Locked On Penguins - Daily Podcast On The Pittsburgh Penguins - Penguins get swept in their season series against the Sens

Starting point is 00:00:00 Swept by the Senators. Yes, that's an actual sentence we're using here on the Locked-on Penguins podcast. Hunter and I are going to break down that disappointing effort and more right after this. You're Locked-on Penguins. Your daily podcast on the Pittsburgh Penguins. Part of the Locked-on Podcast Network. Your team every day. Welcome back Penguins fans to another edition of the Locked-on Penguins podcast.

Starting point is 00:00:39 I'm one of your host, Patrick Damp. You can follow me on Twitter at Synonym 4Wet, joined as always by the one and only Hunter Hodes. You can follow him on Twitter at Hunter Hodes. You can also follow the show's account at L.O. underscore Penguins. We are free and available every day on your favorite podcasting platforms as well as YouTube, and we thank you for making this your first listener watch of the day because we're your team every day.

Starting point is 00:01:03 And before we get going, today's episode is brought to you by Fandul. Make every moment more. Right now, new customers get $150 in both. bonus bets with any winning $5 bet. That's $150 if your bet wins, visit fandul.com slash locked on to get started. So,

Starting point is 00:01:20 here we are again. The Penguins lost yet another game this time and overtime to the Ottawa Senators and they have been swept by the Ottawa Senators in the season series in the 2020, 23, 24 NHL season and that's embarrassing.

Starting point is 00:01:37 And once again, it was the same old story, the same old song and dance, as Aerosmith likes to say. And at this point, what else is there to say about this penguin's team? The same problems that we have seen for this entire season cropped up once again. Power play was ineffective. They were unable to score for nearly another full 60 minutes as they were almost shut out. Save for a net mouth scramble in the final minute, thanks to newcomer Michael Bunting,

Starting point is 00:02:06 getting his first goal as a penguin. And they just could not put together a full six. 60 minute effort because you and I, Hunter, were talking before we hit record here. They played a pretty solid, all things considered, 40 minutes. They played fairly well through the first two periods. And as they have been well to do, a lot of this season, they took the third period off and did not bring their best as Ottawa began to overtake the game. And then ultimately almost win in regulation, despite Michael Bunting's best efforts.

Starting point is 00:02:37 And then once again, this team, despite it being a very very, very fun, entertaining, almost return to the original form of three-on-three over time. The Penguins were unable to get that goal they needed in three-on-three overtime to secure the extra point. And yet, despite all that, despite everything that I just said, they're somehow closer to the playoffs today than they were last week, which is just bonkers to say. But Hunter, your thoughts on last night's game. So yeah, I have a lot to say to start off.

Starting point is 00:03:11 I mean, I loved the way the Penguins came out in this game, just like how I loved the way they came out against Boston just a few days ago, but they weren't able to take advantage of so many chances that they were getting. This team's inability to finish a quality scoring chance this season, it continues to be so maddening to me. They're one of the worst finishing teams in the league. They've scored two goals in their last four games. Heck, two goals on their last 154 shots.

Starting point is 00:03:43 I understand that this team is not good. I don't think there are two goals on their last 154 shots level bad. I mean, that's sharks level bad, I feel like, honestly. And I don't think the penguins are that bad. Go ahead. You want me to make that stat even worse for you? Go ahead. From the one and only Dimitri Filipovich, who if you don't follow him on Twitter,

Starting point is 00:04:04 you should, he's a great follow at Dim. But penguins have two goals on their last 288 got attempts. Again, I know this team is bad, but they're not that bad to where that should be happening. It's maddening to me that the finishing has dried up even worse it feels like these last four games. And, you know, they had a scoring chance, a prime scoring chance that is right in the opening 20 seconds. They had a beautiful chance on Jonas Corpusalo. He makes the save. And even throughout that first period, the penguins,

Starting point is 00:04:37 were getting quality scoring chances, but they weren't putting the puck in the back of the net. The same could be said for the second period. I agree with you. I liked the way they played for 40 minutes. But as I said on the Tuesday edition of the show, I want to see this team play a full 60 minutes. And they, again, were not able to do that because they took the entire third period off. And that is backed up by the data on natural stack track. The penguins only had three high danger chances in the third period, 0.31 expected goals at 5.0.5.

