Everyone saw that the Penguins practiced on Wednesday without Crosby and were concerned because he finished Tuesday's game and told reporters he was just banged up. Well if he actually misses any extended season time, aside from if he has to miss the Four Nations Faceoff, the Penguins should just tank for a top 5 pick.
The Penguins have no use in trying to win games if they are down Crosby and Malkin for an extended period of time. They are your backbones aside from Letang, and are your top 2 centers, and if you have to miss both, you might as well tank.
The Penguins have needed a top pick for so long and it is way overdue
The Penguins have not been able to select someone in the top 5 of the first round of the NHL Draft in what feels like decades because the team has always been trying to win.
But when Dubas entered the offseason in 2024, he knew it was time to ink some players to short-term deals and then flip them for picks later at the Trade Deadline because he knew his team was not built to win.
The current roster is not built to win even though they still do have the core three on the roster. They need to be able to secure a top pick and select a really good player to help in the core three's final year or two.
It is way overdue for the Penguins to select somebody so high in the draft and someone that can make an immediate impact.
If the Penguins select in the top 5, they are going to get a good player regardless
It is no secret that if the Penguins tank the rest of the season and secure a top 5 pick, they are going to get a really good player.
Have it be Schaefer, Martone, Hagens, Misa, it does not matter. They are going to get someone that can really help them right away and make an instant impact.
That is the type of player that Dubas has been looking for ever since he did not have a real good first year at the helm of the Penguins.
Some fans are going to hope that the team can somehow keep winning games and get back into the playoffs, and some fans are going to hope they continue to lose games and secure a top player in this year's draft.
You can not win with everyone's opinion and should just enjoy these last few seasons of the core three for what they are and if they get top picks, so be it. If they get a top pick, Penguins fans will get to enjoy them for years to come.