Locked On Penguins - Daily Podcast On The Pittsburgh Penguins - Could the Penguins look to add Vladimir Tarasenko?

Episode Date: July 2, 2024

After a day of going bargain shopping in free agency, the Penguins are reportedly looking to make somewhat of a splash by adding Stanley Cup champion Vladimir Tarasenko in free agency. Patrick and Hunter discuss what it would take to get him out of Florida should they not re-sign him, where he would fit, and if this is even a smart move by Kyle Dubas. Next, they go over the official contract for Blake Lizotte and how this was one of the Penguins' savviest signings of the offseason as well as all the AHL depth added. Finally, what's left for this team to do and could they move a pretty big piece to kick this rebuild/retool? Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!eBay MotorsFor parts that fit, head to eBay Motors and look for the green check. Stay in the game with eBay Guaranteed Fit at eBayMotos.com. Let’s ride. eBay Guaranteed Fit only available to US customers. Eligible items only. Exclusions apply.GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNHL for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply.FanDuelFanDuel, America’s Number One Sportsbook. As playoffs wind down, the sports stop sporting like we want them to. But this summer, FanDuel is hooking up ALL CUSTOMERS with a boost or a bonus, DAILY! That’s right, there’s something for everyone, every day, all summer long! Visit FANDUEL.COM/LOCKEDON and add a big win to your summer bucket list!FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

While the penguins went bargain shopping on July 1st, there's a chance they could go kind of big game hunting this summer. And Hunter and I will talk about that and more on this edition of the Locked On Penguins podcast. Your Locked on Penguin. Your daily podcast on the Pittsburgh Penguin. Part of the Locked on podcast network. Your team every day. And welcome back to another edition of the Locked on Penguins podcast. I'm one of your host, Patrick Damp.

follow me on Twitter at synonym for wet. Joined as always by the one and only Hunter Hodes, you can follow him on Twitter at Hunter Hodes. You can give our show's account a follow at L.O. underscore Penguins. And we thank you for making this your first listener watch of the day, because we're your team every day. And don't forget, we are free and available wherever you get your podcasts as well as YouTube. And today's episode is brought to you by Fandul.

Make every moment more as the playoffs wind down, the sports stop, like we want them to, but this summer, Fandall is hooking up all customers with a boost or bonus daily. That's right. There's something for everyone every day all summer long. Visit fandle.com slash locked on to get started. So Hunter, while yesterday was a day of bargain shopping for Penguins President of Hockey Operations, Kyle Dubis, with a lot of one-year deals, save for Blake Lazott, who we will get into later in this show. it was a lot of, as I said at the top, bargain hunting. They didn't go for any of the big names on the market.

They didn't hand out big money or long term. But according to our friend Josh Yohey, who I'm sorry to say, will not be on this show because you're not on vacation anymore. He made that very clear. That's his new policy. He said this morning that he has heard that the penguins have made an offer to winger Vladimir Teresenko, the recent Stanley Cup champion with the Florida Panthers

and former St. Louis Blue and New York Ranger. And I got to be honest, I did not see that one coming. I figured he was happy as a clam in Florida. They were going to do some tidy business, get him locked up again, because he was a very crucial part of that Stanley Cup run. While he's not the Vladimir Tiracenko of four or five years ago,

he's still a very effective, middle to top six forward. He was a solid contributor for the Panthers once he got there. And he, while didn't light it up in the playoffs, had some big moments. Paul Maurice spoke very highly of the role he played, especially with some of Florida as younger players who may have been going through a rough patch. Even when he would go on extended slumps, Maurice said he was a great leader. He stuck to everything he needed to do, didn't go into any kind of shell or shut

down. So he was a very integral piece to the Panthers Stanley Cup championship this past summer. So Hunter, I throw this to you. Say it's a one year deal for Vladimir Teresanko should Florida not lock him up and the penguins go after him. Would this be a smart move by Kyle Dubus? You know what? Sure. We all know what the direction of the team is heading into this season. It's very much a, again, retool on the fly, soft rebuild. I know, Dubus has not said the word rebuild to the media every time he's talked to them, but that is exactly what this is. We even said it during our Monday episode as well. So with that in mind, yes, I would be fine with signing Terrace Angler to a one-year deal, whether that's, I don't know, $3.5 million,