Starting point is 00:05:07 on five in the third period. And honestly, that's not good enough, no matter who you are playing against. I don't care if it's against the Ottawa S-N or is a team that have lost seven in a row eight of their last 10 heading into this game. If you play like that in a period, you are more than likely going to lose. They were very lucky to even get that game to overtime. That's now the fifth time the Penguins have scored in a six-on-five situation this season. Per the legendary Bob Grove, the Penguins have lost all five of.

Starting point is 00:05:37 of those games. It's ridiculous at this point. And here's the thing. It's coming for everybody. From our pal Josh Yohe, the Penguins have scored 11 goals in their past eight games. In those games, Sydney Crosby, no goals, two assists, minus 12. Ifgeny Malkin, two goals, two assists, four points, minus five. Eric Carlson, no goals, one assist, minus four. Chris LaTang, one goal, no assists, minus 10. And if that doesn't show that the core has kind of mailed it in a little bit, then what does? And the thing is, I think it's a little bit of they are mailing it in. They know that this season is cooked.

Starting point is 00:06:17 But I also think it's something you and I have discussed many times. We are back to a 2014, 2015 age of the Pittsburgh Penguins where teams understand. Key on those four guys, nobody else is going to get it done. There's nobody else there. Brian Rust had a nice game. DOC had a nice game. I liked what Michael Bunting did, even with. without the goal.

Starting point is 00:06:38 But outside of them, I mean, last night was a fun game to watch because it seemed like both teams were playing aggressive. They were playing fast relative to the teams that they are. And they were trading chances. They were going up and down the ice quite a lot. Both teams got some extended zone time respectively. But the days of the penguins, when they play a game like that, they used to be able to play games like that and hang seven on you.

Starting point is 00:07:08 Last night, they couldn't muster one goal up until the final minute with an extra attacker. And that goes, that falls on the shoulders of everybody. The stars, the depth players, yes, the coaching, yes, the management. I have been vocal that I think Kyle Dubas got put into a bad situation and this might be the most unlucky year a manager has ever had when it comes to signing guys that had better upside than this, but were complete disasters. but at the same time, this isn't a new problem.

Starting point is 00:07:38 This isn't something that just started to crop up in the last month. This has been happening all season. And at this point, changes have to come. And that means maybe it's time. I don't even, I shouldn't even say maybe anymore. It's time for a new coach. And if there's one thing I know, looking at Kyle Dubas's career up to this point,

Starting point is 00:07:59 he's willing to admit mistakes. He's willing to move on from players that he believed in and that he signed that he brought in when they aren't working. And that has to be the focal point of this offseason. I agree. But I do want to go back to a point that you made regarding the play style for the penguins in this game, specifically and how they used to win those types of games all the time. I agree, especially in 2016, 2017, because they had that right personnel and their star players

Starting point is 00:08:28 were also still in the prime of their careers. Now, fast forward all those years later, the core players are a lot older and they also don't have the right depth pieces and just the right personnel in general to play that kind of style. And Mike Sullivan has shown no ability to adjust his system to the team that he has right now. He didn't do it last season either. And that is also a big problem for me. Which is crazy to me because if you look at his renter, The 2016, 2017, 2018, and up until 2019, he didn't care what his system was. His system was, how do I make this team win?

