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Kyle Dubas Pittsburgh Penguins\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tKyle Dubas Pittsburgh Penguins\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
CRANBERRY Twp., Pa. \u2014 Anthony Mantha, Stuart Skinner, and Noel Acciari are pending unrestricted free agents and teams in a rebuild mode cannot afford to lose players for nothing. But Pittsburgh Penguins<\/a> general manager Kyle Dubas<\/a> seems to like his team, and decided to ride it out Friday at the NHL trade deadline. <\/p>\n Evgeni Malkin<\/a> is also a pending UFA in a much different situation who has voiced his frustrations, shown them, but also produced a magnificent season at what could be the end of a Hall of Fame careeer. <\/p>\n Not only does the Malkin contract situation hang over the team, but now so, too, does his potential suspension. And Dubas\u2019s tone belied his words Friday, furthering the likelihood the situation will not have a satisfactory ending for at least one of the parties. <\/p>\n Friday, Dubas made only one trade before the 3 p.m. trade deadline, but it was a conscious effort born of months of effort, and wins. <\/p>\n The Penguins are not necessarily a normal rebuilding team. In a wide-ranging press conference that lasted more than 20 minutes, in part because of a passionate and lengthy answer about goaltender interference, Dubas explained why the Penguins held onto pending UFAs, again dodged the Evgeni Malkin question though with a hint of a rebuff for Malkin speaking to the media, and laid out the goaltending plan for the rest of the season. <\/p>\n The news items were bitter sweet. The team will soon recall winger Ville Koivunen to fill the spaces created by injury, a likely suspension, and simply to give Koivunen another go at the NHL level. <\/p>\n The team also signed organizational goalie Taylor Gauthier, who became the Wheeling Nailers\u2019 all-time winningest goalie, to an NHL contract as insurance against injuries in the playoffs. <\/p>\n But the unfortunate news was Dubas admitting that prospect Tristan Broz would have been called up this week to resume his NHL career if he had not been injured Saturday in Cleveland. Broz is out week to week as his golden chance for an extended NHL run is gone with an upper-body injury. <\/p>\n League-wide, the NHL trade deadline was more like a Kathleen Kennedy-produced Star Wars movie. There was hype and high hopes, but in the end the action dissipated into a sullen and sad disappointment. <\/p>\n According to the NHL tracker, there were only 13 trades on Friday, and most of which were background noise, even to the home fans, as depth journeymen such as Nik Deslauriers, Vinnie Hinostroza, Derrick Pouliot, and Tanner Pearson found new homes. <\/p>\n Elmer Soderblom<\/p>\n The Penguins acquired very large winger Elmer Soderblom from the Detroit Red Wings. The 6-foot-8, 246-pound winger is not a great skater, nor is he a physical player, but he\u2019s 24, under team control, and Dubas believes the Penguins can continue his development. <\/p>\n \u201cAnd I think the things that have stood out to him throughout this year have been just ability to for check, get in on the forecheck, disrupt pucks, win pucks back. And I think for us, that\u2019s one thing that we\u2019d identified is \u2026 having a little bit more of that throughout the lineup would be good.\u201d<\/p>\n Standing Pat, No Trades<\/p>\n The biggest takeaway from Dubas\u2019s press conference was his deadline strategy and how the current team\u2019s success altered his thinking. Rather than hiding behind cliche and or shrugs that the market didn\u2019t produce quality offers or his players, and especially the pending UFAs, Dubas honored his team and their success this season. <\/p>\n In short, Dubas decided to allow the team that charged into a playoff spot with exemplary play and stacked wins since the holiday break to go for it. Dubas kept he band together, Mantha, Skinner, and the rest to give the team the best chance at a playoff run.<\/p>\n After all, the point of their job is to win games, and they have earned the right to stay together. <\/p>\n \u201cThe way this season has gone, versus the prior two seasons, I think the contributions from some of the younger guys throughout\u2013whether it\u2019s been (Egor) Chinakhov, Mantha, (Justin) Brazeau, and the rise of the (Blake) Lizotte line, that\u2019s led us to have success and give the team the chance to see it all the way through,\u201d Dubas said. <\/p>\n \u201cI think especially since we\u2019ve come back from Christmas, it\u2019s not just been the wins, but the way that the team has gone about winning. That shows that when we\u2019re at our best, it\u2019s a very good team. And I think any time we all get into this is because we want to have a chance to win, and when the team shows itself consistently, to be able to play at that level, even when things aren\u2019t perfect \u2026 they can sustain it \u2026 and we just didn\u2019t feel like right now was the time to begin to take that apart.