$4 million. I think that's a very fair deal for him. And if the Penguins aren't in a playoff spot come trade deadline, they can flip him to another team after hopefully he ups his value even more with the Penguins. And then they can get back a draft. pick a prospect, something along those lines. He was pretty solid for the Panthers after getting traded there in the playoffs, especially. I like that you said it, five goals, nine points in 24 games. He was especially good in that series against the New York Rangers scored a couple

of very crucial goals for the Panthers during the playoffs. And even though he is 32, and yes, it is kind of funny that Dubus continues to go after some players who are 30 plus. He still had 23 goals and 55 points during the season. He is not close to being cooked, washed up, whatever word. do you want to call it. He can still very much play. And I think it'd be fun seeing in play next to to Evgeny Malkin or next to Cindy Crosby. I think at the start, it would probably be next to Sidney Crosi just because when you look at the second line right now, Michael Bunting is with

Gino along with Ricardo Rakel. And Teresenko, well, he has mostly played at right wing throughout his career. He can still play left wing. I mean, at the time of the trade, he played 57 games for Ottawa. He lined up 16 times at left wing, 41 times at right wing. And prior to that season, he actually had not played left wing in four seasons. So left wing, it's a little more new to him compared to right wing, but he can still play it if the penguins ask him to, and I think they would in this case. And he would give them, I think, decent middle six to top six production. If you can get him for a contract similar to what Jeff Skinner signed at the Oilers, I would be all for that. I would.

too. And I also think that if you're going to put them with Sidney Crosby on the top line, which I think is the right move since because let's say I think all signs point towards them keeping Ricard Raquel. I think that's going to be a very hard contract to move, especially on as a whole. I think if they were to try to move it, they would have to retain. And I don't think they want to do that considering they still have some dead money on the cap and added even more in the Riley Smith trade. You still have Brian Rust on that top line, and we know he's a Swiss Army knife. They could, if they need to move him to the left, and he could do just fine there as well

as he does on the right, because that's just the kind of player he is. But back to Teresanko, before I get into any of the numbers with him, I want to say this. It fits into what they're trying to do. You know they're not going to give him three, four, five years. be one, maybe two, if they really need to entice him to come here. But you look at what this team's doing. They are looking to get pieces that they can flip if they need to, guys that are going to be very easy to move.

And if this team isn't trending towards a postseason berth near the trade deadline, you can flip him for assets. And all you've really spent on him is cap space. You haven't traded to get them. You didn't trade away a prospect or draft picks. So if you sign them do a one year for something million million dollar deal and then you flip them to hell, Florida at the deadline, you can get some picks back, maybe some prospects. And this continues along the path that the penguins appear to be taking right now. And then you look at his numbers.

Like you said, he was solid. His counting stats were pretty good this year, pretty solid in the playoffs as well. But one thing I looked at this morning when this came out from Josh was I went right to natural stats. That trick is a nerd like I always do. And I look at his time in Ottawa. And like we always say, when you're on a team like that, don't get too enamored with the numbers because it is a bad team. But you look at his numbers there, his expected goal percentage, about 47%. On a bad team, that's pretty solid.

High danger chances, four percentage, 47%. His possession numbers, just a shade under 50%. So on a bad team, being able to do that and still drive offense when you're on one of the worst teams in the NHL, you put them in a little bit better of a situation. Again, I know the penguins aren't contenders, but you've got more talent and more of an ability to drive offense on a team like Pittsburgh. So I think this could be a solid top six fit, which is kind of the one last thing they really need right now. Yeah. And another thing I noticed, 42 goals for 34 goals against for Teresango's time,

Ottawa. I don't look at plus minus too often, but the fact that he was a plus eight on that really bad Senators team speaks volumes to how good he was playing overall. And then his numbers obviously take a jump when he gets traded to the Panthers. 52.3% shot attempts per 60 rate, also a 50.6 expected goals score rate. So pretty solid overall there too. The biggest thing is, can you pry him out of Florida? According to David Pagnata of the fourth period, he said Teresonka would like to stay in Florida, but a deal is not close yet. Other teams, obviously the Penguins continue to show interest. So you might have to give him a number that he can't refuse.

