Pittsburgh Penguins 2010-2011 Season Preview: Forwards
When you look at the Pittsburgh Penguins lineup, it is hard not to be impressed by the caliber of forwards on the team.
There is a nice mix of everything, from superstars (Sidney Crosby), to the underrated yet still valuable (Chris Kunitz and Pascal Dupuis), and the guys who can drop the gloves and put points on the board (Matt Cooke).
There are also some new arrivals who came over via free agency in the 2010 offseason (Mike Comrie and Arron Asham).
This is a key season for the Penguins. The team will be looking to bounce back from a disappointing showing in the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs. They will also be opening a brand new arena and participating in their second Winter Classic.
Let's take a look at the players who will provide the points for the black and gold.
Newcomer: Arron Asham
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When Ray Shero signed Arron Asham to a one-year contract this offseason, some Penguins fans were ready to flip their lids over a Flyers player joining the other side of the rivalry.
But Asham should be a solid pickup. He spent the last two years in Philadelphia, where he had 44 points in 150 games. Last year, he had 24 points, his second consecutive year of improvement after scoring 10 points in the 2007-2008 season.
Asham also had 126 penalty minutes last season and even had bad blood with Penguins forward Matt Cooke, who will also be returning for the 2010-2011 season.
There is a lot to look forward to with Asham on the team. If he is on the Penguins, who have as much offensive talent as the Flyers, his point totals can only improve.
Furthermore, can you picture him on a line with Matt Cooke?
Cooke and Asham should be an intimidating duo now that they are on the same team.
Newcomer: Mike Comrie
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Comrie, also signed to a one-year contract, spent last season with the Edmonton Oilers. He had 21 points and a minus-nine, but missed 31 games due to illness.
Comrie has put up at least 40 points in four of his nine NHL seasons.
Personally, I still have mixed feelings about this signing. Comrie has not had at least 30 points since the 2007-2008 season. He has also missed numerous games and been poor defensively for the last four years.
I am willing to see how Comrie plays before I make my final judgment, but for now, it's hard to get excited.
Returning: Craig Adams
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Adams is a two-time Stanley Cup Champion. He won titles with the Carolina Hurricanes in 2006 and with the Penguins in 2009.
He came to the Penguins in 2009 when he was claimed off waivers from the Chicago Blackhawks. He has 11 points and a minus-five rating in 91 games with the Penguins.
In 2009-2010, he had 10 points, setting a new career high for assists in a season. He was also one of two players to play all 82 regular season games (Jordan Staal was the other).
The 2010-2011 season will be the second year of a two-year contract, which he signed after helping the Penguins to the 2009 Stanley Cup.
Returning: Matt Cooke
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Cooke is a veteran of over 700 NHL games and has been with the Penguins since the 2008-2009 season. This summer, he signed a three-year contract with the team while he was an unrestricted free agent.
Last season, he had 30 points and a plus-17 rating, the latter of which was ranked second on the Pens. It was his second consecutive 30-point season.
Cooke is arguably the Penguins' most controversial player. In a late season game with the Boston Bruins, he laid a hit on Marc Savard, who missed the remainder of the regular season with a concussion.
It was recently reported that Savard still has concussion symptoms.
The NHL's failure to discipline Cooke for the hit was a topic that angered many NHL fans.
Despite the controversy, Cooke is still a valuable part of the Penguins both for his offense and his fists.
Returning: Sidney Crosby
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Last season, Crosby led the Penguins in scoring with 109 points and missed only one game recovering from an injury. His point total ranked second in the NHL.
His 51 goals also earned him the first Rocket Richard Trophy of his career, which he shared with Steven Stamkos of the Tampa Bay Lightning. He was also ranked sixth in power play goals with 13, and 10th in game winning goals with six.
Crosby will be starting his fourth season as Penguins captain in 2010-2011. He has scored more than 100 points in every season but one, so there is no doubt that he can handle being the leader while being the team's top star.
Returning: Pascal Dupuis
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Dupuis finished the 2009-2010 season with 38 points, his best total since the 2002-2003 season, when he had 48 points with the Minnesota Wild.
Dupuis came to the Penguins in 2008 as part of a trade with the Atlanta Thrashers and has improved every year since then. He also won his first career Stanley Cup with the Penguins.
He has played in 152 career games with Pittsburgh and currently has 66 points and a plus-six rating in those games. He went from a player who many were unsure about to one of the Penguins most underrated contributors.
Returning: Eric Godard
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Godard played his second season with the Penguins in 2009-2010, where he posted three points in 45 games. He also had 76 penalty minutes, but missed several games with a groin injury.
Godard had a positive plus/minus for the first time in his NHL career, posting a plus-two rating.
