Kyle Dubas balances his excitement for the Penguins’ future against their daunting present
Matt Vensel / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Over the last three weeks, Kyle Dubas has watched a Penguins team in transition from up in the management balcony at UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex.
The second-year team president saw things he liked throughout all those training camp practices. But what often happened after perhaps resonated most.
Dubas said it was “great to walk out of my office” and see prospects such as Rutger McGroarty, Owen Pickering, Tanner Howe and Harrison Brunicke sticking around after practice, with Sidney Crosby and other stars out there, as well.
“One of the things that we’ve really strived to do is to begin to form that younger core group that can learn from the group that has had so much success here in Pittsburgh,” he said Monday. “There were a number of great moments during camp where the intentionality of that came to fruition out on the ice.”
It is clear Dubas is very excited about what the future might hold for the Penguins after they spent the last seven months stockpiling picks and prospects.
McGroarty scored a spot on the season opening roster. Brunicke did not but looks like he could be a second-round gem. Pickering, Tristan Broz, Ville Koivunen and other prospects also had encouraging moments in Dubas’ estimation.
But the present Penguins? Dubas was a bit subdued when discussing them.
On Monday, Dubas began his annual preseason press conference with a 12-minute opening statement. This was not some passionate soliloquy. Instead, it felt like he was making a PowerPoint presentation at the monthly sales meeting.
Dubas failed to mention whether the quota for their TPS reports were met.
He reviewed his forward-thinking transactions. He mentioned maximizing value with short-term deals. He outlined “foundational principles.” He said he wants the team to reflect its home city by displaying equal parts “grit and innovation.”
None of the 1,800-plus words in that long statement were “Stanley” or “Cup.”
He was later asked if missing the playoffs again would be a disappointment.
“To answer at the early part of the season in terms of what will make a successful season or not, there’s so many variables that come into play,” he replied.
Dubas eventually did say that he expects the Penguins to be in the mix for a playoff spot. But missing the postseason wouldn’t necessarily make it a failure.
“I would define it as a success if we are taking steps in the right direction,” he said, referencing prospect development and bounce-back years for key vets.
But while Dubas’ CEO-speak represented a clear departure from the Cup-or-bust mantra we have heard here in Pittsburgh for much of the last two decades, he also made note of how folks outside the team are currently writing them off.
“This season and this chapter represents our chance to change this story,” he said. “If we can simply channel our foundational principles of the Penguins — our competitive spirit, development and controlling games and controlling emotions — I think we’ll have an extremely successful season and meet [our] goals.”
What makes Dubas believe the Penguins could exceed external expectations?
He likes what he has seen from the power play, now being orchestrated by new assistant coach David Quinn. He feels good about their goaltending situation. He said he is encouraged by the shape Ryan Graves showed up in. And he thinks the new-look bottom six might actually score the occasional goal.
But with the margin for error thin in the Metropolitan Division, he acknowledged that the Penguins can’t afford to start poorly like they did a season ago.
They open the season at home against the New York Rangers on Wednesday.
“The message to the players has been every single night counts. And do we still have that competitive spirit? And are we in control of ourselves and our emotions and our preparation every day?” he said. “I would be surprised and shocked if we didn’t have far more attention to those things as we get going.”
While he never directly said it, this is likely a transition year for the Penguins.
Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang have other plans, of course. They want to win a playoff series for the first time since 2018 — when McGroarty was 13. Dubas plans to give the players time to establish themselves as Cup contenders.
But if the Penguins fall out of the race like they did last season, we will likely start to see the kids called up. Pending free agents could get traded, as well.
Dubas was asked about Marcus Pettersson, his top free agent next summer. He was effusive in his praise of the player but said it is a wait-and-see situation.
“For us, the key is to protect all of our options as we go through the year,” he said. “See how our young guys are evolving and developing — as some of you have seen here throughout camp — and measure that as we go. Marcus is a key guy for us. I think we will treat him a little differently. He and Drew [O’Connor].”
They took a similar approach with Jake Guentzel last season. He was traded.
Things could be different this season. Maybe the moves that Dubas has made — much subtler this summer than in 2023 — will keep the Penguins in contention through the trade deadline. Perhaps a few prospects will provide a real jolt.
Dubas, his enthusiasm for the future aside, will not rule out that possibility.
“I think that everyone in the building knows that the season is going to be hard. We don’t come in with any preconceived notions anymore that we’re going to walk in and be a favorite or we’re going to walk in and strike fear into anybody,” the 38-year-old executive said. “We’re going to have to earn that.”
Dubas added: “What we’re going to try to accomplish this season and what our goal is to be playing very meaningful hockey in March, April and beyond.”