Penguins GM Reiterates Plan Following ‘Fire Sale’ Reports

The plan for the Pittsburgh Penguins has remained consistent since last season.

Pittsburgh Penguins President of Hockey Ops Kyle Dubas addresses the media at UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry, PA. / Michelle Crechiolo | Penguins Team Reporter | PittsburghPenguins.com

No, the Pittsburgh Penguins are not preparing for a fire sale. Kyle Dubas made that abundantly clear in his recurring appearance on the GM Show with Josh Getzoff.

The Penguins President of Hockey Ops went a step further, clearing up any confusion about his plan for the organization.

“Every team in the league knows what we’re trying to achieve," Dubas said.

"As our actions have shown from last March on, we’re trying to bring in younger NHL players, we’re trying to bring in prospects, and we’re trying to bring in draft picks with the goal being to quickly develop those assets into people that can help the core group of the team here win one more time and then set the team up for the long-range future".

Dubas is referencing last season's trade deadline period, where he traded perennial 30-goal scorer Jake Guentzel for a handful of prospects and forward Michael Bunting. Since then, every move has had the same sense of direction.

Young forwards with high draft pedigree, like Cody Glass and Philip Tomasino, were acquired to provide a fresh start with the organization.

Meanwhile, Reilly Smith was traded to the New York Rangers for draft capital. Lars Eller was traded to the Washington Capitals in a similar move.

To this point, that plan is seemingly working. The team has remained in a similar position in the NHL standings as in previous years. But their future is becoming brighter behind them.

The Penguins were recently praised by The Athletic for their prioritizing of the prospects system. That attention and infusion of prospects has translated to the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins becoming one of the top teams in their conference.

The Penguins shot-caller appears adamant to stay the course on the plan he set forth last year, and he is making sure everyone knows it.

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