Penguins Need Core To Stay Healthy Again

The Pittsburgh Penguins won't make it far if their core group of veterans can't remain healthy in 2023-24.

Training camps are getting closer, arenas across the United States and Canada are getting sheets of ice prepared for the 2023-24 season, and the Pittsburgh Penguins are about to embark on one of the most important years in franchise history.

After a busy offseason, the Penguins are looking to show the rest of the NHL that missing the postseason was just a fluke and they are still a team to be feared.

Ever since Fenway Sports Group hired Kyle Dubas as president of hockey operations, he’s been hard at work revamping and adding to the roster in hopes of creating a real contender for the Stanley Cup.

Adding Erik Karlsson on the blue line will be huge, Ryan Graves will bring a steadiness the Penguins didn’t see much last year, and Reilly Smith should be an improvement over Jason Zucker.

Beyond the additions to the Penguins’ lineup, however, they are going to need a healthy season from the three biggest names.

Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang will all need to string together clean bills of health in 2023-24, or the Penguins could face a rocky road.

Letang obviously missed a large amount of time due to his health and personal reasons, but when he was at 100% and on the ice, he was far and away the Penguins best defenseman.

In terms of scoring, the addition of Karlsson makes Letang a solid second option; but as an all-around defensive talent, Letang might have the upper-hand.

As for Crosby and Malkin, they may be getting older, but they remained healthy for all of 2022-23 and had impressive seasons.

For the first time in their careers Crosby and Malkin shared the ice for all 82 games in a season and they were far and away the Penguins’ best players.

If they can stay healthy and continue their trend of solid performances, then their age won’t even be noticed.

It’s not easy to go two straight seasons without injury or illness, but the Penguins will need their core of Crosby, Malkin, and Letang to remain as healthy as possible in 2023-24 so they can lead the team in more ways than one.

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