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NHL analyst crowns Pittsburgh Penguins as the biggest NHL free agency failure
TSN Overdrive host Bryan Hayes recently gave his take on the Pittsburgh Penguins, calling them the biggest NHL free agency failure.
Hayes pointed out that the Penguins have struggled in recent years, failing to make the playoffs and displaying a roster that is perceived as old and slow.
He also noted that this season's big move for Pittsburgh was the acquisition of Kevin Hayes from the St. Louis Blues and that changes have not been made to address their shortcomings:
(from 1:10 mark onwards)
"I'm going to say the Pittsburgh Penguins, right? They haven't been good enough the last couple of years. They didn't make the playoffs. They were old and slow. The one move they made this year, the preeminent move anyway, was acquiring Kevin Hayes. He's not young, he's not fast, right? They're committed. We haven't seen Sid sign yet," Hayes said.
And with Sidney Crosby still without a contract extension, and big guns Evgeni Malkin and Erik Karlsson needing to raise their games a notch, Hayes warned that this presents the team's biggest challenge of being able to perform at the top of their game:
"I'm assuming that extension will come at some point, but he still has a year left. Sidney Crosby is still one of the 10 or 12 best players in the league right now. He's coming back, and it's not gotten better. They're coming back with the same goaltending tandem. Their defense doesn't have much depth. They brought in Karlsson last year. They signed a bunch of guys last year, and it didn't work out," Hayes said.
"Effectively, it feels like to me they're just going to let this ride out. They're just hoping Sid can find a way to drag them to the playoffs. Malkin stays healthy and drags them to the playoffs. Erik Karlsson finds another miraculous 100-point season like he had a couple of years ago, and the goalies stay healthy and they stand on their head," he added.
Hayes added that the Penguins' reliance on established players like Crosby to carry them to the playoffs, coupled with stagnant roster changes and coaching decisions, has led to skepticism about their playoff prospects.
Hayes' assessment suggests that the Penguins might not make the playoffs unless something improves drastically in all areas.
Pittsburgh Penguins sign Kevin Hayes in free agency
The biggest move for the Penguins in free agency was when they acquired Kevin Hayes from the St. Louis Blues in June.
The forward was acquired in exchange for a 2025 second-round pick from the Blues in exchange for future considerations.
Kevin Hayes is under contract until the 2025–26 season, and his deal comes with an annual average value of $7.142 million. Additionally, the Philadelphia Flyers retained 50% of his salary from a previous trade.
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