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The Steelers cut Steven Nelson, their best cornerback. The reaction: “Oh, well, they had to. ”
That is true. It was for salary cap reasons. (But with the release of David DeCastro, why not bring Nelson back?)
The Penguins traded Toronto forward Jared McCann for a seventh-round pick and prospect Filip Hallander, who was the Penguins’ second-round pick in 2018. Hallander went to the Maple Leafs as part of the deal. 2020 that brought Kasperi Kapanen to Pittsburgh.
The Penguins may have lost McCann to Seattle for nothing in Wednesday’s expansion draft.
It looks like the sky is falling.
With Penguins Twitter, McCann’s stature reached a level never seen while he was here. The analysis team started hitting everyone over the head with their number baton. Former chief executive Jim Rutherford was blamed and he stepped down in January.
McCann became Ron Francis – not the current version, the Seattle GM who could have poached him on Wednesday, but the Hall of Famer center who played for the Penguins.
But, in reality, it’s an irrelevant deal involving a 25-year-old who is now, already, with his fourth team. McCann is fine, but only that. He is a companion.
Every team is going to lose someone useful in the expansion draft. This is how the process is designed.
Seattle could now take on winger Zach Aston-Reese, another darling of the analysis team. There could be riots in the streets, except these geeks never leave their basements.
Winger Brandon Tanev is another possibility to fall for the Kraken. His grain would be a big loss, but his size (6 feet, 180 pounds, if you believe what is stated) compromises his physical style and injures him frequently. Tanev only played 32 of 56 games last year.
The Penguins exposed Tanev in hopes of revoking his contract: a cap of $ 3.5 million reached until 2025.
The same people who complained that Tanev cost too much when he signed are screaming bloody murder because the Penguins could lose him for nothing.
It doesn’t matter who goes there. When the Penguins miss the playoffs or come out again in the first round, no one is going to say, “Gee, if the Penguins had only kept (the one Seattle picks). ”
The constant dissatisfaction with just about every move the Penguins has stems from the heightened expectations that come with being a legitimate Stanley Cup contender from 2008 to 2018. They won three Cups and reached another final.
Of course, that’s not good enough for those who live vicariously. The Penguins were the best team of their time, in hockey and in Pittsburgh, but the unwashed greats want more.
They won’t get it, and it’s nobody’s fault.
The Penguins’ window closed when they lost to Washington in the second round of the 2018 playoffs. The team has aged since.
Rather than reloading at the time by trading, say, Evgeni Malkin for what would have been a huge comeback, the Penguins chose to keep their core intact. This isn’t an unreasonable approach given what Malkin, Sidney Crosby, and Kris Letang have done and can still do.
But it didn’t work, didn’t work, and probably never worked. The Penguins have become blunt.
It’s OK. It’s kept the fan heroes on the ice, kept ticket and merchandise sales strong, and the team is still very good. He won his division last season. He just won’t win another Cup, although a long streak of random playoffs is possible. Witness Montreal this year, Dallas last year.
More cups don’t bother me. I don’t mind the approach taken.
Having to blame someone, acting like it’s a crime that hasn’t been done, and overreacting gratuitously to trivial list adjustments is what bothers me.
McCann has rarely and barely made a difference since joining the Penguins in February 2019. Why would he start now? He was scratched in the 2020 playoffs, for heaven’s sake.
No matter who gets caught by Seattle on Wednesday, the reaction is guaranteed: “OH MY GOD, HOW CAN SOMETHING LIKE THIS BE ALLOWED TO HAPPEN?” The Kraken could take the stickboy from the Penguins and that’s what they say – rather shouted.
As some (ahem) have said since 2018, Penguins organically disintegrate. Like Detroit, Chicago and Los Angeles before them. No one wins forever. It’s Tampa Bay time.
If anyone is at fault, that’s too large a percentage of the fan base to be ungrateful jerks. The Penguins have provided three championships, legitimate contention, and unmatched star power for a solid decade, and that’s still not good enough for you jackals. Go see the pirates.
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