But if you do that, Penguins are going to have to figure out something with a salary cap situation. Because right now, per our good friends at Cap Friendly, which that website is not going to be up for too much longer, my friends, it sucks, but Puckpedia is hopefully going to be a really good replacement. Penguins have a projected $4.29 million in cap space. So it's going to have to be in a perfect world in that three to four million range. And even if it is, they're probably going to have to move some salary out.

Yeah. And then you look at Florida's, excuse me, cap space. They have 7.3 projected according to cap friendly. And just about everybody's locked up. But you still have Anton Lundell, who's an RFA, who's going to be due for a solid raise. So it kind of brings in the idea of, all right, what are they going to do with? Teresenko. What does he want? If he wants a multi-year deal, that's going to be a problem for them because after this season, you then have Sam Bennett, who comes due for a UFA status,

Carter Verhege, Jesper Bowquist, Tomas Nossick, and Aaron Ekblad. So they're, they're not totally out of the woods. They've got everybody that they wanted to get locked up, locked up. But if you want to keep Teresanko, it might cause you some headaches after this coming season. So it really depends on what Florida wants to do and what Vladimir Serra Tera Sanko, excuse me, once. So we'll see on that. But if the opportunity cost is there for the penguins to swoop in for this, I would take it. I think it fits what they're trying to do right now. Yes, he's not what he was four or five years ago. But it really does. suit what the penguins want to do and what their needs are right now.

Right. He's not the 30 goal score that he was several seasons ago. He's not the 40 goal score that he was several seasons ago. But he can still pot 20 to 25 goals for a team that badly needs some finishing. I will take that all day long. And you're right about the Panthers with Anton Lundell. He is going to get a nice pay raise for this next contract. He's one of the most underrated forwards, I think, in the game right now.

And I think that's going to take up a good chunk of the rest. salary cap space, they're going to have to do some finangling with their salary cap situation if they want to bring Teresanko back. But if he does sign with the Penguins, I would be here for it. And as you said, it definitely fits for what they want to do for this season. Yeah. And one last thing before I throw it to break here on Teresanko. Yeah, he's not the 30 goal score he once was. But when healthy, he's been money in the bank for 15 or more the last few years. I mean, you look at he goes to New York and in 22, 23, 18 goals. This year, 23 goals.

So he still has an ability to put the puck in the net. It's not to the level it once was, but like you said at the top, it's not like the guys washed or has nothing left in the tank. There's still some game there left to be played. So if nothing else, it could help the penguins with asset management or it could be enough to just push them into the postseason, roll the dice and see what happens. But that is going to do it for this first segment. When we come back, the Blake Lizotte contract is official and we'll also talk about

some of the AHL deals that Kyle Dubus signed on July 1st. But before we do that, we've got to tell you about our sponsor and that is Fandul. I love sports. I love them so much that I never want them to stop. But as the playoffs wind down, we get fewer games and the sports aren't sporting like I want them too. But Fandul lets me keep the sports going whenever I want. All I have to do is open up the app and dream up any bets when I'm in the mood.

In this summer, Fandul is hooking up all customers with a boost or bonus daily. That's right. There's something for everyone every day all summer long. So head over to fandul.com slash locked on and start making the most out of your summer. Fandul, the official sports betting partner of Major League Baseball. All right, we're back here on this edition of the locked on penguin. wins podcast. I'm one of your host, Patrick Damp, joined as always by Hunter Hodes. And we said it near the end of the show yesterday that during Kyle Dubus's media availability, he did say that the team had

agreed to terms with Blake Lazot. Not long after that press conference, the details were revealed on that deal. He gets a two-year deal with an average annual value of 1.85 million per. So for a younger fourth line center who can put up good fourth line bottom six numbers, I love this deal. I'm a huge fan of it. I think this is a guy who, wow, he's never going to be anything more than a bottom six forward. You got him for a very affordable deal for the next two years. And he really could help you, especially in year two,

for what the penguins are doing with trying to stockpile assets and prospects. that could be a solid trade candidate or if they're back on track next season, that's a guy who can really help you in the bottom six. Right off the rip, I think that's the best bottom six deal that Kyle Dubus has signed since taking over as president of hockey operations and the general manager. Two-year term, perfectly good with me. 1.8 million per year, that's a steal for someone like Blake Lazot. He scored double-digit goals multiple times in his career.

