Penguins’ Musical Roster Chairs Just Got More Interesting
Gather ‘round boys and girls (hockey fans, too). Let’s play a game of musical roster chairs. The music goes ‘round and ‘round. And where she stops (Pittsburgh, Wilkes-Barre, Wheeling) nobody knows…
Earlier this summer, I posted an article showing what I thought the Penguins’ roster would look like come fall. At the time it seemed fairly set in stone. Before POHO/GM Kyle Dubas pulled off a pair of August trades that could have a significant domino effect on roster construction, while placing some of his earlier moves in question.
Indeed, newcomers Rutger McGroarty and Cody Glass look like solid bets to crack the season-opening lineup.
What’s more, the Pens now have a glut of some 20 forwards who can lay at least semi-claim to a roster spot. Since the overstock is most acute up front, that’s where I’ll shine my spotlight.
Without further ado, here’s a position-by-position breakdown.
Center
The top two pivot spots are set with franchise pillars Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. Behind them, things start to get murky, with summertime acquisitions Glass, Kevin Hayes and holdover Lars Eller front-runners for the two remaining spots.