Locked On Penguins - Daily Podcast On The Pittsburgh Penguins - Penguins get their FIFTH STRAIGHT WIN by crushing Chicago!

Episode Date: January 30, 2026

The Penguins' winning streak increased to five straight after absolutely crushing the Chicago Blackhawks 6-2! Patrick and Hunter recap the Penguins' dominant win over the Blackhawks and how the team was able to do it without contributions from their biggest stars. Thanks to contributions from Egor Chinakhov, Anthony Mantha, Ben Kindel, and Connor Dewar, the Penguins didn't need their big guns on Thursday night. (0:00) Then, the miserable New York Rangers come to town on Saturday afternoon for a Stanley Cup reunion game, but for the 2026 Penguins, focusing on the worst team in the Eastern Conference is more important than looking back on a championship from 10 years ago. (13:43). Finally, it's Friday, and it's a trade deadline-focused Fan Take Friday! They react to some of your ideas for who the Penguins could target should they take a swing at the deadline. (25:46)Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!QuoTry Quo for free plus get 20% off your first 6 months when you go tohttp://Quo.com/lockedonnhlIndeedNow, you can speed up your hiring process with a $75 Sponsored Job Credit. Just go to https://indeed.com/lockedon right now and support our show by saying you heard about Indeed on this podcast. Terms and conditions apply.GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONfor $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Download Gametime today. What time is it? Gametime.FanDuelIf you’re a new customer, bet just $5 and get $200 in Bonus Bets if you win. Make it count — because after the Super Bowl, the season is over. Last call for football on FanDuel, an Official Sportsbook Partner of Super Bowl Sixty. Rocket MoneyTake control of your finances and cancel your unwanted subscriptions with Rocket Money.Go to https://RocketMoney.com/LOCKEDONtoday.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.

The Penguins winning streak has reached five games, and it was thanks to a dominant performance over the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday night. Hunter and I are going to recap that game, get you set for the Stanley Cup reunion, and answer quite a bit of hot takes in another fan take Friday 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. Happy Victory Friday Penguins fans and welcome in to another edition of the Locked-on Penguins podcast.

I am one of your hosts Patrick Damp. You can follow me across all social media platforms at Synonym 4 Wet. Joined as always by my good friend, the one and only Hunter Hodes. You can follow him on Twitter at Hunter Hodes. You can give our show's Twitter account a follow at LO underscore Penguins. You can find us on Instagram at Locked On underscore Penguins and TikTok at Locked On Penguins. Of course, as always, we appreciate you making us part of your daily routine. Don't forget, we are free and available wherever you get your podcasts as well as YouTube.

And if you follow us on YouTube, which you should be, make sure you've hit the notification, button. That way you can be among the first to know when we drop our daily Monday through Friday episodes. Today's episode is brought to you by Fandle. It's the last call for football on Fandul. If you're a new customer, bet just $5 and you can win $200 in bonus bets if you win more on them later. Six to two over the Chicago Blackhawks. And it was a sleepy start for the penguins. And then the fourth line happened. And then the entire team woke up. The Penguins start on Thursday night against the Blackhawks was not great.

They gave up the first five shots. They gave up the first goal. They looked all around sluggish. And then in about the 10 minute mark of the first period, the Penguins decided, oh yeah, the Blackhawks aren't very good. We are pretty good. It's time to, as my pal Hunter likes to say, put some belts to asses. because this was not even close after the first 10 minutes.

The penguins just blitz the Blackhawks throughout. They end up out shooting the Blackhawks after the Blackhawks get the first five shots of the game. 44 to 15. The Penguins just left zero margin for error. They left zero room for the Blackhawks. And it's a really good start to this pre-Olympic break. stretch and the penguins beat a team they needed to beat and they did it in spectacular fashion. Yeah, the first period as a whole, yeah, I know they pushed back a little bit in the final 10 minutes.

And what do you know, Pat, the fourth line gets this team on the score sheet and really starts getting them right back into the game. We've seen that time and time again from this line. Connor Dewar sets a new career high in goals, had another one later on in the game, now has 13 for the season. would this team be, especially in the bottom six, without the services of Connor Dewar this year, man. He continues to play so good for this team.

