2014-2015 review:
The Pittsburgh Penguins had a down year last year after starting out 22-4-1 to the season. They hit the injury bug again after that hot stretch when Pascal Dupuis went down for the season with a blood clot and when Olli Maatta had to undergo a procedure to get rid of a cancerous tumor near his shoulder. Sidney Crosby also had the mumps last season which turned out to be a league wide issue. Pittsburgh qualified for the playoffs on the last night of the regular season by beating the Buffalo Sabres but they were quickly dispatched by the New York Rangers in five games which ended their season. That was a very injury riddled team which saw half of their starting defenseman out with injury and other key forwards. The roster had a big changeover this summer and for good reason.
New Additions
Nick Bonino
Nick Bonino was acquired in the Brandon Sutter trade that shipped him to the Vancouver Canucks in late July. Sutter was an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season and the Penguins wanted to get something out of him since they weren't going to resign him. Bonino will start the season as the third line center for the Penguins and he's a huge upgrade over Sutter in terms of possession numbers. He makes his linemates better and has the opportunity to be a 20 goal scorer for the Penguins. Bonino last had a 20 goal season for the Anaheim Ducks a couple seasons ago.
Eric Fehr
Fehr signed with the Penguins just seconds after the Penguins traded for Brandon Sutter to a three year deal worth six million. Now Fehr won't be available for the start of the season due to an elbow injury, he will make a nice impact when he comes back a month or two into the season. He has the flexibility to play center or wing and has played wing most of his career. Fehr had 19 goals last season with the Washington Capitals and while he probably won't get there this season, he can score some clutch goals in big moments for the Penguins which is something they don't usually have.
Sergei Plotnikov
Plotnikov was signed by the Penguins out of the KHL and he's looked awfully good so far with the Penguins in the preseason. His chemistry with Malkin looks really good so far and it looks like he could be on his line to start the season if he beats out either David Perron or Chris Kunitz. He's the type of player that could play anywhere in the lineup which is something the Penguins have needed for years. He can contribute on any line and a realistic expectation for him would be around 10-15 goals if he stays healthy.
Phil Kessel
Can't forget about Phil right? In arguably the biggest trade of the summer, the Penguins acquired Phil Kessel from the Toronto Maple Leafs to bolster their offense. Kessel is one of the best goal scorers in the NHL and him with Crosby will be absolutely lethal this season. The Penguins have needed a guy like Kessel on their power play who can play the left half wall and make defenders scared of his shot and passing ability. He could score 50 goals this season if Crosby can get the puck to him a lot but look for him to at least get over 35 this season.
Key Losses
Brandon Sutter
Sutter wasn't going to stay through his two year contract extension. He was getting paid 3.3 million per season and was going to ask for upwards of four million per season if he made it to July 1st. The Penguins will surely miss his 21 goal season from last year and his penalty killing, but he really wasn't good along the boards with the puck and didn't create a lot of scoring chances with his linemates. His possession numbers are also terrible for a third line center as well.
Paul Martin
This was perhaps the biggest loss of the offseason for the Penguins. Paul Martin was one of the best defenseman for the Penguins not just last season but the entire time he's been with Pittsburgh. He was also a class act off the ice where he was one of the most liked teammates in the room. There isn't a single bad thing you can say about the guy and the Penguins will feel his loss on the blue line this season despite Olli Maatta coming back.
Christian Ehrhoff
Now people may be surprised that I have him as a key loss but when Ehrhoff was healthy, he played very well for the Penguins. The issue last year was his health since he suffered multiple concussions during the season. The Penguins will miss his ability to move the puck up the ice and his good puck movement on the power play as well.
Biggest Strength
Power Play
Pittsburgh has arguably the best power play in the NHL right now with Phil Kessel added to the mix. The top power play of the Penguins will have Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Patric Hornqvist, Phil Kessel, and Kris Letang serving as the quarterback. Good luck stopping that other NHL teams. Hornqvist will be around the net causing havoc while Crosby plays the slot and Malkin the right half wall. Kessel will play the left half wall and they haven't had a player over there like Kessel with as good of a shot that he does since the Mario Lemeiux days. This power play will be deadly.
Biggest Weakness
Defense
The Penguins defense is filled with questions right now. The top pairing is sealed with Olli Maatta and Kris Letang but after that it's just not too good. Ian Cole looks like the best option to be the number three defenseman since he has a little Matt Niskanen in him and then for number four, five, and six it looks to be game on. Guys like Adam Clendenning, Brian Dumoulin, Derrick Pouliot, Rob Scuderi, Ben Lovejoy, and Sergei Gonchar are all vying for those positions and it will be interesting to see who will be in the top six. I still think the Penguins need one more top four defenseman to have a much better defensive corps.
Bottom Line
The Penguins will make the playoffs for the tenth straight year this season and I won't think twice about it. They have some of the best forward depth in the NHL and have a very good goaltender in Marc-Andre Fleury who was lights out last season. The defense is their biggest downfall right now but that very likely will change with a trade in season. Pittsburgh will be in contention for the Metropolitan division title and it wouldn't surprise me at all if they won it.
Fantasy Slant
Most Overrated: Chris Kunitz
Kunitz is usually known for having big seasons with Sidney Crosby that result in him having over 20 goals a season but last season wasn't a good season for Kunitz as it looked like he lost a step in his game. He was injured for a good chunk of the season but when he came back healthy he still didn't look the same. I am predicting a bounce back season for him but for right now he falls into this category.
Most Underrated: Kris Letang
When most people think of elite defenseman in the NHL, the most common names that come to mind are Shea Weber, Duncan Keith, Drew Doughty, Erik Karlsson, Kevin Shattenkirk, etc. One of the most common names that gets left out is Kris Letang who, when healthy, is one of the best defenseman in the league and a Norris trophy candidate.
He was having his best season of his career last year before he went down with the concussion that made him miss the end of the regular season but if he repeats how he played all of last year into this year, he could be a Norris trophy candidate. Be sure to take him in your fantasy league if you want a guy who puts up a lot of points as a defenseman.
Most Surprising: David Perron
Perron started out red hot for the Penguins after he was acquired by the Edmonton Oilers as he had six goals in his first nine games but his production went down fast as he wasn't the same player the rest of the year and even suffered a broken rib against the Sabres in the season finale. This is his make or break year for the Penguins as he is a free agent next summer and could be playing for a new contract depending on how he does this season.