The Pittsburgh Penguins’ goaltending crisis started when the general manager made the right decision.
No, not when current GM Kyle Dubas gave Tristan Jarry a five-year, $26.875 million contract in 2023. That was the wrong decision, as Dubas acknowledged when the Penguins waived Jarry on Wednesday.
Credit Dubas for admitting failure with Jarry and moving to correct the error. That was the hallmark of former Penguins GM Jim Rutherford, who made mistakes but tried to fix them instead of indulging ego. (See Tomlin, Mike.)
Speaking of Rutherford, the goaltending problems began when he exposed Marc-Andre Fleury (and not Matt Murray) in the 2017 expansion draft.
It was the right decision.
It just blew up in the Penguins’ face.
Fleury was 32, Murray 23.
Fleury was making $5.75 million, Murray $3.75 million.
Murray was in the blue paint when the Penguins won Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017. (Fleury contributed mightily in the ‘17 playoffs.)
Every GM in hockey would have kept Murray. (If not for the expansion draft, Rutherford would have retained both goalies for another year.)
Rutherford made the correct move.
But sometimes the correct move backfires.
Murray’s game and body fell apart. Fleury got expansion Vegas to the Stanley Cup Final in 2018 and has kept adding to his Hall-of-Fame resume ever since.
Meantime, the Penguins’ netminding is in deep kimchi.
For now, anyway.
The strength of the Penguins’ sparse minor-league system may be goaltending. Joel Blomqvist (who just got called up from the Penguins’ Wilkes-Barre/Scranton farm club) is projected to be a solid NHL goalie. Sergei Murashov, currently in Wheeling, might be a bit better than that. Blomqvist is 23, Murashov 20.
But the Penguins could have Minnesota’s goaltending tandem of Fleury and Filip Gustavsson.
The latter left the Penguins via a rotten swap with Ottawa for Derick Brassard in 2018. Brassard came to Pittsburgh and thought he should be a top-six center. Then as now, the Penguins had Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. Brassard’s thinking went undeterred.
Fleury is 40, Gustavsson 26. The Wild’s goals-against average is 2.64, their save percentage .910.
The Penguins’ goals-against average is 3.39, their save percentage .888.
The Penguins’ goaltending problems are great, and they are many. Not least conceding a goal on the first shot 10 times in 46 games. Jarry allowed a goal within five shots in 17 of his 21 starts.
But Jarry is gone, and not a moment too soon.
More sports
• The Penguins turn to Joel Blomqvist and Alex Nedeljkovic in net
• What to know about Steelers ‘25 season — 29 weeks until the next time they take field
• Tim Benz: If the Steelers go with Justin Fields in 2025, actually treat him like a starter
The Penguins should have gone in a different direction after Jarry blew the 2021 first-round playoff series against the New York Islanders via a boneheaded turnover in the second overtime of Game 5. That was a wasted opportunity, because that was a good Penguins team.
Nobody should have trusted Jarry after that.
Jarry, 29, showed promise at one time. He made two NHL All-Star events and led the league in shutouts just last season.
Jarry has all the tools but no toolbox. The skill set is there, but he appears to have the attention span of a farm animal.
He’s never conquered his primary weakness of sitting too deep in the net. You can tell within five minutes of a game whether Jarry will play good or bad by how he sets up. If he gets to the top of his crease, he’ll be fine. Otherwise…
Jarry made every save but the one he had to. He’d sometimes play brilliantly when the game was already lost. Questioning his heart is stiff but reasonable.
Jarry is in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton now. His contract runs through 2028. The Penguins have to pay that off. If they can find a team dumb enough to take Jarry, the Penguins will doubtless retain some of the financial burden.
That’s OK. Jarry needed to go.
Jarry killed the Penguins. Honestly, Alex Nedeljkovic hasn’t been any better. But at least he battles. He’s accountable. Jarry always had excuses.
Is Blomqvist the answer?
There probably isn’t an answer for this season. These Penguins are not a playoff team. But Blomqvist and Murashov might form a good tandem in the future.
Featured Local Businesses
Jarry’s last game with the Penguins was typical of his play this season:
The Penguins took a 2-1 lead into the third period of Tuesday’s home game vs. Seattle. Jarry allowed two goals in 50 seconds. The Penguins lost 4-2. Jarry had previously allowed a bad goal on Seattle’s second shot. Jarry made 14 saves and allowed three goals.
In short, Jarry stunk.
The Penguins are well rid of him.