And his acquisition at the time at the end of last season was a little bit of an afterthought. Well, it's anything but that, because as I always say, he is the straw that stirs the drink on that line, and he was once again fabulous. But, you know, even after that goal, I so felt the penguins, they were a little bit sluggish, but they were playing their way more into the game.

They were starting to string together, you know, a shift or two to get some more momentum back. But then, Pat, in the final 40 minutes, it was true belt to ass. They absolutely destroyed Chicago in the final two periods. They were winning. Every single puck battle, they weren't giving the Blackhawks anything, you know, in terms of offensive chances. Poor Arvid Soderblum was just getting peppered shift after shift. Ben Kindle makes it to one in the second. Now three has three goals in two games.

What a rip that one was goes five hole. and then they just go to work right after that, Pat. It's 2-1, you're thinking, okay, if you can get maybe an extra one here going into the third, you'll be sitting pretty because I'm liking the way they're playing. Not only do they do that, Pat, they get three more to make it a 5-to-1 game going into the second intermission.

Anthony Amtha continues his very, very stellar season. Igor Chinakov, brilliant move just in front of the goal. What a pass from of Genni Malkin. And also what a thunderous hit by Parker Watherspoon on Tyler Brutuzzi. That was that entire goal man. You and I were talking about this before we started recording. That entire goal was men. It really was.

It was such a great encapsulation of how well this team has been playing throughout the month of January. Because Parker Watherspoon steps up at the exact right time, throws a hit to change possession of the puck. It's going to get the headlines because of how big of a hit it was. But at the end of the day, that is a textbook hit because I say it on the show all the time. The purpose of body checking and hockey is to gain possession of the puck. He does just that if Gennie Malkin darts into the zone, makes an unbelievable throwback spinorama pass right to the tape of Igor Chinikov. Chinikov beats the defenseman and then just.

smokes poor Soder Blum for the goal. And I can only say it so many times, so many different ways. What an absolute gem of an acquisition Chinikov has been for the Penguins. I don't know how high this kid's ceiling is, but it seems like with each passing game, it gets higher and higher. Yeah, six goals and eight points in his last 14 games. He's been a completely different player. you can very much tell, as we've been saying a lot on the show, that he badly needed to get out of Columbus. He wasn't seeing eye to eye with Dean Eveson before he got fired and just has new life with his game right now. And he fits so well on that second line with Afghani Malkin and Tommy Novak. Malkin has always been such a tremendous playmaker.

You saw that on display there. And with the level of finishing that Chinov has and what he has shown, again, just such a nice fit. And also for Tommy Novak, too, who we all know is a great playmaker, but also has a really under-end release. That line continues to be so good. And then how about Ryan Shea man? Piss missile to end the period. He also enjoyed arguably, I think, his best game of the season last night.

Very quietly, by the way, Pat, he has three goals in 21 points in 52 games. And lately he's been doing it on the bottom here. I know he started out the season on the pair with Crystal Tang. and I was liking the way he was playing. His play dipped a little bit after that, but over the last, you know, week or two-ish, I think his play has really gone up considerably.

And I think he's playing a lot better, especially all the bottom pairs. So I really wanted to shout out Ryan Shea for his performance. Last night, Archer Sheelovs, very good once again. No chance on the two goals that he allowed, especially the Bedard one. And I want to take a couple seconds here. Connor Bedard's release is absolutely disgusting.

It does not get talked about enough. The way that it just comes off his stick, which is just curved in a certain way, it shouldn't be coming off the stick like that, Pat, but it does. That's just how good of a player Connor Bedard is. So I know the Blackhawks got blown out, but man, they do have a gem in this kid. He is awesome. I said it on the preview show. You can see the makings of a future really good team with Chicago.

The young talent is there, especially with Bedard. Frank Nizar, he's going to be really good. for years to come. And they've got plenty of other of young players and prospects in the pipeline. They're just going to need to make a couple of savvy moves, continue to draft well, and they'll be right back to where they were just about 10 years ago. So they're on the right track. And Bedard is the centerpiece of that. And because of the injuries, because of the slow start, he's not getting the love that he deserves, but this kid is really, really good. good. Also, we got a shout out. Soloviov in his first game as a penguin, played really

steady, had a couple of good hits, gets an assist, and genuinely looked good. Now, we don't want to get carried away. It's one win over a not so great Blackhawks team, but you look at the penguin's effort for the final 50 minutes of this game, they were the better team throughout and everybody pulled their weight. It wasn't just the second line carrying them. It wasn't. just a defensive pairing carrying them. It wasn't like Artur Shilovs stood on his head and gave them a chance, though he did make a lot of really key saves to keep Chicago from getting back into the game when he needed to.

