Pittsburgh Penguins' Projected Lines and Defensive Pairings

This definitely wasn't the busiest offseason in Penguins history. Even with the lack of noise made by general manager Ray Shero this summer, it's still hard to believe that training camp is just a month away. 

With preseason games about a month away as well, it's a great time to fantasize about what the Penguins' lineup will look like come opening night in Vancouver.

Barring any injuries, here is a quick glance at Pittsburgh's projected lines and defensive pairings. 

Line 1

James Neal-Sidney Crosby-Pascal Dupuis

Sidney Crosby will finally get a chance to play with James Neal eight months after the trade that sent him to Pittsburgh from Dallas. Penguins fans are anxious to see how Neal and Crosby will mesh together. Neal brings a youthful presence to the team, and it will be interesting to see if Crosby can turn Neal into a 30-goal scorer. 

Neal was a prolific scorer in Dallas, but he struggled to put the puck in the net with the Penguins, scoring only one goal. Shero and company are hoping that being paired with Sidney will help Neal eclipse his previous highs and become the winger the Penguins have been looking for to play with Sid. 

Sidney Crosby generally has ignited Pascal Dupuis' ability to score, and although Dupuis scored more goals with Crosby out of the lineup, there is no question that Crosby brings the best out of Dupuis. Crosby has instilled confidence in Dupuis' game and he's a bigger offensive threat because of him. 

Dupuis also brings some great backchecking abilities because of his speed. With Dupuis on the top line, the Penguins have a great balance of scoring, playmaking and backchecking on the front unit.

Line 2

Chris Kunitz-Evgeni Malkin-Steve Sullivan

With James Neal playing with Sidney Crosby, this pushes Chris Kunitz to the second line with Evgeni Malkin. People always talk about how Crosby never has any wingers to play with. Well if it's been bad for Sid, it's been just as bad for Geno, too. 

Malkin will gladly center the second line alongside Chris Kunitz and Steve Sullivan. With two scorers surrounding him, Malkin can focus on being more of a distributor and less of a scorer. He's struggled the last two seasons and it might be because of the fact that he has had to be the guy to score goals on his line. 

Now, a healthier Evgeni Malkin can just focus on being a playmaker and this will definitely open up his game. These top two lines are extremely potent and dangerous. The Penguins are definitely going to be a force to be reckoned with. 

Line 3

Matt Cooke-Jordan Staal-Tyler Kennedy

There's no reason why the best third line in hockey should not be reunited. These players feed off each other. In fact, because of Tyler Kennedy's breakout season last year and Jordan Staal's experience of leading a team that suffered through the injuries to Crosby and Malkin, this line might be better than ever.

Cooke's tenacity, Staal's leadership and Kennedy's pugnacious mentality will drive other teams crazy. This line will be able to put up goals and drop the gloves and fight. Need to shut down the opponent's top scorer? They can do that, too.

If the Penguins want to win the Stanley Cup, this line needs to stay healthy. It's not all about the Crosbys and Malkins of the world. The Penguins won in 2009 because of grit and character, and this line embodies those qualities.

Matt Cooke obviously needs to remain in check as well. 

Line 4

Craig Adams-Mark Letestu-Arron Asham

The fourth line's job is to agitate. A little bit of scoring doesn't hurt either. 

Without question this is one of the best fourth lines in the league. There aren't any goons. These guys know how to play. Craig Adams is a true veteran who has been battle tested and can play great defense. Arron Asham has shown that he can score and not just fight. Finally, Mark Letestu can provide some offensive punch for the grind line. He scored 27 points in 64 games last year in his rookie season.

The Penguins have a lot of depth, too. Guys like Eric Tangradi, Dustin Jeffrey and Nick Johnson will be there in case of injuries. 

After all, it's a long season and we've seen in recent years that it's almost impossible to go through a full season without any bumps and bruises. 

Defensive Pairing 1

Brooks Orpik-Kris Letang

It's hard to believe that Brooks Orpik is now a 30-year old veteran. Either way, he should be paired up with scoring threat Kris Letang again this season. 

Orpik is easily the leader of the team defensively. His bone jarring hits and high IQ on the ice have helped the Penguins develop one of the strongest blue lines in the league.

On the other side, Kris Letang is slowly becoming one of the best offensive defenseman in the game. He put up a career high with 50 points last season. His goal scoring total should be a bit higher, but who's complaining? He has great puck moving abilities and his leadership qualities are growing at the young age of 24. 

Defensive Pairing 2

Paul Martin-Zbynek Michalek

The duo played very well together last season in Pittsburgh. There isn't much to say about these guys and that's a good thing. Generally when there's nothing much to say about shutdown defensemen, it means that they've been doing their job. 

The two contributed more than anyone asked for offensively, too. Martin put up 24 points and Michalek scored five goals. 

It would be nice to see both improve their +/- ratings. Martin was a plus-9 and Michalek was an even last season. 

Defensive Pairing 3

Deryk Engelland-Matt Niskanen

Matt Niskanen was pretty much a throw in during the James Neal trade. He played well after the trade, but he could easily be replaced by Ben Lovejoy if he doesn't step up even more. It's not that he's playing poorly, it's just that there is so much competition for the sixth defensive spot that one really needs to play strong consistently to maintain the position.

Deryk Engelland was stellar last season. He needs to be in the lineup. His tenacity is unmatched and he proved last year that he is willing to do anything to play with the big boys. His fights provided energy for the team on numerous occasions and it'll be fun to see what he has in store this year.

As mentioned above, Ben Lovejoy can easily crack the roster, too. The Penguins are very deep defensively and they're about to get deeper with Simon Depres emerging in the minors. It'll be fun to see which defensemen stand out most during camp and earn the starting nod in Vancouver!