Starting point is 00:09:11 He locked it down against Ottawa in 2017. He was willing to play a more conservative style against the lightning in 2016. He was willing to wait out the capitals in 2017 and capitalize on their mistakes. In this season, I understand that as a coach, you can only do. do so much. Eventually the players have to play. But you look at the way that these players have been playing all season long and of the last couple of years. It's the same system over and over again. I mean, we talked about it after the first big loss to Edmonton in Edmonton. The first goal was directly a result of a not a bad pinch by Eric Carlson because it was the pinch that the

Starting point is 00:09:55 system tells him to make. And he did what he was supposed to do. But there aren't. the same blazing fast players that this roster used to have to where you could take that risk because, okay, yeah, it's a two on one, but it's not going to make it past the blue line because somebody's fast enough to get back. Those players aren't in the system anymore. And Mike Sullivan's refusal to see that is really hurting where this team is and where it needs to go. Right. I don't think he's adjusted his system since the 2022 series against the New York Rangers. The way they played the Rangers in that series, at least for the first half of it, when they went up three games to one, they made adjustments to how the Rangers were breaking out from the regular season. The stretch passes, the Penguins were doing that the Rangers were intercepting and turning into transition offense.

Starting point is 00:10:44 They made the necessary adjustments. And Mike Sullivan was schooling Gallant in that series. I know they got destroyed by goal turning because Casey Smith got hurt and then a couple other things happened. but Sullivan, he adapted at the end of that season and into the playoffs. But since that time, he hasn't been willing to adapt at all. And I feel like that's going to cost him his job once this season wraps up. Going back to a couple of things that you also said, I agree with you about Michael Buncing. I thought he was fantastic in that game against the senators.

Starting point is 00:11:14 He was creating chances. It felt like every time he was on the ice, the goal that he scored, that is a Patrick Hornquist goal. I know we've kind of hinted at a small comparison between Bunting, in Hornquist and Kunitz. That is exactly where Patrick Hornquist would score most of his goals when he played for the Penguins. That goal reminded me of Hornquist very much. And then Drew O'Connor, he was a man possessed coming back in that game. You could really feel the energy that he brought to the team in this game.

Starting point is 00:11:42 He was foreshacking, really aggressively, setting up a lot of quality chances, getting some quality chances of his own. There was a shift. I believe it was in the first period where the Penguins had the senators hemmed in their own zone for about a minute, minute and a half, and it all started because of O'Connor. He was great in this game. And then Brian Rust, he's going to give it his all every single night. And you saw that in this one too.

Starting point is 00:12:04 Those were definitely the three best forwards in this game. I think Cindy Crosby showed flashes in this game. But for the most part, his play has definitely tailed off. And I mean, can you blame him at this point? He knows where this is going. Again, he's shown some flashes these last few games, but it's just not at the level that we saw for the first, you know, 45. 50-ish games.

Starting point is 00:12:25 No, but if there was one player last night who was stellar, in my opinion, that's Tristan Jari. We're going to talk about him and a little bit more about last night's game in the second segment. But before we do that, we have to tell you about our first sponsor, and that is Sleeper. We're well past the halfway point in the season, Penguins fans, and we know how it's going. It looks like once again, we're going to be on the outside looking in for the Stanley Cup playoffs. But regardless of where the penguins are in the current standings, I want to remember.

Starting point is 00:12:53 remind you that you could win big by playing daily fantasy hockey on Sleeper, the official daily fantasy app of the locked on NHL network. Sleeper is our number one choice for daily fantasy sports and especially daily fantasy hockey because with Sleeper, you can win 100 times your cash in daily fantasy hockey contests. Say it all the time, I'm a big fan of sleeper because as anybody who knows me knows, I'm terrible at season long fantasy, but daily fantasy, that's where I cook. I love the fact that we can play it on more than just the NHL. we have the NFL, MLB, college football, and more on Sleeper.

Starting point is 00:13:25 And all you have to do if you're playing the hockey version of it is pick weather studs like Connor McDavid, Alex O'Betchkin, Sydney Crosby, or Nathan McKinnon. We'll record more or less than their sleeper projections for things like goals, assist, saves, plus minus, and more in a given game. To 100 times bet on Sleeper, you need to correctly predict the outcome of eight player stats. You heard me correctly on that one, Penguins fans.