But this was a full team, mostly full game effort. And it's exactly what you want to see from a team that has playoff aspirations. This is the stat I keep coming back to for this game. Cindy Crosby, no points. Eric Carlson, no points. Chris LaTang, no points. Evgeny Malkin, one point, the assist on Chino Kov's goal. They got one combined point from those four players.

And if you want to throw Brian Rustin, he's suspended. They didn't get any contributions really from any of those guys outside, again, of that really nice pass from Hvgeny Malkin. But outside of that, Pat, they didn't get contributions from any of the big core guys. And that goes to show how deep this team is, and how much they're humming right now. Every other line contributed, like the depth scoring especially,

you know, what Connor do are getting to, Ryan Shea, Chinokov, Anthony Mantha, Ben Kindle gets another goal for the season that's now three goals in his last two games. They're having other players step up. And when you're having stuff like that happen,

again, it's another reason why this team is legitimately good and why they have a real shot at getting into the playoffs in mid-Aprice. in mid-April. So don't take these types of games for granted. It's not all the time where you see the penguins win a game like this. Score six goals, Pat.

And Crosby, Latangian Carlson have no points. And Malkin only has one. Very rare. But so it's just awesome, man. It really is. And to your point, these are the games that if you want to make the post season, you need to win. Chicago's not a player.

team. That's a team that you need two clean points from. Yeah. You, you are going, we, we continue to hint at it. We're obviously going to talk about it when we get to the Olympic break. March is going to be a murderer's row. You are going to basically be playing a playoff team every other night with the exception of a couple of games. Yeah. So beating these non-playoff teams is both a requirement and it helps you give yourself a little bit of margin for error because they're not going to, they're not going to have a perfect march. I'm more than willing to put my stake in the ground on that one. But if they continue to beat these teams that they need to beat, they will give themselves a cushion where when they inevitably lose a couple of games in March to playoff teams, it's not going to set them back.

It's just going to keep them in the race. In one of those non-playoff teams that they're going to have to beat is coming to town on Saturday afternoon. The New York Rangers and Mike Sullivan and some old friends from the 20s. 16 Stanley Cup Championship are going to be in town. Hunter and I are going to get you set for that game when we come back right after this. But first, we've got to tell you about today's first sponsor, and that is Fandul. It's the last call for football on Fandle. One final Sunday, one last kickoff. The final chance to get in on the action before the NFL season officially comes to a close. This is Super Bowl 60 and Fandul is making sure you're right in the middle of it with a special offer just in time for the biggest game of the year. Whether you're backing the favorite, riding with the underdog, or building one last same game parlay, this is the game that everyone has been waiting for.

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Hodes. They're going to look to make it six in a row on Saturday afternoon when the New York Rangers come to town for a nationally televised game on ABC slash ESPN. And buddy, the New York Rangers, man. You never feel that. They stink. That's the worst team in the conference. I don't mean to cut you off there. I just had to say it. That team is awful.

You got to take two clean points tomorrow. It looks like they're giving up whenever they allow a goal, Pat. Like just watching some of these games back, just look at the way they're deflated when they give up a goal or two or more. It's just the vibes are rancid there. You know that Panarin is set to get moved. Virtually any time now, there's going to be other moves. I wouldn't be surprised if Schneider gets moved.

