Penguins Kasperi Kapanen Contract, Evgeni Malkin on Wing, Big 3 Statue: Mailbag

Hello.

It’s been more than a while since you, dear readers, and I had the opportunity to mail it. However, it is not long enough for “mailbag” to be used as a verb in the future.

Anyway, with so many questions to choose from (thanks everyone), I want to get into the answers. But first …

No, I haven’t been able to wrap my head around the penguins‘contract with Kasperi Kapanen. I tried. And based on the many questions I received about Kapanen’s contract, it’s clear that many of you are dealing with it as well.

A two-year, $3.2 million-a-year commitment to a winger who appears to have no identifiable roster fit was and remains a baffling decision from general manager Ron Hextall. However, Hextall has had a good offseason for the most part, so perhaps it’s best to trust him on the Kapanen front.

So, to prevent each and every question from being about Kapanen, let me have this theory about the signature:

The Penguins believe their optimal third line includes jason sugar Y Jeff Carterpartly because Zucker has been good to Carter and doesn’t seem to click as expected with Yevgeny Malkin. Also, if Zucker and Malkin were injured while on the same line, as is possible given their injury history, the Penguins would have to adjust their second line more than if Zucker and Malkin weren’t playing together at equal strength.

Enter Kapanen, who, at least in his first season, showed some chemistry with Malkin.

If Kapanen is the third option at right back in a newly extended Malkin-focused second line Rickard Rakell I could play the left wing in that line. Of course, this goes against what I predicted in the athletic one projections of the first listbut NHL life changes as the title of a certain Vin Diesel car movie franchise. Unfortunately, so will the roster projections. The new projection for the front lines:

Now, let’s go to some questions!

how annoying is this Danton Heinen is it going to be every time you look and see Kapanen and think about their salaries? —RyanJ.

Heinen will have one million very good reason to focus on more productive thoughts than jealousy.

Do you agree that Hextall is torn between winning now and building for the future? After giving up Malkin and Letang, it looks like it should be “all” about the next 3 years and not draft picks. The second line is mediocre. The RD on paper looks better, however the LD is missing a true closing defender. He feels like Pensar’s chance of just making the playoffs is down, let alone competing. — Dean Y

To be fair, Hextall was hired by previous owners to cross that fence. That’s one of the reasons the job was essentially a dead end for Brian Burke, who advised the Penguins on their GM search before hiring him as president of hockey operations.

On paper, the Penguins are a top-three club in the Metropolitan Division. In my opinion, they were at least a second-round club in each of the last two seasons if their goalkeeping had been just adequate at the NHL level. Hextall appears to have evaluated this group in a similar way. So the idea of ​​keeping the band together to make the playoffs and hoping for the best probably isn’t the worst move.

By the way, the new owners, from what I’m told, didn’t want to blow the whole thing up as their first major move into a new market. Hextall was not hired by this ownership group, so he may have felt pressured to comply with those wishes to carry on with the group as it was/is. He also has a job to keep.

When viewed through those realities, this offseason makes a lot of sense, even if reasonable people might take issue with Hextall’s approach.

How does the current administration rate PO Joseph? Are you still exempt from the exemption? —Jonathan D.

My reading on POJ is that management feels it lacks an edge that amplifies its considerable talent. To be honest, I’d expect him to be among the names we hear floating around in any potential left-back trade.

If you look at the players added to the right side on defense this offseason, each one comes with some sandpaper for their game. POJ, for all that it brings, it does not bring sandpaper.

I need to stop by Home Depot.

Are Hextall and Burke’s hands tied when it comes to bringing in bigger wingers who can play a tough physical game and drop the gloves because Sullivan probably wouldn’t play them? —Wayne I

Did it bother you during the Malkin negotiations when people hinted that Geno’s team was using you as a mouthpiece? I mean, obviously we understand the connection, but I found the frequent innuendo offensive. I love your report! —Dalton M.

Thanks Dalton.

Nothing that has been said, tweeted or implied about my relationship with Malkin bothers me. Mainly, that’s because I don’t expect outsiders, whether or not they’re in the media, work for a hockey team, or read my articles, to know more about the relationship than me or Evgeni.