Starting point is 00:13:46 You can win 100 times your money, playing daily fantasy hockey with Sleeper, so start paying attention, nail your picks so you can start winning big. Use promo code locked on NHL and you'll get up to a $100 match on your first deposit. Terms and conditions apply. That's code locked on NHL. See sleepers terms of use for details and locational availability. We got to keep it going here with our next sponsor and that is eBay Motors.

Starting point is 00:14:10 Passion driving patience. What brings home the winning trophy is also what keeps your ride or die alive. eBay Motors has everything you need to maintain your vehicle and level it up to peak performance. from superchargers, roof racks, exhaust kits, LED headlights, and more, whether you're into speed, power, or style, eBay Motors has got you covered. With over 122 million parts for your number one ride or die, you'll always find exactly what you're looking for, and with the eBay guaranteed fit, your part is guaranteed to fit your rider die every time

Starting point is 00:14:39 or your money back. Because with eBay motors, you're burning rubber, not cash. With all the parts that you need at the prices you want, it's easy to turn your car into the MVP and bring home the wind. Keep your rider die live at eBay motors.com. Eligible items only. Exclusions apply. eBay guaranteed fit only available to U.S. customers.

Starting point is 00:15:00 We're back here on the Wednesday edition of the Locked-on Penguins podcast. I am Patrick Damp, joined as always by the illustrious Hunter Hodes. And we are going to keep it rolling here a little bit to talking more about the Penguins versus Senators game last night, that the Penguins lost two to one in overtime. But part of the reason they lost was simply not Tristan John. He had himself a monster of a game. He really, he may have started off a little bit shaky in the first period, but again, that has been kind of the M.O of the season overall, but he was able to stabilize and

Starting point is 00:15:34 especially in the third period and overtime, Tristan Jari was doing everything in his power to keep that team alive, to keep them in the hunt, to get them an extra point. and frankly, he just was failed by everybody else around him. I feel terrible for Tristan Jari after that game, man. I mean, he was standing on his head, especially late in the third period after the senators got the lead. He was making 10 bell save after 10 bell saved to keep the penguins in it before they tied it. And then in overtime, when Chris Lutang accidentally fell,

Starting point is 00:16:07 and I got to admit, my friends, I laughed my butt off when he fell. because if that doesn't sum up the 2023, 2024 Pittsburgh Penguins, then what does? You feel like you're going to get a squion chance with the tang at the point. He randomly falls down. That leads to a breakaway.

Starting point is 00:16:22 Jari makes the save. Then he has to make another save, not 10 to 15 seconds later. Then he springs Eric Carlson down for breakaway, but at that point, he's gassed. I mean, he just couldn't even get to the net there.

Starting point is 00:16:34 And I know Carlson, people were picking on him because he was a bit slow behind the net. He was just kind of standing there. I think the reason, why he was just standing there was because he was gas. I think if he were fully fresh, he probably tucks that around in scores, but I think he was just waiting for everyone to come back into the play. But as for Jari, he really did everything in his power to will the Penguins to

Starting point is 00:16:56 win in this game. And I saw some people going after him for the goal that he allowed him over time, but what more do you want him to do before that goal? Yeah, is it from a bad angle? Sure, you can argue that, but he tried to give the Penguins a win countless times. with so many saves in that overtime, and they failed it. They failed. So at the end of the day, I'm not going to blame him at all for this loss. He was tremendous all game long. I'm glad that the first goal for the senators was originally called back before they got

Starting point is 00:17:28 the actual goal to make it one nothing because, A, he was high stick. That should have been a penalty. And B, that was textbook goalie interference. I know we don't really know what goalie interferences a lot of times in the NFL. But I feel like that was legit goalie interference. But he was great in this one. And it stinks that they just couldn't win one for him. Because he's had quite a few games like this this season where he's played well enough for this team to win.