It was a bit down this year, but I think he can get. get back double-digit goals for this team next year, really solid fourth-blying center. Can kill penalties, can play well in his own zone, can bring you a little bit of offense. His underlines are also really sound as well. He spent six seasons with the Los Angeles Kings. This year played in 62 games, played all over 600 minutes at five-on-five. When he was on the ice, the Kings had 53% of the shot attempts, 22 goals for, 16 goals against. Also a 52.5 expected goal share rate.

51.5% of the swaning chances and 51.8% of the high danger chances. I will take those numbers all day long from the team's fourth line center. And just immediately when you look at the fourth line for this season compared to last season, I already think that line is better right now compared to where it was at the end of the year. Yeah, I do too. And it's like we talked about yesterday, something eventually here is going to have to give because now you've got Kevin Hayes, you've got Lars Eller, you've got Blake Lazot. So something there is going to have to give.

It wouldn't surprise me, like I've said, if Lars Eller is being dangled out there in trade discussions, because I do think he could bring you back some solid value as a third or fourth line center for a team that's right there. As he's been described before, he's a very no-nonsense, very mature type of player. and while that's something the penguins have needed, I think they've got it now more than ever before with those three players. So I think it's a very real possibility they could move him for some value. But moving on to some of the AHL deals, no reason to beat around the bush or wait on this one.

They signed, let's see, let me make sure I got it right here, forward, Boko Imam to a to a one-year, deal. And if you like big, bad bruisers in the American hockey league, oh boy, did Kyle Dubus effort get won. Yes. If you love watching fighting at the HL level or heck, even at the NHL level, because I think there's a chance he might come up to the NHL level at times this season, you are going to love Bocai Mama. Last season for the Ottawa Senator's HL team, he had a hundred fifteen penalty minutes he is a big time fighter he's also a very physical player fans are going to love him three goals 10 points in 53 games in the a hl this past season the last

season before that five goals 15 points in 50 games with a hundred nine penalty minutes before that in 2021 2022 a 178 penalty minutes he is going to throw his body around he's going to get into tussles and it's going to be real fun to see on a good chunk of nights for Wilkesbury. Yeah, if you're looking for a guy who is going to basically just be a battering ram, you got your guy. So I thought that one was very interesting. I think that's mostly going to be a Wilkes bear guy. Like you said, there's probably going to be some times we see him with the big club

just when there are injuries. And you know what? If they just want to give him a look, they can just give him a look and see what he does. maybe if you're at PPG Paints Arena on a night where he's with the big club, you might see him get into a fight, give you something to cheer for. So that's fun. We also have to talk about how it's become a meme at this point, and it's true. But Kyle Dubus loves his guys.

They also signed defenseman Mack Hollowell to a one-year deal, 25-year-old, mostly a HL defenseman. He was drafted in 2018 in the fourth round by the Toronto Man. Maple Leafs. And he had a pretty solid year last year with, I believe it's still the Rangers HL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack, 64 games, three goals, 41 assists for 44 points. He's only played six NHL games. That was in the 22, 23 season with the Maple Leafs, two assists in a plus three in

those games. So another depth defenseman signing, don't think it's bad idea to take a chance on this guy, fourth round pick, 118th overall, solid HL defenseman, good defensive depth if you need it when injuries happen. So overall, can't say I care too much, but it's a nice little depth signing and gives us a chance to remind people that Kyle Dubus loves his guys. Well, Pat, you're forgetting one thing. He's also a former Sue Greyhound. So again, Kyle Duvus very much loves his own guys with that, but you're right. 44 points in 64 games this past season for the Hartford Wolfpack. Even before that, with the Marley's

in 2021, 2022. He had five goals, 26 points in 45 games. He'll mostly be playing for Wilkesbury this year. But I could see him being, you know, that number eight, number nine defensemen of injuries arise. And he's had pretty sound production at the HAL level for the last couple of years. So he's definitely not the worst option to have as defensive depth overall in this organization. Yeah.

