The playoffs are not guaranteed for the Pittsburgh Penguins thanks to a couple certain flaws.

With training camps just weeks away, now is the time to start looking at teams and predicting where they will land in the standings; for the Pittsburgh Penguins, it could be a struggle.

In his first season manning the Penguins’ front office, it is clear that Kyle Dubas made significant improvements to the roster.

Dubas added a ton of depth to the bottom six forward group, bolstered the defense by adding Erik Karlsson, and gave head coach quite a few options to work with during camp and preseason.

While Sullivan will craft the best lineup possible with the toys he’s been given, there may be a couple of fatal flaws in Dubas’ plan.

According to Adam Proteau, the decision to stick with starting goalie Tristan Jarry could turn out to be a disaster and there is no turning back the clock on the agin core.

Jarry was signed to a five-year contract on the opening day of free agency, and it is being looked at as a huge gamble by the Penguins.

The bet on Jarry isn’t so much his skill as it is his health; if Jarry can’t stay healthy and between the pipes at a consistent basis, the Penguins could be in huge trouble.

Alex Nedeljkovic was brought in as the new backup but his rebound to rookie season form isn’t certain.

As for the Penguins and their core of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang, Proteau acknowledges that you can’t count them out, but they aren’t getting any younger.

The Penguins were the oldest team in the NHL during the 2022-23 season and it showed down the stretch of the season.

Crosby, Malkin, and Letang were putting up decent fights, but it just wasn’t enough to make the postseason.

The Penguins are heading into this new season again as the oldest team in the NHL and will have to try and play well below their age.

Proteau projects the Penguins to finish fourth in the Metropolitan Division behind the New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils, and Carolina Hurricanes.

Finishing fourth could land the Penguins back in the postseason, but it's not a guarantee like the top three spots.

The Penguins will have to hope Jarry can remain healthy and up to speed and bank of the core staying as youthful as possible.

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