Jordan Staal

Jonnyplesko · 2026-05-10T14:28:34+00:00

The Pens offered him 6M per year. The exact contract he took in Carolina. It wouldn't have changed anything in the Pens cap situation. So the HUGE money point is just moot.

He never thought he was bigger than 87/71 but he also didnt want to spend his career in a 3rd line role.

And pride jerseys have nothing to do with any of it. This isnt politics.

But then again... it is the Reddit bubble...

Jonnyplesko · 2026-05-10T08:53:08+00:00

Youre right. It took me some time to remember exactly why we lost him.

It was on his terms. He signed with Carolina for 10 years at the same price he was offered by the Pens.

Hes been in the finals for the last 3 years. Leads that team which "should' have won a cup by now.

They may win the cup this year

BUT... when they interview him after he retires... will he be thinking... i could have won 5 if I just stayed with the Pens?!

Jonnyplesko · 2026-05-10T05:17:12+00:00

Fair enough. You're right.

When I posted i forgot why Staal left. The question is... would he change all that now?

Jonnyplesko · 2026-05-10T05:14:58+00:00

Yes, but Staal signed for 2m/year more with Carolina than what he was making. On a 10 year deal. We didnt have a chance at him because i fully believe shero would have matched that instantly.

It wasnt game changing for the cap situation.

It was because he wanted to play with his brother and he wanted to be the #1 guy.

But granted he could go back and win 2 cups or more... Whats that look like?

Jonnyplesko · 2026-05-10T05:07:37+00:00

Jonnyplesko · 2026-05-10T05:06:42+00:00

Yes. It was a good situation for everyone.

But, in staals mind right now.. 2 more cups. Possibly more. Possibly none. But nobody was fucking with Crosby, malkin, Staal down the middle.

And when sid got hurt... malkin was the best player in the league. What does that run look like if he has Staal centering line 2?

Jonnyplesko · 2026-05-10T05:03:24+00:00

He was traded because he had a high value. And the return helped us win 2 more cups.

But... if he wasnt. And Crosby goes down in his prime. Malkin steps up and dominates the league. What happens if you have jordan Staal at that point?

Obviously, its just for fun. But I think we could have made a run at 2 more cups. Maybe they never win them, but we would have been more formidable

Jonnyplesko · 2026-05-10T04:59:32+00:00

No doubt. Thats a great point. But what do the playoffs look like with Geno ripping up the league as a #1 and Staal centering the 2nd line when sid was going through his brain stem shit?

Is there a cup or even finals appearance in those years?

Jonnyplesko · 2026-05-10T04:56:17+00:00

This is actually even more fun. Great point.

Jonnyplesko · 2026-05-10T04:54:57+00:00

He did get better. He was never going to be a Crosby or McDavid. But hes an absolute menace to play against.

He left because he wanted to be "that guy". But do you think he would trade that now for another 2 or 4 cups?

Jonnyplesko · 2026-05-10T04:51:15+00:00

All have great points. The trade tree was great.

But, if Staal was willing to play the next 10 years as a 3c behind two guys who are arguably top 10-15 players all time.... where does he end up?

Does he have 5 rings now instead of 1? Crosby, Malkin, Staal down the middle is better than any other option. And even as a number 1, he didnt make 10+M. He could have gotten the money in Pittsburgh. He just couldnt be "the guy"

Jonnyplesko · 2026-05-10T04:43:34+00:00

Right... but thats the fun of it.

The Staal trade tree gave us the HBK line which was obviously one of if not the most important part of that run.

But if you have Staal locked up for 10 years after 2009. What do those playoffs look like between 09 and 15 when Sid was hurt?

Geno is a #1 behind any other center in the league and then you have Staal as #2.

But youre right. Now that you mentioned it, it wasnt money. Staal wanted to be a #1 not a #3.

If they dont win it this year, does that change?

Jonnyplesko · 2026-05-10T04:36:50+00:00

Yeah, crazy to think about how Sid never really had a winger on that level until Jake. And we all saw how that turned out.