Starting point is 00:17:55 And they haven't been able to help him out. It's another game where I'm forced to say 37 shots and a 949 save percentage should be more than enough in the modern national hockey league for your team to get a victory. but unfortunately this team just does not have any scoring touch anymore. And I will go back to the overtime that you brought up. I mean, Eric Carlson, yeah, he was absolutely gassed. I do think he should have been a little bit more aware that Corpusola was completely out to lunch and all he had to do was turn around and tuck the puck in. But at that point, you could tell just in his body language and the way he was moving,

Starting point is 00:18:30 he was just dead. And then as for Chris Letang, yes, people on Twitter, the comments section, and all of you can call me a Chris LaTang defender, fanboy, or whatever you want to call me. But the ice in Ottawa is notoriously awful and God awful. And after a 20 minute period and up and down action in that overtime, I'm surprised he was the only one to catch an edge in that overtime because that wasn't anything hilarious or stupid or bad.

Starting point is 00:18:58 He literally just went to pivot, caught an edge and went down. And that's just the Ottawa ice for you. But at the same time, I mean, you want to see that this team, we have been begging for it all year long. Amid so many other issues that this penguin's team has, they just don't have a killer instinct anymore. You get that goal from Michael Bunting and it should galvanize you.

Starting point is 00:19:23 That should have completely turned the tide. And how many 10 bell saves does Tristan Jari make? And that should also galvanize you. Someone on the bench. I'm sure somebody said it, but at the same time, somebody has to stand up and go, hey, let's help Tristan out here, guys. He's keeping us in this one. How about we pay him back?

Starting point is 00:19:43 How about we go out there and have a big shift? How about we go out there and reward his efforts? And again, they put another loss on Tristan Jari's record that has nothing to do with him. No, you're right. It just feels like this team is allergic to playing in overtime. This has been a problem, not even just this season. It was a problem going back to last season. Their struggles in overtime last year are one of the biggest reasons why they missed the playoffs.

Starting point is 00:20:10 If you would just won two of those games that you had lost in overtime last year, the Penguins would have been in the playoffs to end the season. Now, we can't say that for this season, this one just because this team has so many problems outside of losing overtime. But those same problems last year with overtime have carried into this year because they're so terrible in that three-on-three. I remember a time where this team was dynamite. in three on three, especially when it first came out.

Starting point is 00:20:36 But since then, as the core has gone a little bit older, as the roster has kind of gotten depleted more and more, they just haven't been able to play as well in overtime. And yes, you can throw Mike Sullivan's coaching blunders in there because quite a few times he has had some very weird combinations to start OT. And that I think has also cost the penguins dearly because they haven't been able to touch the puck because the other team wins the face off and hogs the puck forever.

Starting point is 00:21:01 and then they win the game. But here's the thing I will push back on you for. You can say that about this season with the overtime. They have nine overtime losses. You give them those nine points. They're tied with Tampa Bay for the second wildcard spot. And there are two points behind the flyers for third in the metro. Even if you get half of those wins,

Starting point is 00:21:22 you are still in the playoff race compared to where you are right now. You're not in a playoff spot with that, but you're still in the race, which again, to say that they're in the race. I mean, what else do you want them to say? But I, things would look different if they had won four of those games, for example. Right. Because again, it's another problem on top of so many others that this team has that like you said, even if you get four or five of those points, you are right there. At that point, you're four points behind the Islanders for the

Starting point is 00:21:54 second wild card spot. Yes. And then you're six points behind Tampa for the first wild card spot. And it's just, it's these little things. Like, I've been saying this all season long. The penguin's problem to me isn't so much that they are just a phenomenally bad team. Like you look at Ottawa, that's a bad team. You look at Columbus, that's a bad team, San Jose, Chicago, etc., etc. You just know with them there are gigantic roster deficiencies. They're, they just don't have the talent. They're young. They're rebuilding. They're tearing down. however you want to, however you want to frame it. The Penguins problem is death by a thousand cuts.

