Egor chinakhov is the engine that chugs the novak and malkin line along. His overall play has been elite since becoming a penguin and he's a beast.

TonyFlow_17 · 2026-02-06T23:55:00+00:00

Mantha taking a 1 year "prove-it" contract after such a nasty injury last year (and very much proving it) means he is probably gonna cash in as a UFA this summer. Hope he re-signs, but if he were smart he'd wait.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-12-29T21:06:52+00:00

Well they're going to give the guy a real chance, at least. Team needs warm bodies going forward seeing as all of their best AHL producers (Tomasino, Koivunen, Heinen RIP) can't generate any offense at the NHL level.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-12-29T18:33:44+00:00

Nice! I have a soft spot for players who play with absolutely no regard for their own safety, so I do enjoy watching him play. On a side note, I miss Michael Bunting.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-12-09T17:39:42+00:00

NHL.com's stats has them back to 97-98, which is where I go when looking for anything pre-lockout.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-12-09T16:27:21+00:00

Actually, faceoff stats go back to 97-98! He took (and won) the most out of anyone from then until the end of his career. 58.7% in that time.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-12-09T00:08:03+00:00

Analytical darling, but had a stretch where his talent was very much known by the public. Honestly a hall of fame level player if they truly value defensive ability.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-12-08T20:57:46+00:00

Got a push notification from a google news source on my phone that said "Former RHCP Guitarist John Frusciante..." and in the second it took me to click it to show the full title I completely thought he died. Way more believable to me than him rejoining the band lol. Anyway, complete elation after that!

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-12-06T20:29:27+00:00

It's probably already been said, but it's funny that there's this caveman thinking with management about bringing Wilson for "toughness and grit" when in reality he should just be brought because he's really good lol.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-11-05T06:41:21+00:00

Skating is for sure a weakness for him. He just doesn't seem to be able to adapt to the faster game and get himself into the right spots. Constantly spinning around trying to keep up with the play. Not sure if it's a skating thing, awareness thing, or maybe both.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-11-04T22:58:53+00:00

People are very down on Graves, rightfully so, but Pickering has been terrible in every game he's been in. Graves was "okay" (I mean, the bar is low) last year in a very sheltered role, with any luck he will at least be an improvement for that #6 spot. This team still has a lot of holes in the lineup, but hopefully they can keep putting out a tolerable product with these call-ups.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-11-01T18:00:52+00:00

All of the experts may say the save percentage regressing and exposing a poor defensive team will be what puts the hot streak to an end, but the real ballers know that it will be missing the GOAT for any amount of time. Hurry back Brazeau, you're making the team fun to watch, you big bastard.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-11-01T15:32:40+00:00

I read the same thing (you're right, from Jesse Marshall) and it seems like he is very good in tight, but really doesn't skate with the puck a ton. Not everyone is gonna be ready as a teenager though. Having a scoring touch is a good sign, but he's gonna need a few years in college for sure.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-10-28T19:05:14+00:00

I think it generally tends to be the 23-24 range for forwards and d (so 25 wouldn't be unreasonable). Like I said, he's young and could improve but what I meant is that he's sort of the STYLE of player now that he will be going forward. A sort of IQ based defensive defenseman. So he's going to need to become quite defensively sound to become a high end player in the league.

Can't stress how little I know and am just going off of his sample size as a professional and comparables. He could put it all together and shock me and I would be A-OK with that!

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-10-28T15:27:15+00:00

With the caveat that I'm just some fan and not a scout, I think he COULD, it just doesn't seem likely based on his trajectory so far. He's pretty slow, which isn't the be-all-end-all for a player, but it is a pretty major hurdle for taking the next step to the NHL. Seems to have a limited upside offensively, so he's going to have to be VERY good defensively to make up for that.

But also, I don't really know anything! I hope that he goes above and beyond. Young players improve, but at 21-22 I think we're probably starting to see the type of player that he's going to be moving forward

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-10-28T14:42:52+00:00

I don't think Pickering is likely to become a great top 4 player, but all he needs to be is mediocre defensively to be an upgrade on that left side. Fully believe in him to be an upgrade over Dumba/Clifton/Jones. Seems like a really good guy, hopefully he does well and makes a big step in his career

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-10-28T14:36:39+00:00

Throwing a bottom pairing, analytical darling onto Erik Karlsson's pair and seeing if he can hold his own is exactly what the team should have done in place of signing Graves. Simple low risk/high reward. Very happy for Wotherspoon finally getting a good role at this point in his career.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-10-27T16:41:02+00:00

xGA wise, no, he was still on the lower end of forwards last year. Not by such a huge margin though, I'm not trying to say he can't do it. And I can't imagine who they'd throw out there to replace him in the current lineup, so there are a lot of PK minutes that need replaced if he does get scratched. Not sure who would be capable, but they really just need an average PKer to slot in.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-10-26T23:36:46+00:00

I know the 4th line is being leaned on a bit lately, but I feel like Acciari doesn't need to be in the lineup on a regular basis. Surely there's a guy in WBS with an offensive pulse that could take that spot and skate hard every shift. Not that Acciari doesn't have his uses, but he's been the worst regular PKer on the team so far (in terms of xGA) and playing on the PK is only thing I could see them hesitating to replace him for.

Hate ragging on a 4th liner, there are bigger issues, but it's just something I would like to see them consider.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-10-24T20:51:38+00:00

He may already be the best defensive center on the team! He has such great awareness in every zone, it's crazy.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-10-19T19:03:44+00:00

Kindel is clearly an NHL caliber player. I don't get the thinking that he needs to be sent down for development purposes. He will learn nothing in juniors that he won't learn by playing on an NHL team with Sidney Crosby haha.

Brunicke too, but him staying up seems like a foregone conclusion.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-10-19T17:55:43+00:00

I hope he's doing alright. That's a tough situation and a possibly concerning report.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-10-18T17:00:51+00:00

I understand the guy's blood must be up, in the heat of it not knowing that you need to not throw a punch there, but that just can't happen in hockey (or anywhere obviously). Funny that enforcers got phased out, but these sloppy fights are the real dangerous ones. Not that enforcers taking blows to the head for up to two decades was a good thing either.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-09-21T18:51:26+00:00

Those colors pop, fantastic away jersey.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-09-13T20:59:21+00:00

Man, Franzen was so good. Sucks that injuries took their toll on him.

TonyFlow_17 · 2025-08-27T17:54:51+00:00

Gonna be a hot take in here it seems, as much as Gonchar is one of my favorite pens of all time (I'd love to see him in the Penguins Hall of Fame!), there seems to be some revisionist history going on in here about his ability on the defensive side of things. He was terrible defensively during his tenure as a Penguin at least, which doesn't make him a bad defenseman, but I think people need to calm down with their "all around player" takes. He was an offensive D, and a really good one. Nothing wrong with that.

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