By Mark Madden
October 3, 2013
The Penguins are headed into an odd season.
They will probably win the mostly weak Metropolitan Division. Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin will vie for the scoring title and MVP. Kris Letang will be a candidate for Norris Trophy (best defenseman). Almost half the roster will go to Sochi, Russia, to skate in the Olympics. Somebody will win a gold medal.
And none of that will matter.
The seeds for this were sown over the course of four springs. Now, they bloom. The fruit of disappointment. The offspring of underachievement.
Nobody will take anything the Penguins do seriously until the playoffs. At that point, skepticism takes over until they win. Or don’t.
It will be fun to watch. The Penguins are always entertaining.
But it won’t matter. Not until the playoffs.
Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury is a microcosm. Fleury could go 82-0 with a goals-against average of 0.00, but as soon as an opponent gets a scoring chance in the playoffs, Penguins fans will flinch as one. You can’t blame them.
The Penguins have a lot to prove. But they can’t start proving it until mid-April.
Make no mistake, there is legitimately a lot on the line for this organization. The Penguins are the best franchise in town, and one of the best in sports.
But what’s more important, Student Rush or Stanley Cups? Players delivering season tickets is nice. But it’s time to deliver a championship. Having the ultimate facility matters little if you too rarely achieve the ultimate goal.
Given the talent the Penguins have, and have had, they have underachieved. One Stanley Cup by this group simply isn’t enough. The Chicago Blackhawks have won twice since the Penguins toppled Detroit in the 2009 final.
Crosby and Malkin are considered the best players in hockey. But Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane have more rings.
Apprehension aside, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Penguins roared to a Cup this season. They are a very talented bunch.
If they don’t, major changes should be made. But they won’t be.
It would be difficult to blow up the Penguins’ roster because of an epidemic of no-/limited-movement clauses.
The Penguins’ organization is also flirting with something that has long plagued the Steelers: Being right is a very high priority.
The Penguins don’t think they invented hockey. But they believe they’re close to perfecting it. That’s why Coach Dan Bylsma is so slow to adjust. He’s proactive, not reactive. Bylsma wants to constantly play to his team’s strengths.
That’s fine, except when the other team prevents it. Or it doesn’t work.
The organization definitely has its nose in the air. The Penguins believe they do things better than anybody else, both on and off the ice. They got embarrassed by Boston in the Eastern Conference final, but seem to believe that series was somehow close. If humility is a teaching tool, the Penguins skip class.
The Penguins need to earn their conceit. The purchase price is a Stanley Cup.
If the Penguins don’t win one this season, the consensus will be that this group of players hasn’t accomplished what it should.
Mark Madden hosts a radio show 3-6 p.m. weekdays at WXDX-FM (105.9).
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