When will Penguins be playoff contenders again? Buyouts? Mailbag, part 2

PITTSBURGH What a fun few days of hockey this has been.

Its been so inspiring, in fact, that I felt the urge to write a second mailbag entry.

You can find the first one here .

Also, your questions were really good, as usual.

Hope youre all enjoying the incredible hockey were seeing at the 4 Nations Face-Off.

Advertisement Away we go ...

(Note: Some questions have been edited for style and clarity.) Based on the plan currently with the Penguins, when do you think they realistically contend or can contend again? I legitimately think within the next two years.

@duffelbagforevr I also think it can happen pretty quickly.

No one wants to hear this, but I suspect the 2025-26 season could potentially be much of the same thing that weve witnessed for the past couple of seasons.

Kyle Dubas isnt likely to make any huge moves this summer.

The selling may continue.

Some bad contracts still figure to be plaguing the Penguins.

Evgeni Malkin will likely be in his last season and is clearly slowly down.

So, from afar, while anything could happen, I suspect the Penguins might be below average once again next season.

I anticipate Dubas really making his move in the summer of 2026.

By that point, some young, talented players notably Sergei Murashov, Rutger McGroarty, Owen Pickering, Harrison Brunicke, Ville Koivunen and maybe even their first-round pick (or picks) from the 2025 NHL Draft should be close to getting established into the lineup.

Also, by that point, some contracts are off the books.

As of right now (this will change, of course) the Penguins will have around $60 in cap space that summer.

I would anticipate that the Penguins will view that summer as winning time again.

What would your plan be if you were the GM of the Pens? This season and offseason.

@17cnb Id be looking to unload as many bad contracts as possible.

That would be my focus.

Id trade Erik Karlsson if I could.

Id speak with Malkin and Kris Letang and ask them if theyd be willing.

Their contracts actually arent terrible, but still.

Sidney Crosby would never play anywhere else, unless he wished to leave, but I wouldnt feel it mandatory to keep Malkin and Letang in Pittsburgh forever.

Advertisement Id consider giving away a draft pick or two with a Ryan Graves or Tristan Jarry contract to see if a team would bite.

Yes, those picks are great, and Dubas has done a fine job of accumulating them.

But there are so many picks that you could now spare a couple of them to get out of some of those contracts.

I wouldnt buy anyone out.

Buyouts cost you for years and years.

Theyre like bad credit.

Id also have Crosby involved in all decisions.

No, I wouldnt defer to what he wanted necessarily.

But he would be very much in the loop every step of the way.

I think thats important.

We all know goalies are weird creatures.

Aside from Flower (Marc-Andre Fleury) who would you say was the goalie most beloved by his teammates in your time covering the team? Any good stories to share about them? @ForgetPens1967 Probably Alex Nedeljkovic.

Man does everyone like him, and understandably so.

Just has the life of the party personality and is also a good human being.

Brent Johnson was a really well-liked guy back in the day.

I wouldnt say any of the goalies in Pittsburgh during my years on the beat have been disliked, to be honest.

But compared to Fleury, well, everyone is playing for second place on the popularity scale.

Based on your sense of how Pittsburgh management feels about the prospects, how many guys on todays Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins roster will be on the NHL roster following the trade deadline? Bonus points if you rank the candidates from most likely to least likely to be on the NHL roster post-deadline.

@TonyAndrock I think there will be at least a couple of players currently in Wilkes-Barre on the roster.

Joel Blomqvist will likely be recalled before action begins next weekend, in fact.

As for the others? 1.

Owen Pickering Its a matter of time and they liked what they saw earlier this season.

2.

Ville Koivunen Feels like hes about ready, right? 3.

Emil Bemstrom Hes doing some good things.

4.

Rutger McGroarty Not sure its time yet.

5.

Mac Hollowell Undersized, but its my understanding that Dubas loves him.

Advertisement Its tough to say, though.

Players get recalled for different reasons, you know? If they just want a stopgap for a couple of games, youll see a veteran-type recalled, probably.

But if theyre wanting to get a good look at a young player, then its different.

With the Pens having a now remarkably solid pipeline of goalies and defensemen in the system, do you expect them to go heavy at forward in the upcoming draft, in particular at center given the age down the middle? @marsrfm Not sure Id call it remarkable just yet, but theyre certainly much improved organizationally speaking at those spots.

