The Pittsburgh Penguins are no man’s land. They are just a few points out of last place in the Metropolitan Division, yet are still somehow a couple of points out of a wild card spot.
After getting embarrassed in front of their hometown fans on Monday, Nov. 11, against the Dallas Stars, general manager Kyle Dubas made the first of what could be many moves, trading Lars Eller to the Washington Capitals.
The Penguins will have to adjust their roster to stay in contention. If and when those players eventually leave Pittsburgh, they will join an ever-growing list of NHLers who once skated with the club.
Looking across the league in early November, here’s the best lineup of former Penguins players and how they’d rank on this season’s team.
Goalie – Casey DeSmith (Dallas Stars)
Casey DeSmith is having a resurgence with the Stars, earning a 2-2-0 record in five games with a 1.79 GAA and .910 SV%, which would be tops among current Penguins goalies.
With Pittsburgh, he was 58-44-15 with a 2.81 GAA and .912 SV% over five seasons.
Defenseman – Mike Matheson (Montreal Canadiens)
Mike Matheson played two seasons in Pittsburgh and has been with the Montreal Canadiens for the last three. Last year, the blueliner played all 82 games and scored 11 goals and 62 points.
This year, he’s collected ten assists in 16 contests and is the fourth-leading scorer on his team without a single goal. On the Penguins, Matheson would be tied with Erik Karlsson, who has two goals and eight assists.
Defenseman – Ian Cole (Utah Hockey Club)
Considering the number of former Penguins defensemen playing outside the NHL, Ian Cole is one of the few still in the league and makes this lineup based on his six points in 16 games with the Utah Hockey Club.
As a member of the last two Stanley Cup wins in Pittsburgh, Cole would rank among the top ten scorers in this season’s lineup and be one of three skates with a positive plus/minus rating at plus-3.
Right Wing – Stefan Noesen (New Jersey Devils)
Stefan Noesen is on pace to have his best season while skating with the New Jersey Devils. He’s got seven goals and 14 points in 19 contests. Over the past two seasons, he’s averaged 36 points and is now on pace for 30 goals and 60 points.
Even though Noesen would rank below Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby in points, he’d be the team’s leading goal scorer with seven lamplighters.
Left Wing – Jake Guentzel (Tampa Bay Lightning)
Jake Guentzel left the Penguins less than a year ago, meaning this discussion is still fresh in fans’ minds. Even though the 30-year-old isn’t playing with the Carolina Hurricanes anymore, as one of the top free agents, he’s plying his trade in Tampa Bay and on pace for a 76-point season.
Related: Sidney Crosby Career Goal Tracker: How Close Is The Penguins Captain To 600 Goals
Guentzel has already scored five goals and 13 points in 14 games, which aligns with his 0.93 career points-per-game average. He was one of four Penguins players to score 20 goals last year, along with Malkin, Crosby, and Bryan Rust.
Center – Jared McCann (Seattle Kraken)
Jared McCann may be one of the most famous one-that-got-away stories, as the Penguins lost him in the expansion draft to the Seattle Kraken. Since debuting in the Pacific Northwest, he’s become a 40-goal scorer and now has over 100 lamplighters with the Kraken after compiling just 66 goals with three teams.
As the Kraken’s leading scorer with 19 points in 16 games, McCann is already on pace for another 40-goal campaign with eight goals. Only Crosby scored 40 last year for the Penguins, becoming the first one since Guentzel in 2021-22 to reach the mark.
Honorable mentions: Mikael Granlund (San Jose), Jason Zucker (Buffalo Sabres), Evan Rodrigues (Florida), Reilly Smith (New York), Marc-Andre Fleury (Minnesota)
Although all these players are thriving in other cities, Penguins fans can only imagine how many close games the team could have won in the season’s early stages with a bit of extra firepower.
