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Matt Vensel's Penguins chat: 03.04.22
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Matt Vensel
11:03
Happy Friday, Pens fans. Pumped to talk hockey with you all again today. We'll start today's chat at noon. Fire away!
11:05
Looking for something to do while you wait? Read my profile of Mark Friedman, the latest in a long line of "ornery Friedmans."
12:00
Alright, I'm ready to rock. We'll go 30-40 minutes today.
Ed
12:01
Pen's are running on all cylinders, Malkin's on fire, can it get any better? Yes, a win tonight. I think it's important to go into the playoffs in first place. Your thoughts?
Matt Vensel
12:04
Ed, things have certainly been trending back in the right direction. But I wouldn't say they're firing on all cylinders. Consistent scoring from the bottom three lines has been an issue. The PK has been one of the NHL's worst over the last six weeks. The goaltending has been up-and-down. We're seen rocky games from guys like Brian Dumoulin and Marcus Pettersson. Add it all up, and it's a streaky team. So forgive me for being a little apprehensive about what this latest winning streak means.
Jay Daven
12:04
Matt, did the Pens play their best game of the year against Tampa last night?  Now they got a bigger game tonight, do they show up again?   These back-to-back games are brutal for the players and the league should stop them.  Your thoughts.
Matt Vensel
12:06
Jay, I'd say that's probably a top-five win given the opponent, venue and how they played. I think turning around a day later and taking it to the Hurricanes in their building would be ten times more impressive. We'll see what happens tonight in Raleigh. Should be fun.
Utah Jim
12:06
What doesn't Sid play on the PK?
Matt Vensel
12:08
Jim, there's no question Sidney Crosby could be an elite PK player. But the reasons are his health and overall workload. Don't want to risk getting your star center injured blocking a slap shot. And it makes more sense to utilize him at 5-on-5 and on the top power play. Sid can only play so many minutes, especially at 34.
Rory
12:08
What is the chance that Zucker is Kucheroved.  And if you had almost 5mill in cap space who would you go after?
Matt Vensel
12:10
Rory, that seems pretty unlikely. While Jason Zucker has not started skating yet (that we know of), Mike Sullivan hinted this week that he'll be back during the regular season, saying he's not far behind Teddy Blueger. And one thing people always forget when it comes to the LTIR conversation: The player has to be on board with it. Zucker is a proud guy who wants to get back in the lineup to help the team and rediscover his game. He's a team guy but I can't see him wanting to sit out for, say, the final 2-3 weeks of the regular season if he's ready to play.
Eddie Shack
12:11
Hi Matt.  Not to get caught up in the age old "chemistry in the locker room" stuff, but, do you think too much tinkering by GMRH might throw this team off track a bit?
Matt Vensel
12:12
Eddie, hard to say without knowing the specifics of said tinkering (who's coming in and who's coming out), but Ron Hextall will definitely be cautious about messing with the good vibes around this Penguins team.
Jesse
12:14
Hey Matt. Do you think when Domingue comes back that the Pens give him more of a chance over DeSmith? Obviously taking the conversation of a backup goalie into account. If Domingue does indeed play well, does that change the conversation for the pens to go and fetch a backup?
Matt Vensel
12:16
Hey, Jesse. I doubt it considering that Casey DeSmith has rebounded over the last few weeks. He's 3-0-1 with a .934 save percentage in his last five appearances. Check back later if he gets lit up in Carolina. Haha.
Hoping
12:16
What is the Penguins biggest need going into the trade deadline and any chance of getting it?
Matt Vensel
12:19
My thinking on this has evolved over the last few weeks given their lack of middle-six scoring, particularly on the wings. I believe that adding another middle-six winger, preferably one with some size and snarl, would raise their ceiling the most. I've cooled on the idea of them giving up anything meaningful for a better No. 2 goalie instead of attacking other needs. The wagon is already hitched to Tristan Jarry. They will go as he goes.
David
12:20
Friedman’s game has sandpaper. He’s fast & physical and when he activates on O it’s down the slot not around perimeter like #5. His type of game could fit better in playoff run. And he’s a Hextall guy. If I’m GMRH I’d move 5 and his big cap# if he finds a dance partner b4 3/21. Being paid a lot for a 3rd pair dman. What say u?
Matt Vensel
12:22
David, no doubt Mark Friedman has impressed the last three games. He's done a good job picking his spots, both in terms of when he jumps into the fray in the offensive zone and when he decides to stir the pot physically. Still have concerns, though, particularly his awareness away from the puck on D. I'd need to see a lot more of this before committing to having him in the playoff lineup. Let's not forget that Friedman is 26 and has been a fringe NHLer for a reason. So let's pump the brakes a bit.
12:24
As for Mike Matheson (and also Marcus Pettersson), I actually think both have been pretty good this season. But given their long-term contracts, I don't know how many teams have the appetite to acquire them now.
Sunner in Orlando
12:25
Pens played their best game of the year in all 3 phases last night. That being said, what do you add at the deadline without disrupting chemistry? Backup goalie? Bottom 6 beefy agitator?
Matt Vensel
12:28
If I had to rank the items on their trade deadline wishlist in terms of what will raise their Cup chances most...
  1. Middle-six winger who can hang with Geno or bang bodies alongside Big Jeff Carter
  2. Physical bottom-pair blue-liner who can still skate and snap good breakout passes
  3. Backup goalie with past postseason starts
Matt Vensel
12:29
I'll take one or two more questions if yinz have any...
Kasperi
12:30
Matt, I was worried about getting traded. But we are winning & my floating & plain laziness hasn't been detrimental to the team. What do you think?
Matt Vensel
12:31
Every week we get a question from someone posing as Kasperi Kapanen! Anyway, I've often been critical of him but I actually thought he looked pretty good last night in Tampa. So I will not be piling on him today.
12:32
OK, fine, fine. I'll take one shot at him: Those Get-Go commercials are obnoxious, Kasperi. Not as bad as Kris Letang with Edgar Snyder but not far off.
Max Talbot
12:34
Superstar treatment was the best!
Matt Vensel
12:35
Absolutely. Subpar acting but the premise was hilarious.
Matt Vensel
12:37
Alright, that will do it for today's chat. Great questions, as always. We'll do this again next week. In the meantime, you can hit me up at @mattvensel on Twitter or mvensel@post-gazette.com. I will not give you my home address, though. Sorry.
12:38
Enjoy tonight's game and have a great weekend, everyone!
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