\u201d<\/p>\n And so, Dubas tipped figuratively tipped his cap to Sidney Crosby, Erik Karlsson, and the veterans who have played so well this season. Instead of arming the team with a rentals, the Penguins GM is letting fate take control. If the team loses those players for nothing, it was worth the gamble and the show of respect. <\/p>\n If the team does win, even better. <\/p>\n Goaltenders<\/p>\n Dubas stood pat, keeping Skinner in net, essentially blocking rookie Sergei Murashov for the remainder of the season. However, that didn\u2019t seem to be much of a concern to Dubas, who instead heaped praise on the performance of the Penguins\u2019 goalies this season. <\/p>\n And, they\u2019ve earned it. <\/p>\n Until a loss Tuesday in Boston, Skinner was 8-1-2 in his last 11 games. Until the loss Thursday, Arturs Silovs was 5-1-0 with a 1.68 goals-against average and .938 save percentage in his last six. <\/p>\n \u201cI think Stu came in, our team was not going very well in the stretch the time when he came in, and he was a big part in helping the team to have success,\u201d said Dubas. \u201cAnd I think both have played well out of the break and continue to give us a chance each game.\u201d<\/p>\n In fact, Dubas didn\u2019t seem in any hurry\u2013in tone or in words\u2013to bring Murashov back to the show right now. <\/p>\n \u201cWe have confidence in the two (at the NHL level); confidence in the two guys up top, and then we have confidence in both guys down below, both Sergei and Joel (Blomqvist),\u201d said Dubas. \u201cThey both continue to play well. Sergei, after being here, had a tougher stretch late December, and then just rectifies it and gets on rolling. So we\u2019re happy with that, and feel we have the good depth.\u201d<\/p>\n Evgeni Malkin<\/p>\n The answer to Malkin\u2019s future lies not just in what Dubas has said, but what he hasn\u2019t said. <\/p>\n \u201cIn the end, we have to do what\u2019s best for the Pittsburgh Penguins,\u201d Dubas said Friday.<\/p>\n There is little doubt that Malkin\u2019s outburst Sunday after the Penguins 3-2 shootout loss to the New York Rangers plucked a nerve with Dubas. With a little head tilt and gromacce, there\u2019s just the slightest bit of scoff when Dubas has acknowledged, both on his radio show Wednesday and again Friday, Malkin\u2019s public comments. <\/p>\n \u201cAnd so we\u2019ve communicated with (agent J.P. Barry). We\u2019ve communicated with Geno. Geno has obviously communicated with the public, which is his right, and he\u2019s earned that, but I don\u2019t think it serves as much as I think everyone in the room and perhaps the public would like for me to comment on it further,\u201d said Dubas. \u201cI don\u2019t think it\u2019s in the best interest of the Penguins for me to do so. It\u2019s all been communicated to Geno and J.P., and we\u2019ll just continue to stay in those conversations with them and continue to do what\u2019s best for the team.\u201d<\/p>\n However, you\u2019ll note at no point has Dubas committed to negotiations. Neither has he expressed a desire to talk about a new contract, nor does he otherwise seem open to the possiblity. <\/p>\n Dubas could say\u2013they\u2019ll sit down after the year to assess the situation. He could say he doesn\u2019t want to talk contract until after the season because the team is in a rebuilding phase and as they go through the process, a lot could change. <\/p>\n There are any number of answers Dubas could give if Malkin were a realistic possibility for next season. Instead, he seems like a person trying desperately not to deliver bad news that could have rippling effects within the team. <\/p>\n After all, Malkin\u2019s temper tantrum Thursday was a costly moment in the game and his over-the-top reaction (no pun intended) could deeply cost the Penguins for a few more games. <\/p>\n Dubas admitted he was angry in the aftermath of Malkin\u2019s penalty, which probably didn\u2019t endear him to the GM any further. <\/p>\n \u201cI think you probably go through the same reaction\u2013just to be very open\u2013that anybody that follows a team every day does, which is, at first, you\u2019re a little emotional about what the impact on the team would be, and then think it\u2019s my job to immediately get away from that and get back to, okay, what\u2019s the plan? What do we have already?,\u201d said Dubas. <\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTags: kyle dubas<\/a> NHL Trade Deadline<\/a> Pittsburgh Penguins<\/a> <\/p>\n