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This episode is brought to you by our good friends at NFL Sunday ticket on YouTube TV I'm sure by now you've all gotten back into your Sunday routines, but they could be even better with NFL Sunday ticket and YouTube TV You get the most live NFL games all in one place every game every Sunday And you can even watch up to four different games at once with multi-view one of my favorite inventions of this decade It's exactly what you need to catch all the action make your Sundays more magical and also YouTube TV is great. I got it this year. It's awesome Sign up now at youtube.com slash B s device and content restrictions apply local and national games on YouTube TV And if I'll Sunday ticket for out-of-market games excludes digital only games [Music] Hello everybody and welcome to tip of the iceberg live your home for Pittsburgh penguins news and Analysis, you can find us on YouTube at tip of the iceberg or anywhere you get your podcast from it is August which means we are in the slow season of the national hockey league calendar But the penguins yesterday throughout a couple life rafts to us multiple trades on Tuesday by Kyle Dubas and the penguins organization will dive into both of them one of them and Exchanging of draft picks with the st. Louis blues and another one brings in a player that you might see in Pittsburgh This year and let's start with that one because it's the one that for the players and and for the fans that are more Interested in what they're gonna see this fall this winter and hopefully long in the next spring is What player did the penguins get back in return in these trades and that's Cody glass Cody glass is an interesting player The penguins bring him over from the national predators with a 2025 third round pick as well as a 2026 sixth round pick in exchange for 23 year old forward prospect Jordan, Frasca now on the surface This one is cut and dry plain and simple exactly what Kyle Dubas has been saying He's been trying to do all summer long We saw it with the Kevin Hayes trade on the weekend of the NHL draft and we see it again here trying to take advantage of teams who need to eliminate cap space In order to be able to maneuver and that's what the penguins were able to do with the national predators who did not want Cody glass is 2.5 million dollar salary cap space on their Books for this year in exchange the penguins decide that they will take that as well as a third and a six round pick in exchange for Jordan Frasca who's a name that has been in the penguins organization for the past couple of years He was between the ECHL and the AHL last year and let's face it This is a player that might have made it to the National Hockey League at some point But at the end of the day he wasn't much of a needle mover We wish him all the best as he heads down to the Nashville predators organization But the penguins get two draft picks as well as Cody glass a player who is going to play Probably a good bit of games for the penguins at the NHL level this season So and I said this yesterday on Twitter, even if Cody glass doesn't play a singular regular season game for the penguins This is a successful trade for Kyle Dubas in my eyes. You get draft capital for a team that is currently Starting the rebuilding prospect or process and we'll talk about where their picks stand after the Blues trade But you get those picks you get a 25 year old guy that could pan out Maybe a change of scenery turns him into what he was projected to be when he was a first round pick of the Vegas Golden Knights back in 2017 and in exchange all you're paying is kind of a Middle to lower to your prospect in Jordan, Frasca, so let's talk about Cody glass Specifically here for a couple minutes 25 years old like I mentioned he was the first ever draft pick of the Vegas Golden Knights, which seems to be the headline for everybody talking about this trade when I look at his potential as of now because when he came into the league he was coming off of a couple really solid seasons in junior and He was believed to be a no doubt top six forward top six center prospect His career hasn't really panned out that way over the past couple of seasons He was involved in that three team trade that sent him the national predators He didn't find his footing with Nashville and now he's in his third organization in the National Hockey League What I see him at is as currently a bottom six AHL tweener with middle six potential I would say that he's probably not a guy that you can count on to in the future become a top six center But he has the potential to Turn into a third line center for the Penguins down the line if he can find his footing and if he can recapture Some of that promise that he had earlier in his career You look at what he did last season with the Nashville predators six goals 13 points in 46 games played not the greatest showing Kinda reminds me of the stat line we saw from valteri pustin last season, which was I believe five goals 20 points in 56 games played so Eerily similar, but one was a sixth overall pick and one was a seventh round pick Also one's a center and one's a right winger, which we'll get into here in just a second But the one problem I have with that stat line that not a lot of people have dug into is Three of those six goals came in one game Cody glass had his first career NHL hat trick against the Colorado avalanche And that is half of his goal production from last year with a national predator So It's a young player that I don't mind taking a flyer on I don't mind giving more opportunity to but that begs the next question How much opportunity Is Cody glass actually going to get because he's another center? You look at the penguins. What is the one thing they have in spades? What is the one thing they've always had in spades center options and to this year Is going to