State of the Penguins: Depth chart, needs, expectations for 2024-25 NHL season

The Penguins arent fully rebuilding just yet and, given their quiet summer, they arent really reloading, either.

Rather, theyre in an undefined transitional phase.

Their stars are another year older and still the straws that stir the organizations drink, yet a youth movement is underway, despite the outside perception that the Penguins nostalgia tour will continue its slow death for the foreseeable future.

Advertisement So, what does it all mean? The Penguins fall from greatness has been so stubbornly methodical that you have to admire them.

They utterly refuse to fall off of the cliff, instead hanging on for dear life as they inch toward rock bottom each season.

They last won the Stanley Cup in 2017.

They last won a playoff series in 2018.

But they still made the playoffs in 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022.

They missed out on the postseason in each of the past two regular seasons 48 hours.

If the trend continues, the Penguins will barely miss the playoffs.

Again.

While theyre an afterthought in many NHL circles because of their trajectory, the Penguins remain relevant because of their star power.

They employ some of the most famous people in the sport, from Sidney Crosby to Evgeni Malkin to Erik Karlsson to Kris Letang to Mike Sullivan to Kyle Dubas.

A resurgence remains possible in the 2024-25 season, as a glass-half-full mentality pumps plenty of optimism into this equation.

And its not without merit.

Then again, this could be the year they finally do fall off a cliff.

Or maybe they hang on to that cliff for a little while longer.

Regardless of how it unfolds, the Penguins are never boring.

Biggest on-ice question If optimism is your thing, look at the Penguins this way: If their power play had been even average last season, they comfortably would have qualified for the playoffs.

Keep in mind that Crosby, Karlsson and Malkin are running the show on the power play.

It shouldnt be this hard.

And yet it was.

The power plays brutal ineffectiveness last season cost associate coach Todd Reirden his job, reduced some years off of Sullivans life expectancy and, frankly, left the Penguins superstars available to criticism.

The blood was on their hands, too.

Advertisement So, now David Quinn is here.

Hes an accomplished coach and has a history of producing the biggest of numbers out of Karlsson.

Historically speaking, the Penguins power play is usually great.

But its been in a downward spiral for a couple of years and was truly pathetic last season.

Crosby didnt have the answers.

Neither did Sullivan or Reirden.

Will Quinn? The season depends on it.

The personnel doesnt figure to be especially different.

Its a given that Crosby and Karlsson will largely run the power play.

Will Malkin have a diminished role? He struggled mightily on the power play last season, many of the shorthanded goals against a result of his mistakes.

Will Bryan Rust be on the top unit? How about Rickard Rakell ? Or Letang? Will Drew OConnor or Rutger McGroarty get a crack to play in front of the net? Quinn has many, many questions to answer.

Biggest off-ice question The answer is almost certainly yes.

But here we are, 13 days until training camp begins.

And theres no deal.

This all becomes moot if he signs between now and Sept.

18, as I suspect he will.

But if Crosby heads to training camp without a new contract, it suddenly becomes a massive story.

And a distraction.

Depth chart analysis Crosby remains one of the worlds greatest hockey players.

Malkin is on the decline but remains a perfectly effective No.

2 center.

The real question for this unit is probably revolving around the No.

3 center.

Who is it? Or do the Penguins even have one? You could make an argument that they have half a dozen qualified No.

4 centers, but a No.

3 center is very important.

They have no shortage of candidates.

Lars Eller was quite good during his first season in Pittsburgh, registering 15 goals and 31 points while playing his customarily strong brand of defensive hockey.

On the surface, hes a very good No.

3 center.

The only concern with Eller is his age.

At 35, hes reaching the age where decline is almost inevitable.

Can he score at a high enough rate to deserve No.

3 center minutes? Well see.

Advertisement Then theres Kevin Hayes , acquired by the Penguins in June.

The 6-foot-5 forward has scored 138 goals during his NHL career.

Even in an off year with the Blues , he managed to score 13 goals last season.

He brings a physical edge and many attributes synonymous with a No.

3 center.

At times during his career, hes been a very good one.

Of course, even though hes 32 in other words, he isnt ancient Hayes appears to be on a sharp decline and was noticeably slow last season.

How will he rebound in Pittsburgh? Will he play left wing? Is he more of a fourth-line center at this stage? Then theres Blake Lizotte , a solid fourth-line center.

The same can be said of Anthony Beauvillier .

Cody Glass , another natural center whom Dubas acquired this summer, is another natural center.

Noel Acciari ? Fourth-line center.

Some of these players will no doubt be assigned a position on the left or right wing.

The depth at center is substantial.

Michael Bunting was a godsend for the Penguins last season.

He immediately fit into the locker room and complemented Malkin beautifully.

His motor never stops and his scoring touch is good enough to make him very much appropriately cast in the Penguins top six.

OConnor, yet another natural center, came into his own on Crosbys left wing late in the regular season.

Hes very important to the Penguins plans moving forward.

McGroarty can play on the left or right side, but well project him as a left wing at the NHL level for the time being.

If he puts on a show in training camp, its not out of the question he could go right into the top six.