Trocheck, this is also a Rangers team that still does not have Adam Fox. He's eligible to come off LTIR tomorrow, but hasn't even practiced with the team yet. Shisterkin, he's eligible to come off anytime. He still has not practiced yet. There's a very real chance the Penguins will see a Rangers team without their best forward,

best defensemen, and their best goaltender. You got to take two clean points here, man. That's the requirement, I think, for me. You never feel bad. What I was going to say is you never feel bad for a rival. Like, we love to see the demise of the rivals, but I'll say this, and I know I'll get some backlash from Penguins fans,

the Rangers are in a group of teams kind of like the Flyers, the Bruins, the Penguins themselves, the Montreal Canadians, and yes, the Toronto Maple Leafs. The league is better when they're good. And they are just not good right now. They are two and eight in their last 10. They've lost their last two. They had back to back to back against the Islanders, lost both of them, which shout out to Matthew Schaefer who on his draft day said, we're going to beat the Rangers every time they play

them. Not only are they four or no against the Rangers, they've never trailed against the Rangers. So the kid kept true to his word. But like you said, they're holding Panarin out for roster management, which means they're going to trade him. Shastirkin and Fox still technically hurt even though they could return. And then you just look at the rest of the roster. Panarin's being held out, like I said, 57 points this year. Zabedad having himself a nice bounce back year, 23 goals, 51 points. And then after that, there's just not much at all. Adam Fox again, he's been out 28 points, four goals, Gavrikov, 19 points. And then Jonathan quick, I mean, God bless him. He's found the fountain of youth for the most part since coming to

the Rangers, but because of how bad this Rangers team is, 412 and 2, 3.1 GAA 885 save percentage. A lot of that, I'm not really putting on Jonathan Quick. He's getting no help. And yeah, he's not Igor Shisterkin, but he's trying. I mean, I also have Adam Fox. They don't really have another player that can move the puck up the ice from their own zone. If you want to argue Gabrikov a little bit, okay, but it's not even close to the level that Adam Fox can.

That's a really bad defensive group. I think the penguins should be licking their chops a little bit, getting the chance to go up against a defensive group that, you know, they're just bleeding chances. And I wonder why, especially with Adam Fox out. You know, this is a Ranger Ford group that, yeah, like, especially now with Panarin out, it's not very good, man. Like, yeah, you have to worry about still Zabinajad for the way that he's playing. I will give J.T. Miller a little bit of kudos for the way he's producing the last week or two, but it's also on a bad team, bad player. I mean, players still have to produce on bad teams.

So, la la, la, you have those two. You have Vincent Trocheque, who I do think is going to get moved here at some point. Before the trade deadline, Alexei Lafranier, another player who I think could get moved at some point as well. Will Cooley, who I think is a solid top nine forward, 12 goals in 26 points in 55 games. But again, man, this is a Rangers team that is ripe for the tanking. The Penguins, remember, they saw them twice in their first three games. The Penguins won the game in New York. They then got blown out in their third game of the season, six to one.

Penguins have also lost their last five games at home to the Rangers. That's got to change. These are two points that the Penguins really need to get. If you can especially have a fast start in this, one, Pat, I think you can potentially really blow the doors off this team, similar to what you did against Chicago, even though you didn't have that fast of a start against them because you're kind of getting your legs back, first game off of a little bit of a long break, off a Western road trip. You're getting into the game a bit.

This one, though, I think you should be able to have a much faster start. And again, I think if you score a couple early ones on the Rangers, I think they're going to be pretty deflated. just considering the way that they're playing the way that they know where the season is going, all that stuff. We do have to see some injury concerns for the Penguins. Chris Latang and Afghani Malkin were not at practice on Friday. Dan Mew said that they're dealing with a couple of things.

We'll have an update for everyone on Saturday. With Malkin, it's pretty obvious, Pat, that he's still not 100% from his shoulder injury. Latang, I'm not really sure if I had to guess, and this is a strict guess, might be related to the injury that he had made him miss part of the Western Canada a road trip. We'll have to see. But hopefully it's not too serious for either player, especially with the Olympic break coming up. That's going to be huge for both to get them healthier going into the stretch run of March and April. But again, to sum all this up, man, got to get two points against the worst team in the conference. The fast start is the biggest

key because this is for better or for worse, a very mentally fragile New York Rangers team. They know that this season is over. especially after your management and ownership, pen a letter to the fans to say, we're doing a retooling here. You have your best player held out of the lineup to be traded. These guys know that they're human beings. They know that this season is over.

And if you get a couple quick ones on them early, they're just going to check out. They'll play and they'll try. Yeah. But the effort, they won't be 100% in. And I'm just going to say this because I have to. I know that you know this.