be no different. You look at the penguins right now. I count personally seven Centers in and around the national hockey league level You obviously have cindy crossby You obviously have have genny maulkin as well as the two other centers that were on the roster last year in lars eller who was the third line center all season And nola chari who was the fourth line center when healthy You also brought in kevin hace You also brought in blake la zot who i've talked about as Being that fourth line left wing despite the fact that the majority of his playing career Has been spent at center at the national hockey league level And now you have cody glass a guy who comes in at 25 years old and you're hoping Gets you towards that younger faster more For Influential bottom six when it comes to the scoreboard Seven players and that is without mentioning sandpool n who you would have to imagine is in a do or die season of his own This upcoming year Vasily ponomarev who was brought in during the drake gentle trade to be a bottom six center for the steam into the future So now you're up to nine There's another shoe that has to drop here Somebody Anybody of these names outside of probably Crosby probably maulkin Probably hayes and lasot and glass because they just got acquired one of those other names lars eller nola chari maybe a sandpool an Feels like they have to be traded at some point or other You go into this season fostering competitive edge fostering competition in training camp And I know that is one thing that kyle dubas made sure that he was very open about last year During his first training camp as penglin's president of hockey operations in general manager He said we have a lot of competition and that's going to create Better performances and that's going to make us better at the end of the day That's what he was touting all year last year Well, you're certainly going to have that at center When you have nine guys vying for four spots And yes We all agree that it's probably best and better off that nola chari bumps over the wing And we all agree that blake lasot despite the fact that he doesn't have must much experience there Is likely a guy that can play on the fourth line on the left wing It's an adjustment for him, but he could probably do it Cody glass We'll have to wait and see But there these are a lot of guys that you expected to see nhl ice time this year And you quite frankly don't have the roster spot for all of them Now you're hoping that you don't run into the injury bug And we all know the penguins have an extensive history with running into that injury bug And if they do boy, it would be nice to have nine options for four spots But at the end of the day They're not going to run nine options It feels like one of them have to be moved And if it's going to be one of them The two names i'm looking at are larseller Specifically larseller and then potentially nola chari It feels like larseller is the easy one here Going into a contract year a Stanley cup champion a bonafide Third line center that has very strong two wave capabilities And somebody that you could get more draft capital for And as we'll talk about with the st louis blues trade that he executed before pulling off this trade with nashville draft capital is Certainly high on kyle dupes's big board of things he wants to continue to bring into the organization The one that's going to fetch the most of this center crop that is actually going to be a realistic trade option is larseller His value is higher than a chari's his value is higher than kevin hayes higher than Probably higher than a blake lasotte at this point in his career and higher than a a cody glass so If there's going to be a trade i still have my eyes on larseller do i want it to happen As somebody who's going to watch 82 games this season i'd like to see larseller be part of that team Because i liked seeing what he did last year for the penguins i thought he was a very good piece and honestly I think he was the best third line center and the most consistent third line center that the penguins have had Since the first time nick bonito was around with the penguins not the second time obviously but Eller filled that role and filled that role in a very very good manner So i wouldn't mind seeing him back on the team But based on where the team is currently at which is whether they want to admit it or not kicking off a rebuild Trading larseller seems like the most logical option for them from this standpoint Because that opens up opportunities for Maybe a cody glass that opens up more opportunities for Maybe a sandpool and or maybe a vassili ponomara or who knows Maybe a braid and yaeger in the first 10 games of the season or more He seems like he's a little further off from there But again, not ruling anything out when it comes to a team that could potentially be rebuilding this year and hoping that they Extend past their expectations in the year of the 2024-25 season But it feels like with this edition of another center Even though it seems like the primary focus was bringing in a younger player Regardless of his position along with some solid draft capital It feels like it just makes a crowded room even more crowded So it feels like Another shoe has to drop on the penguins roster and it feels like that has to be a trade of a center Again looking at elor looking at a charry a charry has two years left on his contract So maybe his market isn't going to be as fruitful as that of larseller But it comes down to what the market's going to give you and it comes down to whoever Kyle doobas can get a good deal for it doesn't mean that's going to happen Just means that it feels like that might be the next move For the Pittsburgh penguins in my eyes The other move that they made yesterday the first move that was going to be the only topic here It's been very quiet. Obviously in august everybody talking