Dec 14, 2013; Detroit, MI, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Brian Dumoulin (8) skates with the puck against the Detroit Red Wings at Joe Louis Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
Brian Dumoulin
Last season, the Pittsburgh Penguins faithful had little hope going into the postseason, and fully expected the New York Rangers to blow them out. The biggest question mark was on defense as the Pens were without Kris Letang, Olli Maatta, and Christian Ehrhoff.
However, Brian Dumoulin showed up in a big way and provided a pretty solid third pairing alongside Taylor Chorney despite a lack of NHL experience.
Dumo and Chorney combined for the least amount of goals-against among all defensive pairs in the AHL last season. They contributed their solid play into the NHL offseason, and both likely earned a bid for a real look as an NHL defenseman in 2015-16 (Chorney signed a contract with the Washington Capitals). Dumoulin will likely be competing with Ben Lovejoy and Rob Scuderi for a spot on the Pens’ third defensive pairing.
Scuderi has obviously shown that he isn’t aging well in the NHL. He looked battered and beaten in the post-season last spring and was unable to step up when called upon. The same can be said about Lovejoy, though I wouldn’t call it battered and beaten. Lovejoy struggled with an increased role and continuously made costly fundamental mistakes. So, you’d think Dumo could step in without an issue, right?
Both of the aforementioned veterans are looked at as solid third pairing defensemen, whether we agree or not. Lovejoy should be fine on that bottom pairing, and I’d love to see Dumoulin alongside him. If that’s the case, he has the chance to really make a name for himself and prove that he can provide the defensive depth that everyone is very concerned about going into 2015-16.
Next: Sergei Plotnikov