Pittsburgh Hockey Insider has no direct affiliation to the Pittsburgh Penguins, NHL or NHLPA
Penguins GM Makes Bold Announcement on the Team's Status Headed Into the Offseason
Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas addressed the media today and had a bold take about his club's status heading into the summer after missing the playoffs.
The Pittsburgh Penguins are once again out of the postseason, having failed to qualify since their 7-game loss to the New York Rangers in the 2022 opening round.
General manager Kyle Dubas held his season-ending media availability earlier today, and said that he believes that the team is closer to where they want to be long term compared to last year despite finishing with fewer points.
Maybe we had less points than we had last year, but I feel like we're slightly better positioned as we move ahead because of the younger players here.
We have our own younger players that have come up, performed well, and I'm more optimistic going into next year than I was organizationally. The results are going to be what they're going to be, but I feel we're closer to where we want to get back to now than last year.
We have our own younger players that have come up, performed well, and I'm more optimistic going into next year than I was organizationally. The results are going to be what they're going to be, but I feel we're closer to where we want to get back to now than last year.
Dubas also said that he didn't want just to return to the playoffs for the sake of being there, but to get back into "legitimate" Stanley Cup contention.
It's not trying to find a way just to sneak into the playoffs. It's trying to find a way to arrive back there and then remain back there. We continue to (be) committed to our plan and program to return there as urgently as possible.
While he's shying away from putting an official timeline on the rebuilding process, he reiterated that it's going to take focus and execution to return to where they'd like to be.
When I say as urgently as possible, I try not to put a timeline on it because I don't want to be a perpetual and evergreen conference when we come in and say 'Ah, we're a year or two or so away.' We're pushing. That's what the organization is used to and what the fans want. We just have to stick to a very concise plan and execute our butts off. That's for sure.
| POLL | ||
AVRIL 22 | 138 ANSWERS Penguins GM Makes Bold Announcement on the Team's Status Headed Into the Offseason Is Kyle Dubas the right man to be in charge of the Penguins as GM? | ||
| Yes | 56 | 40.6 % |
| No | 82 | 59.4 % |
| List of polls | ||