I know that our listeners know this, that I'm a Mike Sullivan guy. I do genuinely feel bad for this man because this is now another season where he has been, in a way, failed by his general management group because the final days of him in Pittsburgh, we know he didn't see eye to eye with Ron Hextall. And Ron Hextall left this organization a mess. Kyle Dubus is doing his best to get it back. on track, but it was just time for them to move on. Now he goes to the Rangers, and I, we don't know, totally confirmed, but you know they

just dropped a Brinks truck of money at his doorstep. So he's probably doing okay there, but not seeing where this organization was, man, that's a tough beat for Mike Sullivan. I think if Mike could do it all over again, and this is just me speaking, I think he would take a year off go to television and take a different job i don't think he had any idea what he was getting himself into when he took this job i it's bad man like i do feel bad for him in a way as well and this is a moment again i just i think he should have taken a year off and done television and taking a better job because this job is just a disaster right now i would agree and i will say

in his defense for the rangers this ain't his fault like this is his first season there and he was not given a great roster to start. So when it came to the end of the penguins with what we're seeing now, it was time for a fresh start. He was being maybe not tuned out, but like he just wasn't connecting the same way he was with the team in years prior. This one, it's like, dude, you gave me nothing and you want me to turn it into something. How are we going to do this?

So tough beat for him. But the good news is he's probably being very handsomely compensated. And he's got the Olympics coming up in team. USA in a couple of weeks. And he'll get to see some of his former players that he coached because of course, Pat, this is the 2016 Stanley Cup reunion game. I can't believe it has been 10 years, by the way. Time absolutely flies.

We know that Carl Hagelin is going to be in town for this game. Patrick Hornquist is also going to be in town for this game. I read Josh Yoey's piece on Jim Rutherford today. He is going to be in town for this game as well. So at least Sally will get to interact with some, you know, former co-workers and some of his former players that he coached. which that's at least going to be cool too. I think with it being the 2016 Stanley Cup reunion game,

I think the 2026 Penguins are going to want to put on a show for some of these guys. Because in the back of my head, Pat, I'm like, this could be a trap game just because, you know, you're coming off a big win against Chicago. You've won five in row. The vibe's really good. But playing the worst team in the conference, it feels like a little bit could be a trap game.

But also at the same time, I got to think the players are going to want to put on one heck of a show. for the players who won a Stanley Cup 10 years ago. Yeah, you really do. Just for the fans and for the people in attendance, you got to get a win, can't lose on this night. Well, afternoon, because again, 3.30 PPG paints arena. You can catch the game on ABC ESPN.

Obviously, Hunter and I will recap that game on our Monday episode, but we're not done here on the Friday episode. It's going to be a little bit of a longer one. So hang with us because it's Friday. it's fan take Friday. And boy, you guys had quite a lot of thoughts. And it's time for us to get to those when we come back. So stick with us.

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Quo, no missed calls, no missed customers. Finishing up the Friday edition of the locked on penguins, I'm Patrick Damp, right alongside Hunter Hodes. And while Warrior Helmet Wednesday might be our favorite segment, our second favorite, and the one that gets us to talk about some absolutely unhinged stuff is fan take Friday. And we put it out on our YouTube every Friday morning. So be on the lookout for that.

We either offer you up a poll or we ask you a question. And this week we kept it simple with a question. Instead of our poll, we're asking if the penguins decide to take some kind of a swing at the trade deadline, who do you want? But here's the caveat. Who's your realistic option? and who is your delusional option? Who do you think is a delusional option for the Pittsburgh Penguins? And I got to start with my favorite delusional option from the comment section.

And this is from Michael and he just puts one name, Austin Matthews. Well, I do think the Maple Leafs are on the road to being sellers this year because they looked cooked beyond belief. but they ain't getting rid of Austin Matthews, man. And if I can just twist the knife ever so slightly for Toronto Maple Leafs fans, I've said it before. I'll say it again. Austin Matthews ain't got that dog in them. When the games get bigger, he gets smaller.