about the speculation of Crosby I'm sure we'll get that in the questions here from everybody in the chat Which shout out to everybody who is live with us at tip of the iceberg on youtube before we get into that And all of your questions The penguins swapped some picks with the st. Louis blues seems like Kyle doobas and the blues They've been doing a lot of business together this off season. Everybody remembers penguins got kevin Hayes and a second round pick at the nhl draft in exchange for future considerations Maybe this was the consideration that when the st. Louis blues wanted to offer sheet a couple of edmond to noilers That they would get their pick back for Other pick swaps in the future the pittsburgh penguins traded their 2025 second round pick Which was initially required acquired in the kevin hays trade as well as a 2026 fifth round pick in exchange for a 2026 second rounder and a 2025 third round pick so They give back the pick that they got from the blues in exchange for a 2026 second rounder And then they swap a fifth and the third rounder to give the bang penguins Some extra capital at the top half of the draft next season It's an interesting trade when I saw it I Said all right. Well Kyle doobas is still stockpiling his draft picks because that's all this was and then of course the news comes down that the st Louis blues offer sheeted both philip broberg and I believe dill and hall away If i'm not mistaken And now it makes sense because they need the draft picks that the penguins sent back in Order to pay off the oilers if in fact those offer sheets go through so That's why the trade happened. It's kevin kyle doobas Taking advantage of another situation as a team that wants to acquire draft capital. So you look at what the penguins now have nine picks in 2025 with one first rounder Zero second rounders, but three third round picks They also have nine picks now in the 2026 NHL draft one first rounder two second rounders and two third round picks If they go into those drafts and end up selecting nine players That will be the most players drafted by the penguins organization Since 2012 when they took darrick pulleyat and holy mata in the first round that was the same draft that they traded To acquire brian doomlyn from the carolina hurricane. So a memorable draft For the penguins in 2020 or 2012 Could be coming down the pike for 2025 and 2026 and the penguins can only hope to get similar results from at least one of their First round picks because we all know how pulleyat turned out But holy mata still a pretty good nh alert this stage and obviously the trade for brian doomlyn Worked out tenfold, but you look at those Stock pilings of picks and you look at what the penguins are at the one question mark is well They don't have a second rounder in this upcoming draft now. They traded to get one in They traded it away again to get one in 2026 What i'll say there is Look at where the penguins are at on their roster There's a lot of players that could potentially turn into second round picks larsaller being one of them I mean that's a high price to pay, but if you get in a situation where a team is desperate for a middle six center with stanley cup playoff experience larsaller could be that guy if matt grislic turns his Career around in the first half of the season with the penguins and all of a sudden somebody needs a left shot defensemen Maybe not a second rounder, but you could add a third rounder potentially based on where the market is at The penguins have multiple opportunities to get back into the second round next year and potentially have double digit draft picks Going into the 2025 draft. So as far as kyle dubas is stated goal of getting more draft capital He's hit it out of the park on that one. Now again You have to transition this into solid selections Which also has to transition to good development which has to transition into a good nhl player So there's multiple steps in this but the first step is making sure you have the draft capital to begin with And kyle dubas has done that Arguably, that's the easiest part, but at the very least we know he's done that correctly I'm going to take a quick break when I come back answering all of your questions to everybody that has tuned in live with us At tip of the iceberg on youtube. We'll be right back right after this break Welcome back to tip of the iceberg live your home for pittsburgh penguins news and analysis We just broke down the two trades that happened yesterday. Obviously the penguins acquiring cody glass Of the national predators as well as a pick swap With the st louis blue's glass is a player that honestly i'm excited to see i think that Going into training camp i would pencil him in as probably a top line center or a top six center For the wokesburg grant and penguins a team that is going to be very intriguing Early in this season, but I give him an opportunity to fight for one of those roster spots I put him in those competitions with guys like kevin hays with guys like lorzella And if there is a trade to be had like I mentioned earlier He just moves up the wrong and roofs up the ladder that much more So i'm interested to see what he looks like in his first training camp in pittsburgh And if he goes down to wokesburg, who does he play with you know, does he play with valet koi vunen does he play with sam pool and the sam pool and center lines or to sam pool and Move back to wing where he was initially drafted as i think there's a lot of good story lines surrounding Those bubble roster players for the penguins organization going into training camp and of course with camp Coming in probably about a month. There's going to be a plenty to talk about as players start getting back into pittsburgh actually saw Penguins post a day. Alex nadoke pitch already back in pittsburgh. I don't know if He came back early to get some training in. I don't