Theyre still going to be in best player available mode, Im sure.

That said, yes, Im sure theyd prefer to add to their fairly unimpressive forward pool.

If they could land a center, that would be ideal.

Malkin is about done.

Crosby is 37.

There isnt much in the way at center in the organization.

Who else in your time covering the Pens would you put in the enigma category like Tristan Jarry is? A guy who has the skills on the surface, but for whatever reason, it doesnt come together when it matters.

@cmupensfan Probably Daniel Sprong.

He hasnt had a bad NHL career, but given all of his talent, he should be so much better.

Why is there such hesitancy by Dubas to use a buyout on Graves or Jarry? @ccontres You cant buy players out during the season.

Also, I always warn people that buyouts arent really good.

If he buys out Graves this summer, he will count for close to $1 million against their cap for the next eight years.

Not exactly ideal.

Of course, neither is keeping him for his salary for the next four years.

Bad situation.

Hence, my above suggestion is to send draft picks with him to see if anyone bites.

Whos a Penguin from the past (excluding the likes of Jaromir Jagr/Mario Lemieux) whose game would translate best to today, and whose game though good in his era would not cut it today? @dalton_mack I bet Martin Straka would be a borderline star in todays game.

So fast, so skilled, could play any forward position and was good on the point on the power play.

The only problem with him was that he was an undersized guy in an era when size was so, so important.

Smaller players are thriving these days.

While Im taking nothing away from a Hall of Famer, I wonder if Ron Francis would have been as good in this era because he wasnt really a great skater, and its hard to thrive these days if youre not.

Advertisement With the announcement of the World Cup of Hockey returning, what are the odds that Pittsburgh gets to host? (Non pre-tournament games like in 2016) @K0kal_ Unlikely but possible.

We are a five-hour drive from Toronto, and that helps Pittsburghs cause.

Buffalo often gets the nod for such events because of this.

But its a great idea, Pittsburgh would support it and Crosby playing internationally on Pittsburgh ice in his last act wearing a Team Canada sweater a few years from now would be amazing, but time might be running out on this idea.

In what order will the following things happen: Three more Cups by the Penguins, two more Super Bowls by the Steelers or one more World Series by the Pirates? @HamOnTheCob 1.

Two more Super Bowls for the Steelers 2.

Three more Cups for the Penguins 3.

One more World Series for the Pirates The Steelers and the Penguins will get good again.

Matter of time.

The Pirates are owned by someone interested in stealing your money more than he is winning, so I cant imagine them ever winning.

Lets say all our dreams come true and Crosby ends up owning the Penguins one day.

Will his presence in the building be the same to the next generation as Lemieuxs was to his? @Ohiopensfan Well, that would be something.

But no, Crosbys presence will never be like Lemieuxs simply because Crosby is always around.

For instance, Crosby has already played in 312 more games than Lemieux.

Hell probably play at least 500 more NHL games than Mario by the time hes done.

Plus, while Crosby isnt one to hog the spotlight, hes comfortable in it.

Hell always make appearances on behalf of the Penguins after he retires.

I guarantee it.

Lemieux is a social introvert to an extreme, which is what made his appearance in Montreal that much more special earlier in the week.

Hes got the Wizard of Oz thing working for him, and its a powerful thing.

Thus, when he appears, it will always feel different.

Really, its part of their respective charms.

Crosby is so down to earth and so humble that he has a remarkable ability to make everyone around him feel comfortable.

Lemieux, who is a very nice man, by the way, just has a royal feel about him that you only appreciate when youve been around him in person.

Advertisement Is there a question you regret either asking or not asking to player or coach? @KMarker14 One time I asked Ruslan Fedotenko why he didnt grow a playoff beard.

He politely explained that he couldnt grow facial hair because he grew up near the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.

I was unaware and sure felt like a jerk that time.

When you fly, do you check bags or do you manage to fit everything in carry-ons? @Stefdin It depends on the length of the trip.

But I usually check a bag because Im a chronic over-packer.

Its a bit of a problem.

I think I took my whole wardrobe to California and probably didnt wear 75 percent of what I packed.

Thanks for reading, everyone.

Penguins coverage resumes after practice on Tuesday.

(Top photo of Sidney Crosby and center Evgeni Malkin: Charles LeClaire / Imagn Images).

This article has been shared from the original article on theathleticuk, here is the link to the original article.