By: Rick Buker

Rick Buker — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 17:16:07 +0000

Great comments, Reg. If I have a bone to pick with Dan Bylsma, it’s that he values speed above all else. While I know skating is critical to his puck-possession game, a team needs a blend of players with different attributes to win a Stanley Cup. When we won in 2009, guys like Mark Eaton, Hal Gill, Bill Guerin, and Rob Scuderi filled important roles. None of them was going to win a fastest skater competition, but each was a key contributor. Bylsma seems to have forgotten that. Also, I think part of the reason the team’s been so banged up the last couple of years is because Bylsma’s up-tempo style creates a lot of physical confrontations. I believe it exacts a greater toll on smaller players than it would on bigger guys. I’m not advocating that the Pens jettison everyone under 6’0″ (which would be about 2/3rds of the team). Just balance out the smurfs with a few bigger bodies. Oh, and I agree with your comments about them going from being perhaps overly physical to not physical enough. Not to beat a horse that’s already dead, but I sure do miss Mike Rupp (or a Rupp-type player). I don’t think you’d see other teams messing with Geno as much after the whistle if he were still around.

By: Reg Dunlop

Reg Dunlop — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 16:27:34 +0000

Rick, I couldn’t agree more with your previous post about the lack of size the Pens are dealing with. It was evident again last night. Though they did battle through it to win the game, you could see the King’s player pushing the smaller Pen’s players around. Last year the Penguins seemed to overcompensate for size by playing extra physical. They were the second most penalized team last year. Now, they appear to have taken a full 180 to be less physical than they need to be. Somewhere in between leading the league in penalties and playing a softer brand of hockey lies the answer.

Comments on: Plug ‘N’ Play Penguins Crown Kings 3-2

By: Rick Buker

By: Reg Dunlop