Again, it points to the thing we've been saying about what they're trying to do with the farms system. They're trying to make it a more competitive team. They're trying to make it more of a place where guys go and it's not just an incubator for the big name prospects to develop and get better. They want everybody that's there to be playing winning hockey. That way, they're in that kind of culture when they get to the National Hockey League. A couple other ones that the Penguins announced they signed defenseman Nate Clerman to a one-year deal and forward Jimmy Huntington also to a your deal. Again, same kind of deal. Guys who have pretty solid HL numbers, they are, nothing else. They are depth signings and insurance for when you have injuries or guys don't work out.

But nothing too crazy or anything that you need to worry about with guys who are going to show up at the NHL level for more than just a cup of coffee. Right. Huntington, fresh off a caller cup with the Hershey Bears. And Hershey just one hell of an HAL team may continue to be flat out. awesome as the Capitol's affiliate. 67 games this year, 16 goals, 33 points during that time. But he was great in the playoffs for Hershey. Five goals, 14 points in 20 games. He'll bring that experience to a Wilkesbury team that definitely, I think, could use a little bit of that experience heading into the 2024, 2025 season. And as for Gleman, this past season played for the Colorado Eagles of the HL, one goal, five points in 37 games. He's also played for the

ECHL at times throughout his career. He'll be playing for. for either Wheeling or Wilkesbury this year for the Penguins. Yeah, so a lot of depth there. You can see that they're really trying to both rebuild the prospect pipeline with all the draft picks and prospects that he's going after, as well as getting solid contributors at the minor league level to really help bolster Wheeling and Wilkespaer's chances when they take the ice this season.

But that is going to do it for this second segment. When we come back, okay, we're two days into free. agency and the offseason. Hunter and I are going to discuss what's left to do, what's next, and what the outlook is for this Penguins team going into next season. All right, we're back here on the Tuesday edition of the Locked-on Penguins podcast. I'm Patrick Damp. That's Hunter Hodes. And we're starting to get an idea of what Kyle Dubus and the Penguins are thinking. Obviously, they're kind of out ongoing for it, as they have been for the better part of 20 years.

We're in what we have pretty much deemed to be a soft rebuild or a retool on the fly. I don't think that we're looking at a team that's going to be pushing hard for the Stanley Cup, let alone just making the playoffs. This is probably going to be a fringe playoff team or a team that's willing to miss the playoffs for one more year, stockpile some prospects and assets and then get back after it the season after.

So I look at what he's done so far. We've talked about Vladimir Teresenko in the top, at the top of the show, and how they still have a need at top six winger. We still know that there's some unanswered questions about what else they have to do this summer, including maybe a Tristan Jari trade, maybe some other trades. But Hunter, in your estimation, what does Kyle Dubus need to still do this summer. Yeah, I mean, as we've discussed quite a bit, I feel like these last couple of days,

they do very much need another top six winger, especially for Cindy Crosby, Teresanko, would fit that bill. And I do have at least a small scoop for you. I've heard from a reliable source that, if Genni Malkin is very much pushing for Teresanko to sign with the penguins and that the penguins are, again, very much pushing for him to come here. So just wanted to kind of confirm Josh's report, but also add a little new nugget in there as well. Outside of that, I still think they got to figure out their

goal-tending situation as a whole. Are you still committed to this tandem of Jari and Adelkevich for this upcoming season? And also, if you do sign someone like Teresenko, what gives with your salary cap situation? You're going to be right up against it. You might have to move someone out. Again, if I had to guess at this instance, I think it's going to be Lars Eller that gets moved over Achari. I can see either one getting moved, but just because of how many centers they have overall, I think it's going to be Eller that gets moved if they do add that top six forward that this team still badly needs. Yeah. And I mean, Elear really does fit the bill as somebody you could move for some good return. He doesn't have trade protection in his contract. It's one year left

of $2.45 million. And at that cost, you know, it's similar to what we talked about with Lazot. He's a very solid center. He's only making 1.85, but he's a bottom six center. And there's a lot of need around the NHL for teams to get that elusive third or fourth line center that's affordable and still productive. And Lars Eller fits that bill. I would hate to lose him.

