The 5 Needed Presents for the Pittsburgh Penguins

Story by

Story by
The 5 Needed Presents for the Pittsburgh Penguins

NHL: New York Islanders at Pittsburgh Penguins — Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Dan Kingerski · Pittsburgh Hockey Now

Thu, Dec 25, 2025 ·

5 min read

About Our Ads

Most of the Pittsburgh Penguins have been good little boys for the last 12 months. They have not delivered cheap shots or publicly complained about the direction of the team despite an obvious conflict between now and then.

The team has been left to make do with what it has since general manager Kyle Dubas arrived. Dubas made the hockey-earth-moving trade to acquire Erik Karlsson on Aug. 6, 2023, but that was the last big acquisition for the group.

It has been loss, attrition, and small gets since then.

Instead, the Penguins' gifts to unwrap have existed in the form of their own existence. The veteran players are still with the Penguins, and that is the gift to them. While the Tampa Bay Lightning half-heartedly tried to re-sign Steven Stamkos before he left for Nashville , the Vancouver Canucks saw the 2027 writing on the wall and traded away Quinn Hughes , and the Boston Bruins decided it was better to deliver their captain Brad Marchand to the rival Florida Panthers , the Penguins' stalwart players have been allowed to remain.

So, a few gifts from Santa this year couldn't hurt.

Unwrapping 5 Penguins Gifts

5. The Looking Glass

Conspiracy theorists will recognize the Looking Glass. In various stories, the Vatican or the CIA has a device accidentally developed but found to see future timelines. Uh, sure, but it would be cool if Santa dropped off one.

The current sideways trajectory, neither pushing upward in the standings nor ready to drop, would be more acceptable if fans (and the organization) knew that a few more of the prospects would develop. Or the team knew they won't.

What will become of Sergei Murashov ? Owen Pickering ? Tristan Broz , Bill Zonnon, Will Horcoff, Harrison Brunicke , and the forgotten Tanner Howe? Statistically, only a couple or a few prospects will actually make an impact in the NHL. Still, Dubas and draft guru Wes Clarke seemed to outsmart everyone with a few homerun picks in the 2025 NHL Draft (see also: Ben Kindel ), as well as Dubas's team pre-Clark making a very good pick by snagging Brunicke 46th overall.

Wouldn't it be nice to know what is on the way?

4. Evgeni Malkin Health

The game's most underrated superstar should go out in a blaze of glory, like he played his career. If this is Evgeni Malkin's last year–I don't think he wants it to be–let him unwrap a cheat code for health for the rest of the season.

With a healthy and galloping Malkin, the Penguins very well might be a playoff team. He elevated Justin Brazeau and Anthony Mantha into an impactful line until his injury. He adds to the power play, and Malkin gives the team a deeper lineup and the badly needed scoring jolt it needs beyond Sidney Crosby 's line.

3. Lower Ticket Prices

It's time for the next generation of hockey fans to be loud and proud, yet ticket prices average $110 to $140, according to Vivid Seats ticket service.

There are absolutely less expensive tickets available. My favorite tickets before this career were the first row seats of the E balcony at the Civic Arena. Still, the cheap tickets can be limited, and too many of the folks buying the expensive seats are the dinner and show crowd, not the teeth-gnashing, heart-pounding diehards who care deeply enough about the final score to yell, explode with cheers after an important penalty kill or even a clear, and appreciate a good old-fashioned grinding shift in the offensive zone.

If Santa can get a few of those fans to come back to the party, he can also put my name on the To:

2. A Few Goals for the Kids

There has nary been a criticism or concern expressed regarding the Kids Line. With Ben Kindel in the middle, Rutger McGroarty on the left, and Ville Koivunen on the right, the line has created scoring chances, played their best games, and had a positive impact on the Penguins' game.

When together, the line has a 63% Corsi, 68% of the shots, a 65% xGF (expected goals-for), 60% of the scoring chances, and 61% of the high-danger chances. Yet, they have been outscored 3-1. All stats according to NaturalStatTrick.com .

However, so many of those chances are stuffed by goalies, missed shots, or their own inexperience showing as they wait just a breath too long to shoot.

If there's a bonus gift in the stockings hung with care, it would be for more game consistency for Koivunen. Who has high points, but can also disappear. If Santa could deliver a little more of Koivunen's best, it wouldn't hurt.

1. A Playoff Run for Sid

The Penguins have come this far. They were supposed to be out of it by now and supposed to be one of the bottom feeders in the league. Yet, if not for their own self-destruction at the most inopportune moments, as if they were a team of 20-year-olds, the Penguins would be solidly in a playoff spot.

The hockey gods and Santa Claus need Crosby in the postseason by next season. He just can't go four years, let alone five, without hanging that ratty jock strap and those almost humorously tattered shoulder pads in his locker stall for playoff hockey. It just wouldn't be right.

So, if Santa can speak to the hockey gods and get a few more wins for Sid to play into May, he and the game sure would appreciate it.