The Penguins dropped their most recent game to the Calgary Flames 2-1 in a game where they really did not play that bad. But the Penguins had to make a lineup change because star forward Bryan Rust did not play due to an injury. So, Rust not playing meant that Kevin Hayes had to re-enter the lineup.
Hayes ended up centering Anthony Mantha and Justin Brazeau on the Penguins third line while original third-line center Tommy Novak was bumped up to the top line with Sidney Crosby and Rickard Rakell. But any time Hayes plays, he always looks so slow and behind everyone else.
So much so, that the record the Penguins have when he plays versus when he does not is astounding. The Penguins just seem to play a completely different game when Hayes is in the lineup and it is a shock to how bad it really is when Hayes has to play.
Craziest stat of the season:
— nhlpens (@nhlpens) January 10, 2026
Penguins record without Kevin Hayes:
15-4-2
Penguins record WITH Kevin Hayes in the lineup:
6-9-7
It's one player but it's 2 complete different teams. Wow.
The fact that the Penguins play so well when Hayes does not play and do not play well really at all when he does play, says a lot about how much he effects the team. When the Penguins originally got him from the St. Louis Blues in a trade, they got a second-round pick to take him.
It was definitely worth the pick since general manager Kyle Dubas should have known that Hayes' play was declining and was only going to get worse. It is evident when he is on the ice that he cannot keep up with everyone around him and brings his line down with him.
When Novak was centering Mantha and Brazeau, they were all noticeable on the ice on a game-to-game basis. But when Hayes centered them yesterday, like none of them were noticeable and that just speaks volumes about how Hayes plays and how he brings his teammates down with him.
The Penguins better hope that Rust is ready to go today on the road against the Bruins because if not, the Penguins might be in for a world of hurt again watching Hayes center the third line. Hayes needs to be either healthy scratched every game when the whole lineup is healthy or placed on waivers, he is that bad.