All In

When the Pittsburgh Penguins traded away captian Jamie Benn on the opening day of this regular season, many felt that was a sign of things to come for this Penguins team. They had spent two years firmly in the lottery, while the teams in their division continued to get better. This appeared to be the beginning of a very long tear down.

When the Penguins jumped out to a 7-5-0 record to start the season, GM Gurtowski made his second (but first major) move of the season, which echoes his philosophy on making trades during a reset: "For now and the future". The Penguins sent Rasmus Sandin and a 2022 4th to New York for Artem Zub and Filip Cederqvist. With this trade the Penguins give up a legit prospect in Sandin for Artem Zub who is still young (only 26 years old) and can make an immediate impact for the NHL club. In 50 games with the Penguins, Zub has amassed 25 points while being a +17 on the 2nd pairing with Dylan DeMelo. GM Gurtowski made it his mission after last year to address his NHL blue line, and this was just the beginning.

The Penguins, now 18-6-3, and looking to be a contender for a playoff spot this year, made another move which addressed their blue line. They sent the 2022 1st they acquired from Florida for Jamie Benn and $300,000 for Alec Martinez, Mike Hardman, and a 2022 5th. Despite Martinez being 34 years old, he still plays at a high level and is locked up for two years after this, so he too jives with the GM's message of looking long term. In 36 games with the Penguins, Martinez has 23 points and has played in all situations, providing a compliment to Alexander Edler. A blue line that started the season with two AHL defenseman on it now has a full set of six NHL defensemen.

With the Penguins sitting at 26-11-3, they went out to find the perfect player to round out the top-six and play left wing with Blake Wheeler and Bo Horvat, a spot which had been a revolving door all season. They acquired Tomas Tatar and a 2022 4th round pick from New Jersey in exchange for struggling winger James Neal, and two 2022 3rd's (Martinez deal and own pick). Tatar has made an immediate impact with the Penguins and has meshed well with the top line, posting 18 points (11 goals) in 23 games with the Penguins. What was originally a "We'll see what happens season" has become a positive season where the GM has continued to add to his team to make them better without making any major sacrifices in terms of assets. The Penguins would also swap Tyler Johnson, who was acquired at the beginning of the season, for Ryan Getzlaf. This was a quieter move that has allowed the third line to see their offense increase a bit while also bringing in more leadership for a team that is on the younger side.

Finally, just this past week, the 38-18-6 Pittsburgh Penguins would send Vladislav Gavrikov, Mike Hardman, a 2023 3rd, and $250,000 cash to the Islanders for premier defenseman Dougie Hamilton. This move was the official declaration that the Penguins are going all in for this year in an effort to chase the elusive Stanley Cup. While Hamilton's first game with Pittsburgh ended up being a shootout loss, he had the primary assist on the game tying goal that forced overtime, making an immediate impact. Bringing in a player like Hamilton should hopefully provide a jolt to the offense, both at even strength and on the power play, while allowing Alexander Edler to focus solely on the penalty kill, providing some truly epic depth on the blue line for the Penguins team, after starting the year with probably one of the worst blue lines in the divison.

After two seasons of being in the dumpster, everyone here in Pittsburgh is all smiles, thought that hasn't come without some messages from doubters, which our players have printed out and hung up on the wall of the locker room. Some of our favorites:

"I thought your team was super average to be having that winning record... I didn't think you should be winning games like you did."

"You're first place even though I wouldn't say your line-up is particularly elite..."

"Your team has played above my expectations."

"It's weird because your team this year is competitive."

The Penguins look to be a powerhouse in the Metro divison this year, and it seems all but certain they will make the playoffs. With eight days until the trade deadline, there is an opportunity for the GM to make another move, though time will tell, as he really likes where his team is at right now.