But when you think about what this team is angrily, willing to do for the next couple of seasons, moving him for assets and cap relief would be the smartest move. There's also one thing I kind of want to float out at you and we can have this discussion real quick to close out the show. Would you be against moving Marcus Pedersen? Because I don't think I would at this point. Because when we had the discussions earlier this year about keeping him, extending him, making him part of the long-ish-term plan, we still kind of figured this team was going to be mostly in go-for-it mode. Right now, they're really not anymore.

And he already makes a shade over $4 million. You know he's going to be due for a raise at the end of this season just because of what a solid defender he has turned into. But then you look at it, he's got a modified no trade, It's all of eight teams. So that's not really handcuffing you all that much of where you could move them. And with a defenseman like him, contenders are always looking for a player like Marcus Pedersen.

And you could really drive up the price. And this could really help you over the next three, four years. And again, similar to what I was saying about Lars Eller, would hate to lose him. Would love to keep him here in the long term. He's evolved into a leader. He's a great two-way defenseman. But with what it appears this team is trying to do, I think that might be one of your best assets to really kick off what you're trying to do here. Right. We really wanted them to sign Marcus Pedersen to an extension because at the time, we thought they were still going to be in Win Now mode heading into this upcoming season and try to do everything in their power to try and get Sidney Crosby and company one last Stanley Cup.

It doesn't look like that's the case anymore. So circumstances change a little bit. So yes, to answer your question, I would be at least a bit more open to trading Pedersen. I think when you look up and down this team right now, outside of the core pieces that, you know, Crosby, Malkin, let's hang in Carlson, who would bring back the most value in a trade? I think that's got to be Marcus Pedersen and really no one else when you look at the roster right now. In Brian Rust, he can bring you back some value, but I don't think it's going to be as much as Pedersen, you know, Bunting, etc. I think Marcus Pedersen would bring you back a pretty hefty package. You know, he's only 28 right now, makes $4 million for this last year on his contract.

If this team is out of it at the deadline and there hasn't been an extension signed yet, I could see Kyle Dubus trying to auction him off to the highest bidder because he would be at least a very good rental defenseman for a team that's a contender for this upcoming season. I think the Penguins would get at least a decent package for him back overall. So yes, I would definitely be open to it. I'm way more open to it right now than I was earlier this year when I thought this team was going to be in win no mode for this year. And that's where I am too, because like you said, and like I've said, $4 million for essentially a top pairing guy or at the very least on a contender, a second pairing guy, that's a very affordable, very attractive contract for that team. and you know that they would pay a premium for it.

You could likely have it similar, in a sense, to the Jake Gensel deal where you get not just a roster player, but maybe a prospect or two and a pick because of the value he holds. And we know he's not going to take a step back because he's 28 years old. And he's been consistently getting better for the last couple of seasons. He's absolutely in his prime as a defenseman. So I think really, if they can. move him, even if it's not at the deadline, even if it's at the start of the season or even this summer, I really think that's an attractive way for this team in Kyle Duvus to really replenish

everything that they want to have in their system. But before we close it out today, one last thing we've got to mention. Got to give a huge shout out and congratulations to Steve Mears. He is leaving the Penguins organization. He's going to the Columbus Blue Jackets where he will become their television play-by-play announcer. We've kind of talked about it on the show before. We know that he's really wanted to stay on TV. He was with the radio side this past year. And you love to see this for a hometown kid.

He really wanted to stay on TV. He would have to have it happen here, but it just wasn't in the cards. So a big congratulations to Mirzy for keeping the dream alive and going to, unfortunately, a division rival. He's going to do a solid job there, man. I'm really excited to see what he can do with the Blue Jackets. And, hey, he's not going too far away. Columbus is not far from Pittsburgh. And I wish him all the best.

He did an admirable job here on television and on radio for the Penguins. And I'm very excited to see what he can do on TV for the Blue Jackets. But now, Pat the Penguins have a boy to fill for their radio. podcast. Who was going to replace Steve Mears as play by play. That remains to be seen heading into this season. Yeah, very curious to see who takes that spot because everybody that's filled in gets off Mears after the whole left by the legendary Mike Lang. They are gigantic shoes to fill.

I'm very excited and curious to see who they get. But that will do it for the Tuesday edition of the Locked-on Penguins podcast for Hunter Hodes. I am Patrick Damp. Thank you as always for tuning in. We will return on Wednesday with a brand new episode, and we will talk to you then.