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It’s time for Ray Shero to call Brendan Shanahan

by Tony F on 01/07/09 at 12:29 PM ET
Comments (12)

Last night’s 3-1 Penguins win over the Atlanta Thrashers wasn’t just crucial because it snapped their five-game losing streak, nor because they got two powerplay goals in the process. That snapped a 33 powerplay scoreless streak in itself.

But that’s not the only reason it was a great scene last night.

It should have caused Penguins’ GM Ray Shero’s head to pop a big lightbulb with the realization on what his team desperately needs.

It needs Brendan Shanahan.

Anyone remember how those two powerplay goals were scored last night ??

Powerplay goal Numero Uno: Petr Sykora’s defection of Ryan Whitney’s shot-pass in front of the net.

Powerplay goal Numero Dos: Sidney Crosby’s deflection of Evgeni Malkin’s slapper from the center point.

Coincidence ?? I think not.

You can shoot all of the 50 foot slappers from the points you want, but until you get a steady presence in front of the net, someone who isn’t afraid to bang bodies, it’s gonna be mostly a futile effort. The Penguins haven’t had that presence replaced since Ryan Malone bolted for Tampa Bay.

Again, that guy is Brendan Shanahan.

Who’s been the best player in front of the net so far for the Penguins ?? Arguably, it’s been Crosby, and I don’t think for a second that the Pens should have him parked there on a regular basis. Hopefully, they agree with me.

Sure, there are some things that may be prohibitive in signing Shanny. First and foremost, although it has been reported in the past that Shanny was interested in signing with the Pens, recently it’s been widely reported that he would prefer to stay in the NY general area, and that would also include Philly. It was reported a couple months ago that Shanny may have been close to signing with the Flyers, but it didn’t materialize. However, it’s now January 7th. You’d think that Shanny is starting to get itchy and sign somewhere. He also may not come at a very cheap price, which could be a show-stopper, especially for a team strapped to the salary cap like the Penguins. And let’s not forget, he’ll turn 40 on January 23rd.

But let’s also not forget, that soon-to-be 40 year old had 23 goals last year and 29 goals the year before for the Rangers, as well as 40 goals in ‘05-’06 for the Red Wings. It’s not like he’s going to be a 4th line scrub all of a sudden, ya know. This is a guy with 650 goals and 1340 points, certainly not chump change.

And finally, let’s remember that the Pens may have lost two wingers last night in Ruslan Fedotenko and Pascal Dupuis.

But to get more specific, in terms of the Penguins, Shanny’s role on the powerplay fits them like a glove. Give Crosby and Malkin the opportunity to fire at will, and have Shanny planted squarely in front of the goal to poke the rebound home, something that is sorely needed on this team, not to mention when Sergei Gonchar returns in the March timeframe. He also provides both leadership and toughness, both things that the Penguins lost plenty of last season and haven’t adequately replaced.

All sort of moves are being discussed in the Penguins’ blogosphere, anywhere from trading Jordan Staal, canning Michel Therrien and Mike Yeo, to trading for Marian Gaborik and Ilya Kovalchuk.

Signing Brendan Shanahan is seemingly the simplest move of them all.

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Tags: NHL-Hockey, Pittsburgh+Penguins,

Comments

Shanahan stopped being a force in front of the net a loooooong time ago.

Posted by shep on 01/07/09 at 02:33 PM ET

So where did the 23 goals come from Shep, magic ??

Posted by Tony F from Virginia Beach, VA on 01/07/09 at 02:37 PM ET

He’s a perimeter player, has been for years. Slapping one-timers is his forte, not grappling with defenders and tipping point shots. Don’t get me wrong, I love the guy. But he’s not what you think he is.

Posted by shep on 01/07/09 at 02:40 PM ET

Well, I’d much rather have him in there than Staal or whomever else is currently there, because it’s basically non-existent....

Posted by Tony F from Virginia Beach, VA on 01/07/09 at 02:46 PM ET

He’s not the goal-front monster you’re wanting, but Shanny one-timers from Crosby passes would be an improvement over what else Pens have going on the PP.

The screening forward doesn’t necessarily have to come from a trade or, really, even be that great to improve the pens power play if they’d just start using someone who’ll do the job.