Starting point is 00:22:36 They don't do anything except for the power play. They don't do anything so phenomenally poorly that you look at them and go, that's a bad hockey team. You look at them and go, why is this team not better? And then you dig into how they've played this year. And it's just little things on the margins. They can't win in overtime. They can't get a timely goal.

Starting point is 00:22:56 They can't get a power play goal. They can't score. And it's just all these little things. And they all add up and they put you in a 65 point season so far out of the playoffs again. And it's just maddening because so much of it is fixable. Right. And you can even throw their play in the neutral zone. And there too.

Starting point is 00:23:16 I feel like their play in the neutral zone this season has been really poor compared to other seasons under Mike Sullivan. And we can also throw their inability to sustain a long forecheck at times in quite a few games. this season that's also really just hampering their ability to win more games. It's a multitude of issues that are going to have to be fixed with quite a few moves during the offseason. The good news is though, like we talked about yesterday, they are going to have plenty of cap space and plenty of movable deals coming this off season. So Kyle Dubis will have the opportunity to reshape this roster, make it better,

Starting point is 00:23:55 and take one more kick at the can next year. but I think we're going to leave it that. And yes, despite all of that, it still is Wednesday. So that means we are against probably our better judgment, going to give out a warrior helmet. We're going to do that right after this, but we have to tell you about our next sponsor. And that is Fandall. Say goodbye to busted brackets because Fandall lets you bet on every game of the tourney. Whether you're betting on a big upset or a one seed, it's time to go dancing on America's number one sports book.

Starting point is 00:24:26 Right now, new customers get. $200 in bonus bets if your first $5 bet wins. That's $200 to use on point spreads, money lines. You can even pick who's going to win at all. Just use fandul.com slash locked on and bet on college hoops until they cut down the nets. Welcome back, ladies and gentlemen, to the Wednesday edition of the Locked on Penguins podcast. One more time, I'm Patrick Damp. That's Hunter Hodes.

Starting point is 00:24:53 And it is Wednesday. We can't break from tradition, no matter how badly we may want to. but for those of you who may be new here, because we have been getting some new subscribers, if you have not heard this before, it is Wednesday. We give out our Warrior Helmet, which is our MVP of the previous week. We give it to one player that we believe stood out for the last week or so in Penguinsland. So I'm going to start it off, and I'm going to give my Warrior Helmet to Drew O'Connor. I thought his return last night from injury in a week where this team has seen one of its best players traded.

Starting point is 00:25:27 They have not been able to score many goals. They've been shut out twice, and they've really looked like they are dead in the water. Drew O'Connor came back last night and was a spark. And this team needed a spark. They needed somebody to come out, work their butt off, play engaged type of hockey. And you could see through the first 40 minutes, that rubbed off on the team. They played very hard through the first two periods. But as we've said, no finishing ability.

Starting point is 00:25:52 So it was kind of all for nothing. But Drew O'Connor coming out there, playing his butt off. being a man possessed, good on the forecheck, good in the D zone, getting some shots on goal. That was maybe not quite what the doctor ordered, but it was much needed for the penguins. I like that one. He was very much in the running for me,

Starting point is 00:26:12 but my warrior helmet pick, I'm going to give it to Michael Bunting for the past few games. I think he has been one of their best players overall. He seemed at least at times like a natural fit next to Sidney Crosby, and I know it's only been a few games, but I do want to see more of that down the stretch here and then into next season. He got his first goal right in the net mouth

Starting point is 00:26:34 last night against Senators with 22 seconds left. Again, very much a Patrick Cornquistike goal. But even before that game, I thought he was really good against the Oilers, even though the Penguins didn't score, and I thought he was great against the Bruins as well. He gets that breakaway about 10 minutes into the first period against the Bruins. Linus Olmer just made a better say.

