For one final time this season, the Pittsburgh Penguins gathered at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry, Pa. - this, time, for locker cleanout day.
Some players - like pending-RFA Philip Tomasino and pending-UFA Matt Grzelcyk - discussed their desire to return to Pittsburgh and their contract negotiation statuses. Some - like Bryan Rust and Rickard Rakell - talked about career milestones and individual accomplishments this season.
But there was one overarching sentiment among both veterans and youth: There is some degree of hope and belief that things can turn around quickly for these Penguins.
“Obviously, I think everyone here would love for that to happen," Karlsson said. "I’m sure that in some regards, I think, obviously, that’s what they’re hoping for and that’s what [POHO/GM Kyle Dubas] is trying to do. Whether it works out or not, you never know. But, I like this team here. I think that the two years that I’ve been here, we’ve underachieved, and the group that we have in here is capable of a lot more.”
Rust echoed the same thoughts.
"Obviously, we've got some good, solid young players, and you guys have all seen that," Rust said. "The people around this organization... they care so much, and they are so invested in making this team great again that I have no doubt this thing's going to be turned around quickly."
Like Rust, many of the veterans pointed to young guys like Ville Koivunen and Rutger McGroarty as reason for optimism in the near-term. The injection of youth on Pittsburgh's roster late in the season gave the team a jolt that they hope can carry into next season.
“Those guys came in here, and they were productive and helped us win hockey games right from the start," Rakell said. "So, I think they got these games under their belt, and they have the summer to prepare for next year. I think we’re only going to get better with them.”
'I Would Love To Come Back': After Career Year, Grzelcyk Hopes To Stay In PittsburghWhen defenseman Matt Grzelcyk made the decision to sign with the Pittsburgh Penguins last summer, he did so with the mindset that he'd come in and be granted some opportunity to rediscover his game.
And from the perspective of the younger guys, the veterans in the room give them confidence that the transition to full-time in the NHL can be a relatively smooth one. And they look forward to the competition in training camp next season.
“I feel like camp’s going to be ultra-competitive," McGroarty said. "Especially when you have 87 driving the bus, it’s always going to be a competitive camp. With the young group, too, right now, it’ll be a lot of fun, and a lot of guys want to put their best foot forward. I know a lot of guys are going to have a lot of big summers.”
The Penguins may not be where they want to be right now. But given how other teams - the Washington Capitals being one of them - have found the right combination of youth and veteran talent to turn things around on-the-fly, they hope that the collection of players they have can do something of the same.
“I think we have the makings of being a competitive team," head coach Mike Sullivan said. "I think the team is postured right now to try to take that next step, and that next step towards becoming more competitive. It's not an easy process... teams have deployed different strategies in how they go about that. I think Kyle's done a really good job in thinking through and strategizing with his hockey operations team on what he thinks is best for the Pittsburgh Penguins with the group that we have. Every organization's different, but I know that there's been a thorough process that the group has gone through when trying to strategize what the best course of action is for this group.
"And I believe that there's a core group here that's worthy of building around, and that's our challenge. And that's the process that we're going through right now."
Like Ovechkin's Capitals, Penguins Owe It To Crosby To Right The ShipOn Sunday, the hockey world got to witness Alexander Ovechkin - The Great “8” - surpass The Great “One” for the most goals in NHL history.
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