)
DeKeyser, Danny »	D	DET	24	$1,350,000	2014 (RFA)
Vatanen, Sami »	D	ANA	22	$1,325,000	2014 (RFA)

To see the full list, go here

There are some attractive names on this list. First one that stands out is an RFA, PK Subban. Subban would be an absolute dream and perfect fit on this team. One of the problems the Penguins had was that they were unable to protect Sidney Crosby. PK Subban would fill that role perfectly as well as he's an outstanding defenseman, he may cost a lot but the cap space you free up by not signing Niskanen, Orpik and buying out/trading Scuderi could allow you to sign Subban.

A few other names on these lists that I wouldn't mind would be Kyle Quincey, Jamie McBain, Torey Krug, Danny DeKeyser, and Sami Vatanen.

No clue what the Penguins would do, but any of those moves will help the team out tremendously next year and someone like Subban would add the grit that they've been missing.

Now to look at the Dumpster Fire that is the Penguins forwards.

Player		2013-14	2014-15	2015-16	2016-17	2017-18	2018-19	2019-20
Forwards (19)
Malkin, Evgeni »	LTIR	$8,700,000	$9,500,000	$9,500,000	$9,500,000	$9,500,000	$9,500,000	$9,500,000	»
Crosby, Sidney »		$8,700,000	$8,700,000	$8,700,000	$8,700,000	$8,700,000	$8,700,000	$8,700,000	»
Neal, James »		$5,000,000	$5,000,000	$5,000,000	$5,000,000	$5,000,000	UFA
Dupuis, Pascal »	LTIR	$3,750,000	$3,750,000	$3,750,000	$3,750,000	UFA
Kunitz, Chris »		$3,725,000	$3,850,000	$3,850,000	$3,850,000	UFA
Stempniak, Lee »		$2,500,000	UFA
Jokinen, Jussi »	RSA	$2,100,000	UFA
Sutter, Brandon »		$2,066,667	RFA
Goc, Marcel »		$1,700,000	UFA
Pyatt, Taylor »		$1,550,000	UFA
Glass, Tanner »		$1,100,000	UFA
Megna, Jayson »	EL	$925,000	RFA
Bennett, Beau »	EL	$900,000	$900,000	RFA
Adams, Craig »	35+	$700,000	$700,000	UFA
Kobasew, Chuck »		$550,000	UFA
Vitale, Joe »	LTIR	$550,000	UFA
Conner, Chris »	LTIR	$550,000	UFA
Zolnierczyk, H. »		$550,000	UFA
Gibbons, Brian »		$550,000	UFA

For starters, Stempniak, Jokinen, Goc, Pyatt, Glass, Kobasew, Vitale, Conner, Zolnierczyk, and Gibbons are all UFA. Sutter and Megna are RFA. To start out, Stempniak, Pyatt, Kobasew, Vitale, and Conner can all GTFO for all I care. I would make an attempt to keep Goc, Jokinen, Zolnierczyk, and Gibbons but for cheap. As far as Sutter goes, he's tricky. He played the best hockey of his career in the postseason, but what is he gonna ask for. He made $2.06 million this year and you would think he definitely gets a raise, but how much of a raise is too much? Can you flip his rights plus a little more for someone like Ryan Kesler who adds a little more size and grit to his game. If you can keep a Marcel Goc, who can play a 3rd line center, it allows you the luxury to make that kind of move. Jayson Megna shouldn't be that hard to re-sign if you choose to do that.

What the Penguins need most is Top 6 wingers. They currently have 4 of them. Sidney Crosby. Evgeni Malkin. James Neal. Chris Kunitz. One would think in a major firesale that Crosby, Malkin, and Kunitz are all safe. Neal is a great player, but I could see the Penguins moving him to shake up the makeup of the team. Beau Bennett needs to be in the Penguins Top 6 unless you want a modern day Alexsey Morozov.

