Are the Penguins This Season’s Islanders?
On practically every conceivable level, Penguins GM Ron Hextall had a very successful summer. Staring down the gunwales at a potential free-agent cataclysm involving Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang, GMRH coolly stuck to his guns and signed the franchise pillars, and at discounted rate to boot.
When the negotiations dust had settled and the ink on the contracts was dry, Hextall had succeeded in bringing back not only “Geno” and “Tanger” but top-nine wingers Danton Heinen, Kasperi Kapanen, Rickard Rakell and Bryan Rust for practically the same combined AAV as the previous season.
Hextall also showed he wasn’t afraid to stir the pot. With a pair of dramatic trades and an adroit free-agent signing, he remade the defensive corps. Gone were pricey if talented 20-somethings John Marino and Mike Matheson, replaced by veteran puck-mover Jeff Petry, mobile youngster Ty Smith and sturdy Jan Rutta, a two-time Cup winner with Tampa Bay.
The result? On paper, we appear to be a deep, formidable team.