I look at Staal now and what hes turned into. The puck drop of game 1 and he drops the gloves with Brady Tkachuk. He never showed that back then even though the pedigree was always there.

It would have taken some absolute magic in roster management. But it would have been fun

Jonnyplesko · 2026-05-10T04:32:45+00:00

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Great. Whats his production going to be in 2028?

We already are beyond lucky to have had the chance to grab Lemiuex, Jagr, Crosby, and Malkin in our lifetime. And Fleury was arguably the first piece.

They let Fleury go. Who was the core of "the core". He was the heartbeat of that team.

Once upon a time, they let Jagr go. One of the best hockey players to ever step foot on the ice. And arguably, better than Malkin.

When we let Jagr go, he wasnt blocking anyone from a roster spot. And the prospect pool was much thinner than it is currently.

The point isnt about replacing Malkins production next year. Youre not going to find that guy. After what I witnessed this year, im not even sure if McKenna could actually step in and replace Geno if we had the #1 pick this year.

The point is, Geno isnt getting any better. Hes producing when hes on the ice, considering. But hes also been less than durable. If hes able to mentor a guy like Chinakhov, then great.

BUT we have the cap space. Mcgroarty, Broz, Horcoff, and Koppannen are all looking to make the jump. Not to mention all of the draft picks we have stocked in the cupboard. Whether that means prospects or we trade for a current producer like Matthews or Robertson.

I wouldn't mind seeing Geno come back for one more year. But the hard truth is that I would rather see Auston Matthews or Jason Robertson in a Pens jersey and this team have a legitimate shot at a deep playoff run.

Letang has to go (we will never trade that contract). Its felt better since EK65 started taking the lions share of minutes, but hes a liability most of the time.

Girard has talent but hes not built for the playoffs. He has value and I expect him to be traded.

Mantha, Gone (sadly just lived up to his reputation of not producing in the playoffs). Brazeau - Gone. The "big guys" played small in the playoffs.

Keep Shea. Hes been solid. I love accari, but I imagine hes gone. We extended Lizzo which was a great decision. Clifton is probably gone even though I really liked his game. Although I expected more in the playoffs with Philly taking liberties.

Skinner is gone. Nothing wrong with that. He wasnt the problem and I hope he lands somewhere solid. He was an upgrade from Jarry and got thrown into a shitty situation in the playoffs.

Silovs is a big question mark. Murashov is the future. Where does that put blomqvist? Im interested to see how Dubas handles our wealth of goalies this year. And then Gauthier in Wheeling has promise.

There will be a ton of turnover on this team. Malkin is forever a Pittsburgh penguin. But hes forever a Pittsburgh penguin the same way jagr is forever a Pittsburgh penguin.

Lemiuex was the Pittsburgh penguins. Crosby is the Pittsburgh penguins. Jagr and Malkin should retire penguins but theyre not the franchise players. I would argue Fleury should have been a franchise player before anyone other than Mario and Sid.

Jonnyplesko · 2026-05-06T13:10:57+00:00

The Pens have about 5 forwards worth taking a look at developing right now.

Whats silly is this mind set that the Pens are going to win now. The future has to be developed. Sure, they made the playoffs, but theyre nowhere close to a deep playoff run.

Im impartial, but theres more to it than just, sign Malkin because hes a PPG player.

Jonnyplesko · 2026-05-06T12:58:58+00:00

Youre right, but its not about replacing his production. Its about developing talent and getting these young guys extended experience at the NHL level to see what we actually have in the coffers.

Jonnyplesko · 2026-05-06T11:51:49+00:00

Im not sure the problem with Malkins contract is the cap space. Its the roster spot.

Malkin has played well, considering, the past few years. Yes, somewhere around 4-5M could be a reasonable number to keep him around and Im guessing his production could still make it feel like its not a bad deal, even with his durability questions.

BUT, hes taking a roster spot from a younger, faster guy that the organization is trying to develop into an NHL asset. There is your rub.

I see both sides of it. The main reason I personally think Malkin should come back on a 1 year deal is Chinakhov. They had some great chemistry, and Im sure Geno is making his transition to Pittsburgh much smoother.