know if he's here for the season already Just trying to get a jump on things But nice to see nad back after getting that two-year extension earlier this off season Let's go to the questions in the comments section here and first let's answer austin's question saying point projections For bottom six forwards this year. That's that's a hard one. You look at last year The penguins top scoring bottom six player as I try to pull this up here From hockey reference. I believe it was around 30 points From lars eler if i'm not mistaken obviously about terry pustin to me was the most entertaining of the bottom six forwards last year that with saying uh drew a corner was a top six guy but the leading bottom six scorer that was a true bottom six player the whole season was lars eler With around 30 points when I look at the bottom six this year I believe that it's going to produce more offensively I think kevin hayes as a facilitator on the third line is going to open things up for valterrey pustin in and with that I have high expectations for pustin in this season I think he leads the penguins bottom six and scoring if he plays the entire year down in the bottom six and I have him and hayes Topping out at around 42 to 45 points this upcoming season So that's the projections. I'll give you all those guys I don't have projections for every one of them because uh that's going to be a hard task Especially knowing that there is going to be a lot of competition in training camp To see who comes away with those bottom six spots to start the season Let's go to jostej's question because that kind of leads right into it. He asks What do you think the penguins bottom six looks like as of now assuming Drew o'Connor Sidney Crosby brian rust is the first line michael bunting have genny maulkin And recartor kell is the second line when I look at it I agree with what daily face-off currently has as the penguins bottom six, which is anthony bovillier kevin hayes valterrey pustin in as the third line Blake lasot large zeller and no lechari is the fourth line. I think going in the camp That is the most realistic bottom six Is far as placeholders because I think that's what you're looking at right now You're looking at a team and kyle dubas has mentioned this on several occasions And I tend to believe him that wants to get younger that wants to give opportunities To younger players in this bottom six that I have here Those opportunities are afforded to valterrey pustin in who I believe earned it last year with over 50 games at the nhl level And that opportunity goes to blake lasot who signed a multi-year contract this off season with the penguins And I think those two I would expect unless they have a poor training camp to be in those positions when the season starts in october The question becomes what do they do with anthony bovillier he signed for one year They're expecting him To come in have a resurgence Find the game that he had when he was a member of the new york islanders And be a solid piece up and down the lineup for the penguins on the left side if he comes in improves that he can be that Maybe he becomes a roadblock for guys like vily koi voonen Guys like sam poolan if he moves back over to wing So again There is still some movement to be had and as I mentioned at the outside of the show and we'll mention All the time when talking about this bottom six specifically at the center ice position I feel like there might also be a trade coming for one of these centers Elor a chari being the two names that I mentioned earlier, but to answer your question Where do I have the bottom six as of now going into camp? bovillier haze pustan and lasot elor and a chari that's my bottom six as of right now Let's move over to mitch's question next saying Do you think crosby wants to be traded and wants to see how this season plays out or is he just waiting For no reason. I don't think it's for no reason I also don't think there is much of a concern when it comes to his contract. I'm not overly concerned I know everybody was looking at one week ago on august 7th for him to sign it And do the very sydney crosbyest thing that he possibly could and sign his final contract On his 37th birthday. That didn't happen Oh, well We move on and my next expectation and honestly my expectation before then Is there just waiting for him to get back into town? Crosby's not in pittsburgh right now as least as far as I know Crosby's not in pittsburgh right now and you're not going to sign sydney crosby via e-sign and e-signature when he's up in noviscosa or he's traveling around europe which he did Earlier this summer. I think he signs it whenever he shows up for training camp And I think that the reason being the penguins need a little bit more juice going into this season than they did in the past A lot of people expect the penguins to have a down season a lot of people expect them to for the third straight year Be a non playoff team in the 2020 for 25 year This is a gate-driven league You need to pull as many marketing stunts as humanly possible to sell tickets and the longer this goes where he doesn't have a contract the more Questionable the ticket sales are going to become and the more questionable It's going to become from the penguins business standpoint The fact is crosby has always stated that he wants to finish his career a penguin I understand that they're heading in the wrong direction But he knew that when he said Multiple times that he wants to finish his career as a member of the penguins. He wants to be a one sweater guy He knew that eventually things would go sour He knew that every team eventually falls off. They had an unprecedented run him crosby Sorry him malkin and chris latang of going to the playoffs 16 or 17. I can't remember at this point Straight seasons. They are also the longest tenured big three in north american sports history You knew