Many people in the organization expect him to make the team when the season begins on Oct.

9.

Hayes, Lizotte and Beauvillier are all left-handed and could certainly slide into a bottom-six role on the left wing.

And Matt Nieto remember him? is still in the organization.

The Penguins miss Jake Guentzel here, clearly, but its not the position of weakness it could have been.

Advertisement Rust is coming off of an excellent season and remains a fixture on Crosbys right wing.

Rakell did not have a good season, though he started to look more himself late in the regular season.

What happened to him during the first half of the season remains a mystery.

Sure, he was banged up, but even before a series of injuries arrived, Rakell was struggling to score and never looked himself.

A return to form from the veteran seems crucial.

The remainder of the options to play right wing come with a series of questions.

Can Jesse Puljujarvi score enough to deserve a spot in the lineup? Is Emil Bemstrom any good? Is Valtteri Puustinen guaranteed a spot in the opening night roster? Can Sam Poulin , almost certainly out of the question at center, make this team as a winger? Just how good is Vasily Ponomarev? And can he play any forward position? Same with Ville Koivunen.

There is talent here behind Rust and Rakell, but most of it is very young.

Marcus Pettersson is as steady as it gets, and the Penguins would be wise to lock him up to a new contract as soon as possible.

Hes a wonderful defender who is just now hitting his NHL stride.

He also should be wearing a letter on his chest.

Matt Grzelcyk is coming off of a disappointing season in Boston.

Hes had a nice NHL career, and the Penguins are hoping for a resurgence.

Ryan Graves , barring a sudden turnaround, will be remembered as the player who received the worst contract in franchise history.

He was that bad last season.

It would be quite a story if he were to figure things out moving forward.

Ryan Shea wont blow you away with his talent but you cant argue that the Penguins were a better team when he was in the lineup last season.

Sebastian Aho no, not him is a perfectly reliable depth piece on the blue line.

Advertisement Karlsson wasnt bad last season.

He just wasnt as good as everyone expected.

The Penguins are hopeful he will find his way in his second season in Pittsburgh and dominate the way he once did.

Letang is a bit of a mystery simply because of how surprising his final two months were last season.

The veteran was enjoying an excellent season, only to play some of the worst hockey of his NHL career down the stretch.

Was it his hand injury? Was it age? Was it a fluke? Jack St.

Ivany was quite a revelation last season.

The job on the right side of the third pairing appears to be his to lose.

Training camp should be interesting.

Tristan Jarry is paid like a No.

1 goalie.

He looks the part, too.

No one questions his physical talent.

But the Penguins didnt treat him like a No.

1 goalie down the stretch.

His standing as the teams top goaltender isnt a given.

Making matters more interesting was the surprising decision to bring Alex Nedeljkovic back.

The Penguins are delighted and always wanted to have him back, but they were concerned hed sign with a higher bidder when unrestricted free agency rolled around.

He opted to stay with the Penguins instead, making a goaltender controversy a very real possibility.

This, incidentally, is the one position in the Penguins system that is oozing with young talent.

Joel Blomqvist is 22 and just about NHL-ready.

The Penguins like him a great deal.

Then there is Sergei Murashov , an extremely talented 20-year-old goaltender from Russia.

Is he NHL-ready just yet? Probably not.

Is he the most talented goaltender in the entire organization? Maybe.

The talent is real.

Former GM Ron Hextall doesnt receive much credit for the choices he made over the years, but landing Murashov with a fourth-round pick in 2022 may have been quite a steal.

Advertisement Salary cap watch Other than the Graves deal, there are no disastrous contracts on this roster.

There isnt much wiggle room, but theres also very little blocking Dubas from a complete roster overhaul in the next couple of years if he so desires.

Expect the Penguins to look vastly different following the 2025-26 season.

That summer, the contracts for Malkin, Bunting, Hayes, Glass, Acciari, Lizotte and Nedeljkovic come off of the books.

The summer of 2026 could be very, very interesting for the Penguins.

They arent in cap hell now, nor do they have the flexibility to pull off any kind of franchise-altering move.

Coaching There will be considerable focus on Quinn, and understandably so.

While it was easy for fans to scapegoat Reirden, the former Penguins assistant is very highly regarded around the NHL.

Maybe he was a problem.

But he wasnt the only one.

Quinns job replacing Reirden wont be easy.

Sullivan is a wonderful coach and could name his job around the league, but he also hasnt won a playoff series in more than six years.

That cant be ignored.

The pressure on him is growing.

Final assessment The Penguins wont be bad this season, so long as Crosby stays moderately healthy.

Hes still that good.

Snatching a postseason spot, though, will be a significant challenge.

Its not impossible, especially if the power play escapes the Twilight Zone and becomes somewhat respectable again.

On paper, the Devils , Hurricanes and Rangers are better than the Penguins.

So are the Panthers , Lightning , Maple Leafs and Bruins .

Arguably, the Red Wings and Capitals are, too.

The Eastern Conference is frighteningly deep, and many factors need to go right for the Penguins to reach the postseason.

Sure, it could happen but the odds appear to be against it.

(Top photo: Harrison Barden / Getty Images).

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