I confess, I was at least somewhat surprised to learn the Penguins have signed forward Sam Poulin to a two-year extension with an AAV of $775K. Not that 23-year-old native of Blainville, Quebec, didn’t merit an extended look. After stepping away from the game for most of the 2022-23 season to deal with personal issues, the former first-round pick and RFA-to-be enjoyed a strong season with the Baby Pens, tallying 16 goals and 31 points in 41 games to go with a sterling 18.4 shooting percentage. It’s just that the husky 208-pounder doesn’t appear to be a favorite of coach Mike Sullivan. During ..read more

In a development somewhat reminiscent of last spring’s executive house cleaning, the Penguins will not renew the contracts of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton head coach J.D. Forrest and assistant Kevin Porter. The announcement came just two days after the Baby Pens were swept by arch-rival Lehigh Valley in the opening round of the AHL Calder Cup playoffs. Former Pens GM Ron Hextall and POHO Brian Burke experienced a similar swift fall of the ax head last April. After his team missed the playoffs last season, the 43-year-old Forrest led the resurgent Baby Pens to a 21-point leap and their best record si ..read more

I was thinking about the inexorable decline of our Penguins yesterday. Stewing over the fact that we’ve missed the playoffs two seasons running and haven’t won a playoff series since 2018. Practically a lifetime ago in sporting circles. Specifically, I wondered if this is the way of things for former Stanley Cup champions. The answer? A resounding YES. Not only is it common for former Cup winners to experience first-round flameouts (or worse), it’s the norm. After capturing back-to-back Cups in ’20 and ’21, the Lightning are tracking toward a second straight first-round exit after reaching th ..read more

I would guess that almost every person writing or commenting on any hockey website is an arm-chair GM at heart. I know I am. To that end, I think I am in the mood to resurrect a tradition I broke last season and resume giving unsolicited advice to a Penguins Management team who no doubt has no idea of my frustration with this team. After this past season, a season that saw Head Coach Mike Sullivan post the worst Win-Loss record since the Eddie Olczyk/Michel Therrien disaster of 2005-2006 when the team went 22-46-14, there is a lot of material here with which to work. I will not even attempt t ..read more

As I scanned the box score of last night’s Boston-Toronto playoff game I couldn’t help but notice a familiar trend. One I’ve written about on occasions too numerous to count during my time with PenguinPoop. The list of goal scorers tells the story. Trent Frederic, Jake DeBrusk and Brad Marchand for the Bruins. Matthew Knies and Tyler Bertuzzi for the Leafs. Not an Auston Matthews or David Pastrnák in the bunch. Same with the Oilers-Kings contest. Barely a peep from supernovas Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Two of the four goals in a losing cause for the Oil came from the stick of 22-year ..read more

As the dust continues to settle on the 2023-24 season, it’s time to cast our eyes ahead to what’s likely to be a very interesting summer. Indeed, there shouldn’t be any shortage of business for POHO/GM Kyle Dubas to attend to. Topping the list, negotiations are set to begin on a contract extension for franchise pillar Sidney Crosby, who at age 36 enjoyed a remarkable 94-point season. There’s an entry draft to prepare for and after that free agency. Dubas and his staff will need to make decisions on a number of our own free agents, both UFA and RFA, including Pierre-Olivier Joseph, Alex Nedelj ..read more

While our Penguins may be headed to the golf course or parts unknown, their Wilkes-Barre/Scranton farm club is preparing to take on Lehigh Valley in the first round of the AHL Calder Cup playoffs. Stocking up for the best-of-three set (and, hopefully, a long and successful playoff run), the Baby Pens have bolstered their roster with five prospects. Defenseman Owen Pickering, the Pens’ first-round pick in 2022, joins the team following a solid regular season and playoff run with his junior team, Swift Current. The rangy blueliner tallied seven goals and 46 points during 59 regular season games ..read more

With the 2023-24 campaign in the books and not much else to report, I thought it would be an opportune time to publish my season-ending Ex-Penguins Update. The player topping the list hardly comes as a surprise. Thanks to an extraordinary finish following his trade to Carolina (a whopping eight goals and 25 points in only 17 games) Jake Guentzel led all ex-Pens with 30 goals and 77 points. Seattle sharpshooter Jared McCann was second in both goals (29) and points (62). Quickie quiz. Which Penguins GM past or present actually left McCann unprotected in the 2021 Expansion Draft? If you answered ..read more

“A lie has no legs and cannot stand, but it has wings and can fly far and wide.”–William Warburton “Repeat a lie often enough and it becomes the truth.”–Joseph Goebbels ########### As I was mulling over my individual grades for our Penguins while preparing my previous article, I decided to take a peek at Natural Stat Trick to see how the numbers shook out. In the past, I’ve used 5v5 goals for percentage (GF%) as a measuring stick. I was considering using the same criteria as a basis for my grades this time around. I also wanted to check out a rather shocking statistical anomaly my esteemed co ..read more

I haven’t written much this season, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t been following our favorite flightless fowl. Now we are at the end of one more farcical season, and it is time for a postmortem for the 6th Pittsburgh Penguins’ corpse, in a row. Some Penguins’ fans are angry, even more are frustrated, but these emotions are predicated on each fan’s expectations of the team. For those Penguin Poop readers that remember my preseason predictions, they will remember that once again I was pretty much spot on. My only error this past season was in thinking that at least Sidney Crosby, or Evgeni Ma ..read more