eventually if that is the path you're going to take there's going to be drop off at some point And that's probably going to be because your team gets a little bit too old and the moves aren't made correctly to supplement them That's what's happened over the last couple of seasons I expect crosby to sign and I think it's going to be whenever he gets back into town for training camp and it's going to be a big Marketing spectacle you're going to have him sitting down as a press conference. He's going to sign It's going to be the declaration that he becomes a penguin for life because to me That's been the only option to this point. I haven't really wavered on that fact. I don't see him wanting to be out I don't see him wanting to be traded. The guy still Has the capability to carry a team I think he's going to say I can carry this team further than everybody expects him to be carried And I expect him to do that as we hit 87 live viewers right now in the live stream perfect timing Let's see if there's any other questions here Dapton says what's your take on this proposed trade letting uh till it from latang to montreal I haven't seen it. I saw that there was somebody that did a youtube video on it Chris latang has a full no trade clause as of right now Chris latang is also going to stay in pittsburgh as long as crosby is in pittsburgh and as long as maulkins in pittsburgh Now If this crosby thing takes an unforeseen turn and he ends up going wherever else and that is a major if in my eyes Maybe chris latang says I want to go play for my hometown my childhood team The montreal canadians with the general manager being his former agent sure but as of right now I don't think there's any credence to chris latang wanting to be traded To montreal and I don't think there's any credence to the penguins desiring to trade chris latang to montreal at least as of this point in time Alex roan asks is this it for moves or do you think we will see someone like a charrier eler get moved for draft capital That's exactly what I see happening I do think that one of those two if there's a trade to be had because there has to be a dance partner on the other side I feel like One of those two could potentially be on the move before the season starts In exchange for draft capital and even if the season starts I could see that trade coming down the pike as current Needs change once the season starts and once injury starting to occur around the league, I feel like That trade specifically the lars eller trade happens At some point in some way shape or form this next season Let's go answer a couple more questions Alex roan says I know he isn't signed yet, but would there be a fit for kylar yamamoto on the penguins It seems like they're pretty full up of bottom six bodies right now Right, we talked about center nine guys at center Seven of them bottom six centers right now, and that's even taken out braid nyegre who some people are holding out hope for They're they're full up at centers and then you look at wing and you also say all right Well, Tristan bros not expected to be an NHL there this season But stranger things have happened players have been able to turn pro and just absolutely like the world on fire He's going to be at the AHL level this season You also have ponomara who can move to wing you also have koi voonin in there as well There's a lot of options for the penguins right now in the bottom six and you bring in a guy like kylar yamamoto to me that would kind of smell of vinya nestrosa from last year it would smell of Redeems a horn of of last year of giving an opportunity if they outperform somebody else then sure they can have a roster spot But at the end of the day they're gonna have to outperform other people So giving him a flyer maybe a pto in training camp wouldn't be the worst idea in the world. I agree with that Alex Mitch asks a follow-up for the Sydney Crosby discussion If Crosby does sign how long of an extension will it be a lot of people l8 free of sports net as well as The dynamic duo over the earth over at the athletic josh yoe and rob rossie have speculated upon three years Morso freed minute sports net has speculated on three years It's kind of been alluded to a couple times by yoe and rossie alike I would tend to agree with that three years get some up to I believe 40 or 41 years old and that effectively Gets him through the end of his career to where he's not gonna have to sign another contract He's not gonna have to go through what he's going through right now. I don't think he's going through very much I think he's probably enjoying his summer, but then he can take it year by year because he said at the end of last year In his post post season media scrum. He said i'm at the point of my career 37 years old are going to be 37 years old Where i'm going to evaluate at the end of every year Well at the end of last year he was a 94 point player that probably could have been up over 100 points had it been for A slew of factors had they been better in the season and kept jake genssel He would have been over 100 points if the power play was 25th in the league instead of 30th all season He would have been over 100 points. So last year he was still an elite player probably Top five players in the national hockey league when all things are considered once again But he said he he's gonna take it year by year and see how he feels because as you get older These 82 game seasons get harder I think a three-year deal gives him that opportunity where he's not going to potentially tie up the penguins for a long term But at the same time he can't evaluate year after year without worrying about all right What other contract extension or other contract docs do i have to have with this speculation which i don't think he cares I don't think he even he might not even know it He might not even see it because it's a guy that is more unplugged than