As a Wings fan, I cringe every time Holmer so much as takes an awkward step skating (which is every time he skates, in case you don’t watch the guy much) but the wings put 4th liner Tomas Kopecky in front of the net last month at one point and he had two goals and, uh, the wings have a pretty good PP.

If a grinder’s willing to do it, let ‘em do it. They don’t have to be the king of rebounds and wrist shots. A willing, tenacious player screening with the balls to take a slapshot to the chin is all you need.

wow, grinder-level skill and willingness to take a puck to the face. Quick, someone link me the “hey there ryan” video from pennsblog?

Posted by shanetx on 01/07/09 at 03:41 PM ET

sorry man, I don’t share your enthusiasm for Shanny. The Pens Nation is No Country for Old Men. You want a guy in front of the net? Staal is the guy for it. He just needs to be pushed into that role and work on it.

Posted by brett from hackensack, nj on 01/07/09 at 05:52 PM ET

I don’t see it Brett, Staal hasn’t impressed me at all in terms of maneuvering in front of the net.....

Posted by Tony F from Virginia Beach, VA on 01/07/09 at 06:32 PM ET

Don’t do it Shanny, be strong. Go for a decent club, not one with the cry baby.

Posted by mr bean on 01/08/09 at 04:16 AM ET

Tony,

I swear you were reading my mind and I couldn’t agree with you more, bud! Not only would Shanny be good for the Pens powerplay, but he would also be a veteran presence in the locker room that I believe they sorely miss since the departure of Gary Roberts (as well as Daryll Sydor!). This team is made up an abundance of youth with no one to look to for a little guidance. Not mentioning the fact that he and Sidney get along well.

I’d tell Shero to go for it - there’s nothing left for this team to lose!!

Posted by Stephanie on 01/08/09 at 05:26 AM ET

The Pens should try to sign the Wings Franzen, when he becomes a free agent this summer. Not only would it be pay back for them stealing Hossa, but Franzen is a big body that has great offensive skills. They can probably sign him for 4+ Mil/yr. They should have the money, since Satan, Fedotenko, Sykora, Gill and Boucher will all be gone. The Pens will have over 13 Mil to spend, if the salary cap limit stays the same. That should allow them to sign one good FA, Stahl, Scuderi and a cheap backup goalie.

Posted by Pedro from VA on 01/08/09 at 10:54 AM ET

Stahl?...you are an embarrassment to penguins fans…

...in other news, Jordan Staal signed a 4-year, $16 million deal

Posted by Alex from Wilkes-Barre on 01/08/09 at 03:21 PM ET

The Pens should try to sign the Wings Franzen, when he becomes a free agent this summer. Not only would it be pay back for them stealing Hossa, but Franzen is a big body that has great offensive skills. They can probably sign him for 4+ Mil/yr. They should have the money, since Satan, Fedotenko, Sykora, Gill and Boucher will all be gone. The Pens will have over 13 Mil to spend, if the salary cap limit stays the same. That should allow them to sign one good FA, Stahl, Scuderi and a cheap backup goalie.

Did you miss the part of the playoffs where Penguins players were taking shots at the head of a guy who just came back from friggin’ insane, undiagnosable head injury? Because, uh, that was Johan Franzen. I bet he remembers.

Granted, St. Gary is gone and his was the most notorious (and maybe one of the cheapest plays in recent memory even if Johan did go out of his way to sell it) cheap shot. Orpik is no saint, either. He took a swing at Franzen’s melon in one scrum, and I bet Franzen also remembers the absolutely ridiculous amount of crosschecks his budy Holmstrom took from Orpik.

I don’t think there’s a lot of good relations between these two teams, guys.

Posted by shanetx on 01/08/09 at 04:03 PM ET

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About The Confluence

Welcome to The Confluence, a Pittsburgh Penguins blog since 2006. Originally at Blogspot, then at MVN, The Confluence has over 1000 articles reporting Penguins news as well as jumping on my soapbox to opine constructive Penguins criticism. My posts are regularly linked by hockey websites such as the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Empty Netters and Yahoo!’s Puck Daddy, and I’ve done guest blogger spots on such websites as the New York Times. I invite you to spend a little time and peruse the archives at all of the sites for some of my better work. I am a retired U.S. Navy Chief Petty Officer, but don’t confuse me with my fellow Chief at A2Y.

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