In a season full of surprises, including the Pittsburgh Penguins pulling themselves out of what appeared to be a death spiral through the month of December, the team has still managed to up the ante in the realm of the unexpected.
Second place? Just a bit shocking.
Tristan Jarry stopping pucks with aplomb, which facilitated the trade to Edmonton? Depending on the person, both actions ranged from pleasant surprise to wide-eyed shock.
But they’re not the important surprises that will shape this Penguins season that began with simplicity and low expectations, but has become a bastion of optimism that something special might arise from the general manager Kyle Dubas’s overhaul.
Perhaps Dubas’s hitting 21 on just about every card flip from June 1 to now should also make the list, though not every surprise this season is a good one. After all, even this Penguins season isn’t a Disney movie with soaring music and inspirational quotes.
At least, not yet.
Top 5 Penguins Surprises
5. Goaltending
The Penguins began the season with a pair of goalies who were, at least for a time, banished to the AHL last season. Tristan Jarry and Arturs Silovs were simply placeholders for the maturing Sergei Musharov. Goaltending was unquestionably a weakspot.
Except that goaltending was not a shortcoming. Until the 10-game winless streak in December, the Penguins’ goaltenders were among the league leaders in save percentage. The stats matched the eye tests for Jarry and Silovs, though Silovs had begun to regress a little bit.
The Penguins are currently 15th in save percentage, but eighth since the holiday break with a competitive .905 save percentage. Stuart Skinner, who was acquired in the Jarry trade with the Edmonton Oilers on Dec. 12, has largely been one of the best goalies in the NHL since the holiday break, but a few games have dropped his save percentage to .904.
After a lot of public blame in Edmonton, Skinner becoming something of a Pittsburgh folk hero as chants of “Stuuuu!” rain from the balconies even in visiting barns is a big surprise.
4. Evgeni Malkin
A 38-year-old Malkin fought through a difficult 2024-25 season with injuries and only 50 points in 68 games. It was the second consecutive season in which Malkin had well below a point per game, and the end was nigh.
But the now 39-year-old Malkin attacked this season with a goal.
“I want to show everybody I can play one more year,” Malkin told a couple of us in Edmonton.
And he has. Whether or not Malkin gets a new contract is an unresolved issue, but Malkin is just six points away from surpassing last season’s point total. He has also demonstrated a revitalized skating stride that is more reminiscent of his younger self.
A renewed Malkin has been a defining storyline.
3. Parker Wotherspoon, Ryan Shea
Sure, sign the Boston Bruins’ seventh defenseman, who was allowed to walk away via free agency, to a bargain contract and put him on the second pairing with the difficult Erik Karlsson. Double down, put Ryan Shea, who has been the Penguins’ seventh defenseman and playing frequently on his offside (right), on the top pairing with Kris Letang.
The Penguins’ recipe for disaster has instead become a perfect concoction. Wotherspoon and Shea have provided physical, mobile, and responsible defense. Wotherspoon has mostly remained with Karlsson, while Shea has shuffled around as needed.
Shea has recently had some struggles after coach Dan Muse flipped him to the right side out of necessity, but that doesn’t overwrite his stellar play this season.
Both have submitted career years and staked a claim to a continuing NHL career.
2. Dan Muse
Who?!
All of the news stories, prospective candidates, and projections, Dan Muse rarely appeared on the list of possibilities and certainly not among the favorites.
Yet, after 56 games in Muse’s inaugural season, the Penguins have clearly won a few games as a result of their coach’s ability to devise specific plans, including a win over Carolina, and an extreme departure from some past heaviness and pervasive frustrations.
To a man, the Penguins speak well of Muse, his staff, and the support that accompanies their opportunity to succeed. He’s not only a development coach, but he’s shown he’s able to connect with the current crop of veterans and deliver cutting Xs and Os.
I will speak well of the person and how he treats people, too.
1. Erik Karlsson
Putting a lot of surprises together, and it builds the base for Karlsson’s resurgent season. Theories that he didn’t feel he was being used well, or had some disagreements with former coach Mike Sullivan, have been validated, including by Karlsson, though not with specifics.
Karlsson has been a rising tide for the entire Penguins blue line. His ability to evade forecheckers and create forward momentum in the offensive attack has allowed other defensemen to play more freely. His offensive push has lifted the team in the offensive zone, and his work on the power play has been a factor in the team’s success. The power play has ranked in the top four for most of the season (currently 25.9%).
He’s been the player Dubas hoped to acquire on Aug. 6, 2023. After a couple of rough years, it was easy to think Karlsson was the frustrating player who didn’t always show enough effort in the defensive zone and who could be careless with the puck. This season has shone the light back on Karlsson’s special talents, which have earned him a trio of Norris Trophies.
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