So for a team that wants to go to the playoffs, no thanks. I just hope that you say this now, then you get old takes exposed. if he somehow gets the game-winning goal for Team USA to win the Olympic gold medal in a couple weeks in Milan. Just give me that one, at least. But, hey, I appreciate the very delusional take there from Michael. Yeah, not going to happen. There's a whole bunch of Jason Robertsons here.

Guys, I love Jason Robertson a ton. Stars ain't doing that. They still want to try to resign him. If they're getting Robertson, if there's even a chance of it, and it's still very, very low. that's a summer move. That is going to happen. If it were to happen, excuse me,

it would be over the summer. There is no chance in hell that the stars are moving him when they are all in this year for a Stanley Cup. They're trying to win it. So I appreciate all the Robertson responses. Yeah, that's the biggest thing with Jason Robertson, because I said it when this story kind of started having a little bit of smoke, the stars are trying to win this year.

and barring something crazy, they're in the most competitive division and they're in the race to win it. So they're not going to trade him in season. But if they fall short or if they don't think they can find a way to get him re-signed long term, because they're in a little bit of a underrated cap crunch, it would be a summer move. I don't think it's entirely impossible, but I will say that it's improbable. yeah i it's 99 to 1 to me just with the way the stars are going right now the fact that they're still trying to sign them out again i was listening to 32 thoughts earlier today and freeman was talking about them as a potential destination for panarin and basically shut it down and saying like

yeah they're still figuring out with roberts and so again i appreciate the delusional stuff but not going to happen someone actually had nick perbix on here which i do like quite a bit he'd have to play i think in a bottom pair role on the team, but I do like the Nick Purbix option quite a bit defensively. Another person had Pavel Minzikov and Simone Nemich. Nemich would be fun. I think that one's still a bit more unlikely. Mintakov, though, I mean, that's for a defenseman on the left side, man.

That would be a lot of fun. Someone that could potentially be there for the long haul. We've seen other people say, you know, don't really do too much, which I totally understand as well. Someone else had Jared McCann, which, again, I'd be pretty surprised if they inquired on him. I think if he gets traded, he's going elsewhere. I just don't think there's a spot in the lineup for Jared McCann right now, to be honest. Yeah, and they said it in their comment, too, about McCann that, and I know that I'm someone that pushes back against the injury prone label,

because in my estimation, it is all just luck and happenstance. But there is something to be said for the last few seasons. Jared McCann has been injured quite a bit. And it's an old cliche, but it's true. the best ability is availability. And McCann hasn't really been available as of late. And if you're going to go get that player, you want him in your lineup. The one that really stood out to me, though, is Nick Pervix. I look at that name and he's 27.

He'll be 28 at the start of the year. He's a solid depth defenseman. Dubas and Trots have made plenty of moves. And even though Nashville's been playing better as of recent, I still don't see them going anywhere. That would be a solid upgrade on your blue line. And it's somebody that you could really use as a bridge because he's 28. You can hold on to him for three, four years.

And when some of your younger guys start to really develop and get ready, they can take his spot. But he would be a really good bridge and really fit into what the penguins are trying to do right now. So if he's available, I would definitely inquire on him. Yeah, he also has one more year left on his contract after this year, a $2.75 million before he becomes a UFA in 27, 28. You can play him, you know, right behind Carlson and what's hanging, potentially for the rest of the year if you feel like, you know,

you're not seeing enough from Sloviyov or Connor Clifton, even, you know, with Jackson and Ivan, he set to return, you know, a bit later on this year. Yeah, that's definitely an option. And, you know, I've seen, you know, quite a few people throwing the idea about, like, yeah, like they could use an upgrade on the right side on the third pair. you know, I keep pushing back a little bit saying I would like one on the left side as well. That's more of a long-term option.

I think if you're doing a right-side option, Pat, it's way more for the short-term, way more for this year. I think the left side, again, that's me thinking pretty long-term because I think long-term, they just don't have a true answer on that side. Again, I like Watherspoon, but only has a year left. Kulaks a UFA at the end of the year. Ryan Shea, you know, totally fine depth defenseman, but again, they don't have like a true air apparent on like the top pair on the left side for, like four or five six plus years down the line. So that's what I'm really looking at. But if you're

thinking more short term, again, Perbix does make a lot of sense. Do anything else really stand out to you? This is one that you and I talked about off air that I want to get to. This is from Drake Barrett, where he asks, what is a realistic package for Shane Wright? And here's the, I'm going to answer this a little bit differently because I liked what I had to say to you about this. I don't know what the package would be. I do think it would be probably a little bit pricier than I think Kyle Dubus would want to go for because he is 22 years old. He was a fourth overall pick in 2022. And I don't want this to come off as a one to one comparison, but it would strike me a lot as a Chinikov style move because Chinochov needed a change of scenery because he just did not like the head coach.

