2020-2021 Season Preview

PITTSBURGH - It was June 1st, 2020, after the Penguins had finished their final home game of the 2019-2020 season with a 3-2 victory over the New York Rangers. The Penguins were going to miss the playoffs for the first time in the six year history of the EHE, and before leaving home ice for the final night that season, Jamie Benn took the microphone and capped off his end of year speech with:

"We'll be better next year."

Now, it remains to be seen if Benn and company will be able to fulfill that promise, but one thing is certain: Jamie Benn is doing everything in his ability to make that happen. Fresh off of a 4 year, $24 million extension, Benn has shown again his committment to Pittsburgh and the Penguins, in spite of unfounded trade rumors. But beyond that, he is doing everything you could ask out of your captain, He started his offseason training a month earlier than normal, he is having rookie Josh Norris to stay with him during the season, and along with alternate captains Alexander Edler and Bo Horvat, took the new Penguins players out for a welcome dinner. The Penguins saw quite a bit of turnover this offseason, so here's a recap for those who missed any of it:

IN: Nicolas Beaudin, Cole Coskey, Alexander Daryin, Semyon Der-Arguchintsev, Dennis Gilbert, Scott Harrington, Niklas Hjalmarsson, Adrian Kempe, Nikolai Knyzhov, Stefan LeBlanc, Otto Leskinen, Matt Luff, Josh Maniscalco, Patrick Marleau, Alexei Melnichuk, Riley Nash, Josh Norris, Richard Panik, Brinson Pasichnuk, Tucker Poolman, Arttu Ruotsalainen, Linus Sandin, Pius Suter, Kyle Turris, Spencer Watson, Colin Wilson

OUT: Andrew Agozzino, Olivier Archambault, Colin Blackwell, Nic Dowd, Hudson Fasching, Michael Hutchinson, Matt Irwin, Ryan Johnston, Chase De Leo, Aaron Ness, Liam O'Brien,Emile Poirier, Alan Quine, Gage Quinney, Matt Read, Paul Stastny, Peter Stoykewych, Ryan Suter, Jason Zucker

Of note on those above lists was the moving of Jason Zucker, Paul Stastny, and Ryan Suter for younger and/or future assets. This to me seemed like a clear cut declaration of a rebuild, however GM Gurtowski's decision to hold onto Jamie Benn, Alexander Edler, and Brandon Saad tells otherwise. Edler initially shared the impression that I did, but he soon sat with Gurtowski and got a clearer picture: “To see Suits and Paulie go, you get nervous that you’re next, especially as an older guy. Ian asked me if I wanted to go, but I let him know that I want to be here no matter what. It was an easy decision to stay and I know he and the team are happy to have me.” said Edler. Clearly a tough summer for him but ultimately got some clarity.

Another interesting note is the acquisition of Josh Norris, who according to coach Claude Julien, has made the NHL team. Many like myself felt Norris was destined to be "the man" with the AHL Penguins, however a strong camp and developing chemistry with new Penguins winger Adrian Kempe meant that Norris gets to stick around, and he had this to say earlier this morning: “It’s [making the team] honestly a dream come true. To be on the same team as someone like Jamie Benn who I grew up watching is just unbelievable. I want to make an impact and stay here for a long time.”

Other small news and notes:
-The Penguins today acquired Matt Luff from the Boston Bruins in exchange for a 2021 6th round pick
-GM Gurtowski confirmed that with Marco Sturm taking over as head coach of the AHL Penguins that Dean Evason has been promoted to be Claude Julien's assistant coach
-Bo Horvat will be the new 2nd alternate captain, replacing the departed Paul Stastny
-Devan Dubnyk, who has been the Penguins starter since 2016, will now split the net with Jonathan Bernier, in an effort to keep goaltending competitive and fresh.

The Penguins look to have taken a bit of a hit in terms of their elite level talent, however I think their depth talent has gotten much better compared to last year, which was a major issue GM Gurtowski aimed to address at the end of last season. Couple that with a growing prospect system and an AHL team which looks to be competitive once again, Pittsburgh could very well be on the rise in the next couple years. Despite all the moves that were made over the summer, the goal is to once again compete for the Stanley Cup, though they will have an incredibly tough Metropolitan Division to contend with.

The sense that I got from training camp is that the members of this Penguins team look ready to put 2019-2020 behind them. They look ready to go and the added depth should hopefully help them improve from last year's freefall. There are also AHL Penguins players such as Trevor Moore, Sam Lafferty, and Eric Robinson who are chomping at the first chance for a call up. The competition is there and we'll see if it can make Pittsburgh a better team for 2020-2021.