Starting point is 00:26:52 He's one of the best goaltenders in the league. That's going to happen sometimes, He still put himself in the right opportunity to get a really good scoring chance. So I've been really impressed with his play since coming over from Carolina. I know I went on record to say that I wasn't that big on him coming back just because of his contract, of the way he's played in Carolina. But so far through three games, it appears the Penguins in Mike Sullivan's system, even though I've crafted on the Sullivan system quite a bit in this episode,

Starting point is 00:27:21 it appears that the Penguins have been a better fit for him in these three games. compared to his much larger sample size in Carolina this past year. So I've really liked the energy that he's brought to this team, this quaining chance that he's created, the goal that he's had. Even though the team has not been playing well over the last week, he gets my warrior helmet for how he's played. That's a very good pick as well.

Starting point is 00:27:44 Obviously, we didn't go with the strikingly obvious one of Tristan Jari, who's been pretty good for the last week considering the team around them. But back to bunting, I noticed this last night. I think we have the makings of a pretty good first line. And I think that's part of the reason that they have held on and told Brian Rust that they're going to hold on to Brian Rust. Because yes, neither guy is Jake Gensel. That's totally fair.

Starting point is 00:28:08 But we have seen throughout the years, the type of player that Sidney Crosby likes to play with are guys who create space, guys who go to the dirty areas, and guys who play fast. Check, check, check for Brian Rust and Michael Bunting. Yes, it would be nice to still have Jake Gensel. arguing that, but they have the makings with those three together of a pretty good top line. And the penguins, if nothing else, I've been saying it all year. They need that kind of culture shock at some point going into the next season. They have to get another guy or two like Michael Bunting who can pop in a few goals,

Starting point is 00:28:46 but plays the game at a million miles an hour, is not afraid to throw hits, is not afraid to go to the dirty areas, because we have noticed it all season long. It's something you've been harping on all season. They are a perimeter team. They do not own the middle of the ice like they used to. A guy like Michael Bunting, another guy or two like him. All of a sudden, we're talking about a penguin's team that may be a little bit older, but you're still going to have to go out there and beat them.

Starting point is 00:29:12 Agreed. I 100% agree with you on that. And just with Bunting overall, he was going to the areas that Crosby likes his winners to go to. And we all know how Sid has eyes in the best. back of his head when he plays with his linemates. Even though it's only been a few games, it feels like bunting has fit in pretty seamlessly so far.

Starting point is 00:29:32 And I want to see how that chemistry continues to build down the stretch here for the rest of the season, even though they're not going to make the playoffs, and then obviously into next season. The Chris Kunitz, Patrick Hornquist comparisons, while there are very many versions of them, I still think they fit here with the way Kunitz played next to Crosby and with the way Hornquist play next to Crosby when he was in his prime. Absolutely. Like I think it's, I think it's a good fit.

Starting point is 00:30:00 I like that move. Obviously, I think as we talked about in our deadline show, that the prices were very weird as it became a buyer's deadline. So you're never going to get a good enough return for Jake Gensel and anybody's expectation. But I think they did as well as they could. I think Michael Bunting is going to be a solid contributor for the rest of his contract. You're having me eat pro, Michael Bunting and Kyle Dubus, please. I don't mind looking like a.

Starting point is 00:30:24 complete idiot if he turns out to be one heck of a player for this team or if this trade turns out to be an A plus. I don't mind old takes exposing myself at all. You and me both, buddy, but that is going to do it for this edition of the Locked-on Penguins podcast. I'm Patrick D. D. D. Holties. Stay tuned for a very special episode we will have for you tomorrow. We're going to do a little bit of a check-in with the San Jose Sharks, as we'll be joined by the Lockdown Sharks host J.D. Young. And be on the lookout for that tomorrow. We'll get you ready for that game. as well as talk a little Eric Carlson and the difference between the two franchises. But we'll have that for you tomorrow.

Starting point is 00:31:00 For now, I'm Patrick Damp. That's Hunter Hodes. Thank you always for tuning in. And we will be back tomorrow.

Locked On Penguins - Daily Podcast On The Pittsburgh Penguins - Penguins get swept in their season series against the Sens

There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click on any sentence in the transcript to leave a comment.