While Godard is good at fighting, he does not bring the same offensive contributions that fellow enforcer Matt Cooke does. Godard has never had more than 10 points in a season during his career.
Returning: Tyler Kennedy
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Kennedy has missed several games over the last three years of his career with injuries. The most games he has ever played in was 67 during the 2008-2009 season.
In 2009-2010, Kennedy regressed from his 35 point total in 2008-2009, posting just 25 points in 64 games. He also missed three games in playoffs with injury.
Kennedy is in the last year of his contract before becoming a restricted free agent. He will need to have a big year if he hopes to stay with the Penguins beyond this season. In order to be successful, he will need to stay healthy and put up the points.
Returning: Chris Kunitz
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Kunitz had 32 points in the 2009-2010 season. However, he regressed from his 2008-2009 total of 53 points because he only played 50 games. He missed significant time this year recovering from abdominal surgery.
Kunitz came to the Penguins in 2009 as part of a trade with the Anaheim Ducks. The 2007 Stanley Cup Champion had an almost instant impact on the team, scoring 18 points in 20 games and 14 points in 24 playoff games. He won his second career Cup that year.
During the 2010 playoffs, Kunitz led the NHL with 48 hits.
He is a consistent 40-50 point scorer who should rebound nicely following his injury last year.
Returning: Evgeni Malkin
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Malkin had a significant slump in 2009-2010 after scoring 113 points in 2008-2009 and winning the Art Ross and Conn Smythe Trophies. This year, he recorded just 77 points.
Although Malkin was still second on the team in scoring, this was cause for alarm. He had had two 100-point seasons before 2009-2010, but after missing time with injury, he just wasn't the same Geno Pens fans were used to.
Despite the slump, Malkin still had some good moments last year. He had a 15-game scoring streak from January 16 to March 4, and led the Penguins with seven game winning goals.
Hopefully, Malkin can get back to being the same player that won three of the NHL's most valuable awards just two seasons ago.
Returning: Mike Rupp
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Rupp joined the Penguins last year after a long career with the New Jersey Devils, where he won a Stanley Cup in 2003.
Last year, he had 19 points, posting the best season of his career. He also had his first career hat trick in a November 30 victory against the New York Rangers. His 198 hits were second on the Penguins, and for the second consecutive year, he posted at least 100 penalty minutes (120).
At 6'5" and 230 pounds, Rupp is no lightweight and doesn't play like one either. Although he is not an offensive power, he does the small things where needed.
Returning: Max Talbot
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Talbot was limited to 45 games in 2009-2010 after missing the beginning of the season to recover from shoulder surgery. As a result, he posted just seven points and a minus-nine. He declined for the second year in a row, which started when he had 22 points in 2008-2009 as opposed to 26 points during 2007-2008.
This is the second year Talbot had a negative plus/minus rating. His minus-nine matched his total from 2008-2009. He has only had a positive plus/minus once, when he had a plus-eight in 2007-2008.
Talbot was the hero of the 2009 Stanley Cup Finals, scoring both goals in Game Seven as the Penguins won their first Cup in 17 years. However, he has done little since and needs to prove that he is worth keeping around.
He is a great character guy for the locker room, but will that be enough to keep him as a Penguin if he does not perform?
Probably not.
Out: Ruslan Fedotenko
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Fedotenko recently accepted a training camp invitation from the New York Rangers.
He was on the Penguins for two seasons from 2008 until this past year. In 145 games, he posted 69 points and a plus-one rating.
Fedotenko won his second career Stanley Cup with Pittsburgh; his first came with Tampa Bay in 2004.
Unfortunately, Fedotenko did not play for much of the 2010 playoffs, and he was not offered a new contract after becoming an unrestricted free agent this year.
Out: Bill Guerin
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Guerin signed a tryout contract with the Philadelphia Flyers.
He was traded to the Penguins from the New York Islanders in 2009 to help boost the Penguins roster for the playoffs.
The 1995 Stanley Cup champion had 57 points and a plus-six rating in 95 games with Pittsburgh. This year, his 11 power play goals were ranked third on the Penguins.
It was a hard loss for sure, but Guerin was showing his age, and it was time to say thanks for the memories and move on.
Out: Alexei Ponikarovsky
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When Ponikarovsky was brought to the Penguins from the Toronto Maple Leafs, it was thought that he would be the answer to the Pens' winger woes.
Unfortunately, Ponikarovsky was not the guy. He tallied just nine points in 16 games with Pittsburgh and had a minus-six rating. He was also a frequent healthy scratch and was suspended for the last two games of the regular season for a hit on Josh Bailey of the New York Islanders.
Ponikarovsky played 11 games in the playoffs, but managed just five points.
He signed a deal with the Los Angeles Kings in the offseason and remains one of the few mistakes of Ray Shero's tenure.
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