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Kyle Dubas' Pittsburgh Penguins deadline buying plan outlined before March 6
Photo credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
Kyle Dubas has the Pittsburgh Penguins eyeing buys at the NHL trade deadline, and the mood flipped fast.
The Olympic break ends with Pittsburgh sitting 29-15-12, and that is not a typo.
Daily Faceoff's read is simple, the Penguins are in position to add instead of cashing out.
Dubas has lived in the «low-risk add» world for months, and it is starting to look intentional.
Josh Getzoff even framed it as the roster «giving him a reason to add,» which is about as loud as a broadcaster can get without breaking news.
The name that matters most is Sidney Crosby, because he is still driving play and points.
Crosby comes out of the break with 27-32-59, and that production keeps the top-six dangerous every night.
Getzoff specifically pointed to another defenseman and another forward as the shopping list.
Kyle Dubas keeps the Pittsburgh Penguins window cracked
Pens fans are excited, but also terrified of one bad swing wrecking what finally feels real.
The smart version of «buying» here is fit, not fireworks, a steady blue line piece who survives heavy minutes and helps the exit.
Dubas already took chances on players like Yegor Chinakhov, and the tone suggests more bets like that, not a roster-shaking blockbuster.
That matters because this group wins when the puck moves cleanly to the top-six, not when they trade five assets for one hero.
It also matters because March 6 is the actual deadline, so the clock is loud now.
The next checkpoint is Wednesday when the league resumes, and Pittsburgh gets a few games to prove this is still worth feeding.
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Sidney Crosby uncertainty deepens as Pittsburgh Penguins avoid firm update
Sidney Crosby uncertainty deepens as Pittsburgh Penguins avoid firm update