We are not friends.

We have a very strong professional relationship. He trusts me, and I feel like that trust has resulted in many, many stories that have painted a more complete portrait of Evgeni than what has been there.

I have learned, through a lot of therapy, not to take anything personally when it comes to my work. That is not easy. But with my diagnosed mental and neurological conditions, I can’t afford to worry about controlling what is out of my control. And what people think is out of my control.

Do you see Malkin transitioning to wing as he gets older? —Douglas EB

Inevitably, and against his true wishes, Malkin will likely play more at wing-back on this four-year deal. Especially if, as I suspect he is on the cards, the penguins are in play for jt miller next low season. Miller can play center or wing.

Malkin being listed as a winger, or being considered a winger, is probably not in the cards. He plays and thinks like a center back. But it certainly seems like the most efficient use of him as time goes on would be something similar to his rookie season or during the 2009 postseason, when his center duties were more offensive and he essentially did the job. from a defensive end.

How much is the war in Ukraine affecting Russian players and team decisions? —Cleo H.

Horrible batch. And I stress “horrible”.

Many Russian players who were impending free agents could not risk returning to Russia due to potential government travel issues. Those who have remained in the US and/or Canada for fear of not being able to return from Russia in time for boot camp have not had the opportunity to see family and friends for over a year. Almost every Russian I know is worried that someone they love is in danger because of the war with Ukraine.

This is uncharted territory for Russian players and the NHL clubs they play for. I’m afraid the situation will only get more complicated.

What can we expect from Crosby’s next contract (bonus: do you think he’ll find a way to incorporate #87 into his next contract like he did this one)? — Chris C.

Okay, Chris, let’s make sure everyone understands that Sidney Crosby has three seasons left on his current contract. And he just played a big power play to keep his close friends (Malkin and Kris Letang) in Pittsburgh for life.

He told Josh Yohe of his desire to play six more seasons. The Penguins’ salary cap for Crosby has been $8.7 million for all but his first three NHL seasons. I don’t see that changing in his next contract, although the structure of how he gets paid will likely be charged upfront, as was the case with his current contract.

However, it’s safe to say that any fear that Crosby wouldn’t finish his career in Pittsburgh disappeared when the Penguins opted to keep Malkin and Letang.

My idea for the next penguin statue is one with Crosby, Malkin and Letang, only with Sid in the front. What’s up with that? — Tom M.

Tommy, man, you’re a genius. That’s exactly what should be built near the Mario Lemieux statue outside the PPG Paints Arena. I hope Penguins President of Business Operations Kevin Acklin is reading this email folder.

Can the Penguins afford to switch to one of their left-handed D-men? Not from a monetary perspective but from a skill perspective. —Joe C.

Not from where I sit, Joe.

The Penguins really can’t afford to lose. Brian Dumoulin Y marcus pettersson. They need every left-sided defender to perform as close to peak level as possible if they’re going to compete for the Stanley Cup. If the Penguins get those kinds of performances, the back end instantly becomes this team’s biggest strength.

That’s too big an “if” to make a call at this point.

Hi Rob! To meet the hard cap, I suggest the following trading archetype: all our expensive bad players, wait…. all your good players, preferably on better deals; bonus points if they are local produce. Do you know of seven or maybe even 20 examples of imminently likely business propositions in line with this criteria? — Tim J.

Done. In fact, joseph archibald return to Edmonton to Connor McDavid surely it is in process (I write while checking if it really was creamier in my morning coffee).

Do you think if the Penguins don’t make it out of the first round, Sullivan is fired? — Marisa O.

I think Mike Sullivan is one of the best coaches in the NHL and has done a masterful job with subtle adjustments, which he doesn’t get credit for often enough. I also think no one believes in this group of players, at least the core, more than Sullivan.

Still, five straight first-round losses would be hard for the Penguins to take, especially if poor goalkeeping isn’t to blame.

Are you alive? — Richard B.

Is there someone?

(Photo by Kasperi Kapanen: Gaelen Morse/USA Today)