It's time for a changing of the guard at the top of the Pittsburgh Penguins blue line.
The Pittsburgh Penguins defense has been decimated by injuries over the past five weeks. It appears to be trending in the right direction. With Jeff Petry and Marcus Pettersson returning to the lineup and Kris Letang not far behind, the Penguins could potentially have a fully healthy defense core to start the post All-Star break schedule.
Fortunately, the Penguins won't have to wait to figure out who should be at the top of that lineup. For many years the top defense pairing was Brian Dumoulin and Kris Letang, and there wasn't much debate.
However, it was evident from the start of the season that Dumoulin can't handle that type of role any longer. Hence his demotion to the bottom pairing with Jan Rutta one month into the season.
Letang, currently day-to-day with a lower-body injury, remains the Penguins most talented defenseman. His ability to create offense is unmatched by any other blue liner on the Penguins roster.
Even though Letang remains the leader of the defense and one of the top defensemen in the league, he is better suited on the second pairing.
Who is the best duo to become the Penguins top pairing? And how should the remainder of the defensive lineup look?
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