seemingly everybody else in the national hockey league He might not see it, but i'm sure It's something that when he gets asked those questions if he shows up the camp and doesn't sign immediately He's going to be wishing that he he didn't have to answer those types of questions He's a guy that likes to focus singularly on the game and his game and the penguins game and not on the extra curriculars John claud von dawn says will the parade start at ppg and end at the point? I don't know what parade you're talking about. I'm not going to say they're a Stanley cup champion in the foreseeable future I hope i'm wrong because Covering a Stanley cup run would be extremely fun if they do I I believe they've always started at ppg and a couple of them have ended at the point One of them I believe in 2016 ended at Was it stanwick street? They set up the stage 2017 and went all the way down to the point because there's that famed picture of both Murray and flurry holding up the cup before flurry was eventually taking the expansion draft That's it's a perfect route, right? You start at ppg make your way down boulevard of the allies Go on to the point. I will say some of my favorite memories from college Which I was college age when they won in 16 and 17 my favorite memories from college were those two parades specifically the 2017 one was a lot of fun Uh, let's go for a couple other questions here. Let's go to evans who says what's the likelihood of pustin making the opening night roster? Also, do you think there's a chance a charry gets traded? I think pustin is Leader in the clubhouse for third line right wing right now And if he comes in and he performs as such in training camp, he makes the opening night roster He played 52 games last year. I mean a lot of people forget that because they look at him and say oh, he was up He was down. He was on the NHL roster. He was sent down before the all-star break And then it took a little bit longer to get him back up I think that he's a guy that they're looking at as he should be an everyday nhl Or this year if he comes in does the right things and starts hot He makes the opening night roster. So evan I would say yes, if I had to make a prediction I'm saying he does make the opening right roster I think he has a spot as of right now. It's his to lose as far as a charry getting traded Again, I think it's more likely that you see lars eler get traded. He's the better of the two players He has the easier to move contract Of the two but a charry's a player that around playoff time Teams like to have man fourth liner block shots Like it doesn't face him which obviously it does it caused him several injuries last year But he's an absolute warrior. He'll go and block those shots anyway because he knows That's his level His offense didn't shine through last year, but he does have an offensive touch specifically when he's able to play on the wing Which is why i'm interested to see if eler does get moved if they bring up one of those younger guys And put them at center and leave a charry at the wing I'm hoping that's what they end up doing because then he can kind of showcase that offense a little bit more because he he really didn't last Year and even kyle doba said it everybody gets on him for his offense It's not what he's brought in to do it's nice and a nice bonus when he can do it But it's not his main objective for nolichari nolichari is a defense first block shots lay the body That's what he's done for the penguins. He did it last year for the penguins You're hoping that he does it again this year and if he gets that You know that mark it up enough I could potentially see him being traded because again. This is a team that right now Is in a rebuilding phase Pittsburgh heather says I don't get the bottom six signing overall i.e. a guy like amyl bemstrom Anthony bovillier Why not gruden pull in pull yarvi etc. That's one name that I haven't mentioned is pull yarvi I really liked what he did Last year in his limited opportunities and again he was coming off of double hip fusion surgery He had to get up to speed. He was kind of You know slow played by the coaching staff his first game was I believe four minutes of ice time At the national hockey league level and that was after a couple of weeks of american hockey league play So I do like pull yarvi I understand where they're coming from heather on these bottom six signings I wasn't big on bringing back amyl bemstrom But sure give him an opportunity if he outperforms A guy like bovillier a guy like lasot. He's gonna get playing time I think that's why they're bringing guys like this guys that are low risk Don't have to sign him for very long. I believe bovillier and bemstrom both signed on a one-year deal And let him compete whoever's the best is going to get the playing time Whoever's not you can move on from him. It's low risk So I think they're just trying to put as many opportunities and as many You know, honestly wild cards on this roster as possible So hopefully one or two of them work out and they have a better bottom six than they did last year because last year They did a similar thing with their bottom six and it just it didn't work out. So horna Was great in training camp Not so great once the regular season started and now he's playing overseas same thing happened with viny hina strolls He was fine, but he wasn't as good as they were hoping he would be So they were placing with somebody like pustanin who was playing better at the end of the season and was getting those reps and getting those opportunities instead Mitch says do you think this penguins have a solid chance of a wild card spot this year I'd say they have a chance. I think they go into the season as a bubble team There's a bunch of teams that are in and around there and it's hard to really make that Assumption or make that declaration on august 14th, right? We don't