How can Penguins replace Patric Hornqvist? Will they even bother trying?
The 2019-20 NHL season is over.
Thanks to coronavirus, it only took 11 months.
But the Tampa Bay Lightning finally pulled the curtain on the campaign by winning Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final 2-0 over the Dallas Stars.
For me, that makes the bubble exercise a bit more worthwhile. I feel like a worthy champion was crowned.
Not that the Stars wouldn’t have been deserving. But Tampa could’ve just as easily won the trophy under normal circumstances. I just doubt Dallas would’ve gotten this far during a traditional playoff bracket.
Brian Metzer of the Penguins Radio Network joins me to share his thoughts. It’s our final regularly scheduled hockey podcast of the year.
We also analyze if the Lightning will be the NHL favorite next year — whenever that may start.
Metzer and I have some concerns in that regard.
Then we get into some conversation about the Penguins, specifically the Patric Hornqvist trade. I’m on record as saying it’s not a good deal unless something more follows it up.
All subtracting Hornqvist does is minimize Pittsburgh’s net-front presence and tenacity. And I don’t know how that gets replaced. Will the Penguins even try to do so?
“You’re going to see them play a different kind of style than what they did with Hornqvist on the power play,” Metzer says. “It doesn’t seem like they care about having that net-front presence, at least in that format that Patric Hornqvist played it. It probably comes with more skill guys in the slot and playing higher up.”
Metzer says something we might see is Jake Guentzel assuming a high-slot position for tips and deflections similar to what we have seen from Joe Pavelski over the years with Dallas and San Jose.
Should the acquisition of Mike Matheson mean the dismissal of Jack Johnson, well, OK. But the Penguins are still absorbing a little bit of salary in the process now that forward Colton Sceviour has been attached to the deal.
Metzer and I wonder what Sceviour may add, along with who will make up the third line with him and who will be the right-sided shot next to Matheson.
General manager Jim Rutherford has already stated that the team is unlikely to be a player in free agency. But how about the trade front?
We also forecast what may be the first concert of note for our tastes back in Pittsburgh, get into the Conn Smythe debate, and bid adieu to the Rex Theatre.
Tim Benz is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Tim at tbenz@triblive.com or via X. All tweets could be reposted. All emails are subject to publication unless specified otherwise.
Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.