They did not see eye to eye. The similarity for me with Shane Wright in Seattle is that he is the kind of player that Seattle doesn't know how to use. Seattle is a very 200 foot defense first, low risk, low event hockey type of team. And while I still don't know if Shane Wright is going to, live up to the billing that he had going into the 2022 draft. He would probably fit a lot better in the Penguin system than he would in Seattle's. I don't know if he would suddenly show up and become the next big time center for the team,

but I do think playing the type of hockey Dan Mews has this team playing. I think it would unlock a lot more in his game. He's the type of player that Kyle Dubis has been going after in other moves, but this is the thing. I think Seattle is looking for a pure score overall. I mean, you look at that team. I like a lot of their depth forward. They don't have like a true game breaker score.

I think that's what they're looking for. So I think if Shane Wright is getting moved, I think it's in that type of package, where they're getting a dynamic score, whoever it is, whether it's at this year's trade deadline or maybe over the summer, I think that's where they're going to move Shane right. I don't know if they would move him for a similar package to what the Penguins gave up for Chinikov.

And again, like, I just don't know where you would fit him in the lineup right now, like just when everyone's healthy. Like, it's already to the case where Rucker McGrody and Daly Coivinen, you know, when this team has all their forwards healthy, you know, they're not even in the lineup. And heck, Kevin Hayes is the 13th forward, but obviously he still kind of is the 14th for, because Morgority came up. But I just don't really see at this time a true fit for him. him again, he's the type of player that Dubus is identifying on these types of teams.

But I think if Wright gets moved, I think it's for a dynamic score where they can package right and maybe a pick or a prospect going the other way. That's just the way I see it. I also think that an underrated part of that when you think about a trade for say a Shane Wright or somebody similar, I think we're finding out that we're, and this is obviously dependent upon his health as well. I think we're at the point of Gennie Malkins career where he's a winger because he's, we'll see what the update is tomorrow when Mews lets us know what's going on with Gino.

But you would think by now, since he's returned, they would have moved him back to center, but they haven't. Part of that is how good that line is playing and you're not going to mess with it. But there might be a thing there where Gino's going to play out the rest of his days as a winger. and getting Shane right into the fold as a center, you might have a spot for him. So again, I do think it's a bit of a difficult way to bring him in. But I would rather have that kind of problem where I have good players and I go, all right, where am I going to put them rather than, well, I got to put Kevin Hayes on the

fourth line because I don't have any other options. Well, I got to put this guy on the fourth lines. I don't have any other options. And this guy's moving up just by default. So if you can find a way, I would not be against getting him, but I would not sell out to get Shane right. But I do think if you can find a way to make that happen, he probably could be unlocked a little bit here in Pittsburgh. Hunter, you got anything else you want to get to? No, this is going to be fun.

We got another week of games before the Olympic break. Let's see how penguins do. There's a lot of big points for grabs here. The Rangers tomorrow, senators on Monday. then you got that big four-point game against the Islanders. Circle that one on your calendars, my friends. And then you got Pat the red hot sabers who they are chugging along. And it looks like they may finally end this curse.

And it's great for the sport because their fans are awesome. And they deserve a season like this after watching a bunch of garbage for the last basically decade and a half. So it's going to be a lot of fun. And we will be your place for all of that next week. Hunter and I will be back on Monday to recap this game, get you set for Monday's game and the rest of the week. And we'll be here all throughout the Olympic break, covering the Olympics, and hopefully talking to some friends. But we'll get there when we get there. That is going to do it for the Friday edition of Locked on Penguins.

For Hunter Hodes, I am Patrick Damp. Thank you, as always, for tuning in. Have a great weekend, and we will talk to you on Monday.