know what a lot of the off season moves have done for certain teams We don't know what the devils will look like. I think they're going to be another team in contention for the playoffs this year After taking a step back last year. I think you look at a team like the buffalo sabers They could potentially take a jump this year team like the red wings that once again are going to be back there and maybe better Then they were last year. It's going to be harder to jump them It's going to be hard for them to make the playoffs the pittsburgh penguins But I do give them a chance because i'm never going to count out crosby and maulkin and latang and honestly eric carlson as well brian russ can be thrown in there as well And I do think when you look at the team on paper and the penguins They have an opportunity that if everything goes right they have an opportunity to be in the upper half of the eastern conference and That might be just enough To get him into the playoffs pittsburgh heather says where's the net front presence that they haven't had since they traded horny His name is michael bunting and it's not going to look the same. It's not going to be As pesky it's not going to be as effective. I think it's it's bachelorette just because I think he was very underrated What he was able to do especially you look on the power play what he was able to do is a net front presence 10 goals his second season in pittsburgh Nine goals is first and I believe 15 is third That's ridiculous for a guy that's on that power play not named crosby malkin latang at the time I think you see it from michael bunting. I also think you start to see it a little bit from drew o'conner. O'conner last year was Better than any of us could have expected And I think he builds on that this year and one of the things he said late last season after the year ended was The one thing I want to add to my game Is the ability to be in that net front area and take advantage of opportunities in that net front So if he's able to do that I give o'conner and I give bunting those nods his net front presences Maybe not patric hornquist type but certainly more than we've seen since hornquist was traded back in 2020 Evan says are there any other players that the penguins already have or have obtained that have a similar playing style to bunting It's clear. We need more like him One player that's like that. You're not going to see him this year. You're probably not going to see him next year But he was acquired this off season. In fact, he was drafted this off season tanner how tanner how is kind of a carbon copy of michael bunting like in a lot of ways not Maybe carbon copy was a little too far Very similar characteristics though And I think tanner how's a guy that is going to ingratiate himself to the penguins fan base because of that fact And he also has a high offensive ceiling as of right now if he can get into the nhl Could potentially be another michael bunting esk player Jagger joshwa. I got a double check if he's still with the penguins organization But a lot of people liked him because he brings similar aspects just not high offensive upside there Mitch says do you think we see a Crosby fight this season? Yes Yes, I do because I think the penguins are going to struggle this season again And I think Crosby is uh going to get fed up at some point and I think because of that he drops the meds It doesn't happen often But I mean the guy is undeniable when he does it he's a hard to beat he's hard to beat in fights I'm going to say yes. We do see crosby drop the gloves at some point this season Uh, let's go down to marx question That is do you think doobus will trade for cody cc similar to what he did with nashville to pick up picks I think even though, you know, the penguins were pretty stocked up on centers before they made the cody glass trade I think the penguins are pretty stocked up on defense as well Uh cody cc plays the right side if i'm not mistaken. Let me look that up Real quick handedness is a weird word to spell but uh cody cc is a right shot defensement Correct because he played alongside jack johnson when he was here The penguins have about one million dollars in cap space right now Uh, don't see them adding cody cc on the right side, especially because If you're going to add a cap piece like that You're not going to add it to a side that's already very expensive chrysletang 6.1 million eric carlson 10 million and honestly I don't want to take any opportunity away from jack sate hivany I think the penguins want to see what they have in this kid and they want to give him a really good opportunity This year uh to really establish himself at the nhl level so I don't see the penguins Going after cody cc michael tomsen asks We need raks to have a better year question mark. Yes, you do Uh, recartor kel last year for one reason or other Had a lot of issues right first 14 to 17 games of the season No goals for assists couldn't really find his footing gets injured how much of the injury played into his struggles in the first half of the season that much will never know but rough start injured for an extended period of time comes back looks good Fades away Looks good again fades away And then at the end of the season Seemed like he found a home on that line with getting maulkin and michael bunting the best that we've seen him look With have getting maulkin since coming over from anahime a couple years ago Undoubtedly if the penguins are going to be successful this year They need their top six to be clicking on all cylinders and recartor kel is one of if not the biggest question marks for them because I know what brian rust is to be completely honest I have a pretty good idea. What michael bunting is drew corner is still kind of a question mark But recartor kel is a guy that scored 11 power play goals two seasons ago Was a 28 goal score two seasons ago And then