#pittsburgh-penguins

#pittsburgh-penguins

The start of year 100 felt eerily similar to many dispiriting nights in year 99. The New York Rangers' lethargic effort in a 3-0 season-opening loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday could be chalked up to a number of factors: adjustments to a new coach and new systems, the return of Artemi Panarin and J.T. Miller after lengthy preseason absences, and a general lack of execution.

The 25-year-old defenseman was placed on NHL waivers by the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday after failing to make the rebuilding squad's team out of camp. Alexeyev signed a one-year deal with the Penguins in July after the Capitals declined to extend him a qualifying offer. Per the Penguins, Alexeyev was one of 10 cuts on Saturday, which saw four players assigned to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, five placed on waivers, and another released from their PTO.

We are 48 hours from the start of hockey activity. The buzz has begun, and team previews are rolling in as a few teams are waiting for that big shoe to drop, as the NHL trade market remains clogged, but several teams are absolutely making moves, eventually. For better and worse, we also looked at the Pittsburgh Penguins trade trees under Kyle Dubas, but also looked at the San Jose Sharks' Erik Karlsson tree-which might hurt Penguins fans just a bit.

The Pittsburgh Penguins are not the same team that had the likes of elite stars Jaromir Jagr and Mario Lemieux. They do not have the goaltending of Tom Barrasso or the offensive defenseman like Paul Coffey. They are retooling on the fly in hopes of making the playoffs once again. Last season they hovered around .500 and missed the playoffs for the third straight season. With a revamped roster do those expectations go back to making the playoffs?

Alexeyev expressed happiness about his new opportunity with the Penguins, where he's expected to play more than the eight games he saw last year.

One candidate to watch is Washington Capitals assistant coach Mitch Love, who was impressive during his interview for the Pittsburgh Penguins' vacant head-coaching position.

Kris Letang's season is officially over after undergoing a procedure to close a small hole in his heart, sidelining him from the Penguins' finale against Washington.