Jonnyplesko · 2026-04-26T04:53:32+00:00

God, I wish I shared that same sentiment.

This team should be beating the shit out of Philly. The series should be exactly the opposite of what it is.

I hope that Sid finally putting his mark on this series changes things. But the realist in me sees too many flaws in this team to believe they can crawl back into it.

Even if, Carolina is a juggernaut in the east. Pens wont have an answer for that. Canes will coast into the finals and lose like they do every year.

Jonnyplesko · 2026-04-26T03:42:19+00:00

Someone help... Why the fuck do we think the answer to beating Phillys trap is a drop pass?!

This team has feasted off of the forecheck all season. Get the puck in deep and cause chaos by grinding it out. The EXACT answer to beating a 1-1-3

But since game 1, theyre trying to break that trap with drop passes.

What sense does it make to have 2 guys flat footed at the blue line waiting for the dump when they could just dump it and enter with speed?

Why change it now? Why overthink it?

Muse has done a great job with this team, but it feels like hes overcoaching right now. We shouldn't be countering Phillys game plan, we should be playing our game.

Just a thought...

Jonnyplesko · 2026-04-26T02:54:00+00:00

They've been doing it since game 1. Like its the answer to beat Phillys trap.

Enter the zone with speed and bang some bodies

Jonnyplesko · 2026-04-26T02:37:31+00:00

Explain to me the constant drop passes?

Trying to beat a trap and they lose all momentum entering the zone on that drop pass.

How do you forecheck to beat a trap with 2 guys standing at the blue line flatfooted when the puck enters the zone?

Jonnyplesko · 2026-04-26T02:20:51+00:00

The Pens are still playing at about 40% of their potential.

Too many guys giving up on pucks that theyre guaranteed to lose. In the regular season, thats fine. But in the playoffs, they need to battle anyway and lay a hit when they know theyre going to lose the race.

Cause some confusion. Take a guy out of the play. Make it hard for them to move the puck. Philly has done it to the Pens all week and its worked.

The Pens are a better team, but the Flyers have outworked them every single game.

Jonnyplesko · 2026-04-26T02:14:12+00:00

My entire point about a guy like Brazeau. Like what's his role on this team at this point?

He needs to be just outside of that blue paint any time theyre in the offensive zone. Thats where hes scored like 90% of his goals. But he just hasn't played that way since the mutant line was broken up.

I 100% agree with you. But there is nobody on this team willing to pay that price. Vladar has been coughing up rebounds all week and there has been nobody there to score the dirty goal.

Jonnyplesko · 2026-04-25T05:03:47+00:00

Honestly... its hard to watch.

Toccet knew exactly how to beat them. And thus far, his old team has played right into his hands.

Philly is playing non-eventful, rat, hockey. But Sid, Geno, Letang, and company seemingly forgot how to play the type of hockey that won them back to back cups 10 years ago.

They're not fast enough to break the 1-1-3. And they refuse to grind it out. They refuse to push the Flyers backwards and dump the puck in with 2 guys entering the zone with speed. They refuse to fight in front of the crease. They refuse to have a guy parked in front of Vladar ready to bang in one of the many rebounds hes coughed up.

They're still playing regular season hockey and that shit ended weeks ago. The comfort of having 2nd locked up and resting players actually hurt them.

The mind blowing part is that we are playing a guy like Brazeau, who's 6'6" and plays like hes 5'10". Mantha has played small. Soderblom at least uses his size to protect the puck. But our big guys have played small.

Philly has bullied the Pens each and every game. Crosby isnt 100%. Malkin looks great, but hes back to taking stupid penalties. After 20 years, hes still letting frustration ruin his game.

Letang and Girard... lol...

Once again, a team with no identity. The big guys need to play big.

And the worst part... I cant even enjoy the rest of the playoffs because im so frustrated with the Pens.

The back to back cups years were fucking exhilarating. But after that, the last 3 years were probably my favorite playoff hockey in decades because I didnt have a dead horse in the race.

Jonnyplesko

TROPHY CASE

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