faded into oblivion last year and was being tossed around with riley smith As they tried to get one of them going and they only got going every once in a while So they 100 need recartor kel to be good this year Pittsburgh heather says The robertson trade rumors died quickly any chance that could still happen I'd like to see it happen I think robertson fits the mold of exactly What the penguins need right now But I do think that It's going to get a little bit more difficult to happen in august In september if robertson holds his own and says I still want traded. I still want a fresh start I think the penguins would have interest there and I understand Right now they have about a million dollars in cap space Likely that robertson's contract would come in at a little bit more than that They could send somebody down They can create that cap space for nick robertson and honestly, I like glass I like blake lezot bringing nick robertson is bringing in the highest potential you've brought in All off season. I have to try to think really quickly of every move in case I forgot somebody, but I feel like that would be probably the highest upside and the best player that they would have brought in All off season long Tyler asks as we're only going to answer a couple more here. I got a jump He says do you think wilks mare pens as they're shaping up could be one of the top teams I think so, but what's your opinion? I agree I don't know much about kirk mcdonald. He was the new head coach there But I do want no one thing for sure They're going to have some of the best gold tending in the me the american hockey league point blank joe blonkfist was one of the best last year serg a murrishov if that's where he plays he is He's dynamite now. He asked obviously make that change and make that switch To north american ice, but they will have one of the best gold tending combinations in the american hockey league this year and then Add on the fact that they have guys like trust and bros who's looking to prove himself in his first professional season guys like Owen pickering who's looking to prove himself in his first professional season vily koi vunen Coming over after having a great year in europe last year I think the pang ones they got a lot of young talent there I think they could be one of the top teams again. They're in a tough division Anytime you're in the same division is the back-to-back champions of the calder cup and the herchy bears It's gonna be tough, especially in the aahl when you play your division so much more But uh, I do think that they're gonna have a really good season And I think it'll be very entertaining to keep up with the pens of north eastern pennsylvania Pittsburgh kether says is shay or ludvig the seventh d going into camp. I'm going to give the nod to shay because ludvig Uh, his timetable after the surgery was that he's just be getting back to full strength Right around when training camp starts or midway through training camp So i'll give the nod to shay But I do think that right now it's the flip of a coin because they provide totally different things ryan shay is That defense first just try to be steady type of defenseman whereas john ludvig is Well Change the game with a big hit change the game with a big fight type of player I like ludvig. I think if he can round his defense into form a little bit more I think he could be a really good seventh defenseman potentially sixth defenseman in the future for the penguins If they can actually clear up that left side and figure some things out Uh, let's see if there's any other questions before we go Uh dapton says what would the pens want back for eler and or a chari draft picks That's what they've wanted all off season. That's why they have nine in the next three drafts Uh, they would want draft picks and probably preferably somewhere between the third and fourth round for for guys like a chari and eler And if it seems desperate, it'd be great to get back into the second round list next year I'm not sure whether or not that happens and we'll close it off With this one michael tomsen asks Can we see braid and yager? on the ice this year Definitely somewhere Uh, I think it's more likely that you see braid and yager with the moose jaw warriors I would say if I had to put a percentage on it and it's again august 14th We have to see how he comes in and performs the prospects challenge Which he's going to be in at training camp what she's going to be in for the second straight year and pre-season games Which he's going to perform in for the second straight year The percentage chance that we see braid and yager get that opportunity in pittsburgh this year I'm going to put it like 15 percent and even that 15 percent is probably the hey, let's give them the first nine games and then Slide his contract back to the WHL. He's really good He's really exciting and obviously he is clear-cut the penguins best prospect that they have had in not just years and probably in the last decade But I do think that they're going to be careful with him because of that and think part of that is not rushing his progression and knowing That for a team that is not right now close to being a contender You don't need to rush your best prospect a prospect that you desperately need to be Really able to hit as soon as he makes it to the NHL Which I think is more likely to happen next season in 2025-26 Thank you to everybody for tuning in but that is going to be it for this episode of tip of the iceberg live We'll try to make sure we're back on Wednesdays Every Wednesday going forward and the time is going to change So just turn on the notifications on youtube and you'll get the opportunity to Get notified when we go live and then come in and join the chat join the conversation Like everybody did here today. Thank you to everybody for tuning in We'll see you guys next time (upbeat music) (chuckles)
