Takeaways from the Penguins 6-3 Loss to the Red Wings, and Whether They Should Get Puljujarvi
Welcome to the THW Pittsburgh Penguins Substack newsletter, with all the latest from our team of Penguins writers.
Today we look at the Penguins 6-3 loss to the Red Wings on Wednesday night, whether they should get help for their bottom six forwards by trading for Jesse Puljujarvi, and finally a look at the Top 10 best European forwards of all time.
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Takeaways as Penguins Fall 6-3 to the Red Wings
October 19, 2023 by George Majchrzak
Apparently the Detroit Red Wings are for real. The Pittsburgh Penguins found that out the hard way Wednesday night. The Penguins and Red Wings both entered the Oct. 18 tilt at Detroit’s Little Caesar’s Arena with 2-1-0 records, but it was the home team that emerged victorious 6-3.
Though the Penguins started hot with a goal from Evgeni Malkin less than a minute into the game, they couldn’t withstand a wave of offense from the Red Wings in the second period. Through four games in the early stages of the 2023-24 season, the Red Wings have now scored 19 goals, tied with the Ottawa Senators for second most in the NHL. Their three-goal outburst in the second stanza was too much for the Penguins to overcome.
Pittsburgh Penguins Need Jesse Puljujarvi
October 17, 2023 by Mike Cranwell
If you’ve watched the first few games of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ season, you’ve probably got a feel for where the music is taking you:
Loads of scoring up top
A defense that has the potential to be great
The bottom six still needs improvement
As a haiku, that would bring my former English teachers back to the red marker. As a statement of fact, it’s why I racked my brain for several very long seconds thinking about who was still available as an unrestricted free agent that could help fill a key gap for the Pens.
First, my mind went to Phil Kes – nah, there’s no point in finishing that sentence. Kessel will hopefully sign elsewhere, get the final eight points he needs to cap his career as a 1000-point player and cause pundits and fans alike great distress over the next 20 years arguing about whether Kessel is a true Hall of Fame player, or merely yet another in the hall of very good.
Then, my mind went on a trip overseas, to the land that makes hardened professional hockey players who can play strong system hockey, handle the cold, and have the mettle to handle the Steel City.
To Finland, and to Jesse Puljujarvi.
Puljujarvi, the former fourth overall draft pick from the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, is a player who has not panned out to be what is expected of a top-five draft pick but would bring virtually everything that Pittsburgh needs to upgrade their bottom-six.
Top 10 All-Time European-Born NHL Forwards
October 13, 2023 by Kyle Gipe (Updated Archive)
Europeans are having a bigger impact in the NHL now than ever before. Of the 985 players to play in at least one game this season, 268, or 27 percent, were born in Europe. Europeans have been at the pinnacle of success in recent seasons, winning five of the past 10 Hart, Art Ross, and Norris Trophy winners. But European success in the NHL hasn’t just been recent.
Joe Hall, who was born in England but moved to Manitoba as a toddler, made his NHL debut in 1917 and was the first European-born player in the league. However, the first European-trained player didn’t debut until Jan. 27, 1965 when Swede Ulf Sterner joined the New York Rangers. During the 1960s and 70s, Europeans started making names for themselves with the emergence of Stan Mikita.
This success continued in the 1980s and 1990s with the collapse of the Soviet Union, leading to the league’s current landscape. With many iconic names, Europeans have had great success in the league. Let’s look at the 10 greatest European forwards to ever play in the NHL.