So let's see some options the Penguins have for Top 6 forwards from Capgeek

UFA

Player	Pos	Team	Age	Cap Hit	Expiry
Gaborik, Marian »	R	LAK	32	$7,500,000	2014 (UFA)
Heatley, Dany »	L	MIN	33	$7,500,000	2014 (UFA)
Vanek, Thomas »	L	MTL	30	$7,142,857	2014 (UFA)
Stastny, Paul »	C	COL	28	$6,600,000	2014 (UFA)
Cammalleri, Mike »	L	CGY	31	$6,000,000	2014 (UFA)
Iginla, Jarome »	R	BOS	36	$6,000,000	2014 (UFA)
Alfredsson, Daniel »	R	DET	41	$5,500,000	2014 (UFA)
Hemsky, Ales »	R	OTT	30	$5,000,000	2014 (UFA)
Gionta, Brian »	R	MTL	35	$5,000,000	2014 (UFA)
Jokinen, Olli »	C	WPG	35	$4,500,000	2014 (UFA)
Whitney, Ray »	L	DAL	42	$4,500,000	2014 (UFA)
Legwand, David »	C	DET	33	$4,500,000	2014 (UFA)
Michalek, Milan »	L	OTT	29	$4,333,333	2014 (UFA)
Callahan, Ryan »	R	TBL	29	$4,275,000	2014 (UFA)
Roy, Derek »	C	STL	31	$4,000,000	2014 (UFA)
Koivu, Saku »	C	ANA	39	$3,500,000	2014 (UFA)
Bolland, Dave »	C	TOR	27	$3,375,000	2014 (UFA)
Moulson, Matt »	L	MIN	30	$3,133,333	2014 (UFA)
Vrbata, Radim »	R	PHX	32	$3,000,000	2014 (UFA)
Samuelsson, Mikael »	R	DET	37	$3,000,000	2014 (UFA)
Jokinen, Jussi »	L	PIT	31	$3,000,000	2014 (UFA)
Setoguchi, Devin »	R	WPG	27	$3,000,000	2014 (UFA)
Grabovski, Mikhail »	C	WAS	30	$3,000,000	2014 (UFA)
Ott, Steve »	C	STL	31	$2,950,000	2014 (UFA)
Kulemin, Nikolai »	R	TOR	27	$2,800,000	2014 (UFA)
Downie, Steve »	R	PHI	27	$2,650,000	2014 (UFA)
Stempniak, Lee »	R	PIT	31	$2,500,000	2014 (UFA)
Smyth, Ryan »	L	EDM	38	$2,250,000	2014 (UFA)
Moss, David »	R	PHX	32	$2,100,000	2014 (UFA)
Bertuzzi, Todd »	R	DET	39	$2,075,000	2014 (UFA)

RFA

Player	Pos	Team	Age	Cap Hit	Expiry
O'Reilly, Ryan »	C	COL	23	$5,000,000	2014 (RFA)
Berglund, Patrik »	C	STL	25	$3,250,000	2014 (RFA)
Brassard, Derick »	C	NYR	26	$3,200,000	2014 (RFA)
Schenn, Brayden »	C	PHI	22	$3,110,000	2014 (RFA)
Ennis, Tyler »	C	BUF	24	$2,812,500	2014 (RFA)
Niederreiter, Nino »	R	MIN	21	$2,795,000	2014 (RFA)
Frolik, Michael »	R	WPG	26	$2,333,333	2014 (RFA)
Sutter, Brandon »	C	PIT	25	$2,066,667	2014 (RFA)
Johansen, Ryan »	C	CLB	21	$1,945,000	2014 (RFA)
McGinn, Jamie »	L	COL	25	$1,750,000	2014 (RFA)
Lee, Anders »	C	NYI	23	$1,750,000	2014 (RFA)
Connolly, Brett »	R	TBL	22	$1,633,333	2014 (RFA)
Glennie, Scott »	R	DAL	23	$1,620,000	2014 (RFA)
Tlusty, Jiri »	R	CAR	26	$1,600,000	2014 (RFA)
Kunyk, Cody »	C	TBL	23	$1,584,063	2014 (RFA)
Spaling, Nick »	C	NAS	25	$1,500,000	2014 (RFA)
Laganiere, Antoine »	C	ANA	23	$1,350,000	2014 (RFA)
Kreider, Chris »	C	NYR	23	$1,325,000	2014 (RFA)
Eller, Lars »	C	MTL	25	$1,325,000	2014 (RFA)
Sobotka, Vladimir »	C	STL	26	$1,300,000	2014 (RFA)
Kristo, Danny »	L	NYR	23	$1,300,000	2014 (RFA)
Holland, Peter »	C	TOR	23	$1,295,000	2014 (RFA)
Galiardi, T.J. »	L	CGY	26	$1,250,000	2014 (RFA)
Hishon, Joey »	C	COL	22	$1,200,000	2014 (RFA)
Leblanc, Louis »	C	MTL	23	$1,170,000	2014 (RFA)
Schwartz, Jaden »	L	STL	21	$1,166,667	2014 (RFA)
Zuccarello, Mats »	L	NYR	26	$1,150,000	2014 (RFA)
D'Amigo, Jerry »	L	TOR	23	$1,082,500	2014 (RFA)
Perreault, Mathieu »	C	ANA	26	$1,050,000	2014 (RFA)

Honestly, no idea who in this list I would wanna see the Penguins sign but they need to add atleast 1 top 6 winger. Get Sid and Geno some help and add some grit.

In order for the Penguins to theoretically have a shot at the Cup, they need to add skill, grit, and a coach who will have accountability. No clue what is gonna happen over the next few months, but what I do know is that Ron Burkle and Mario Lemieux will likely make the right move to make the Penguins a better team. There is blood everywhere and it needs cleaned up.

Sit back and see what happens and as the begins said all playoffs, Buckle Up Baby.

Go Pens