No, really, what’s wrong with Erik Karlsson?
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42 Comments
Anybody that thought square peg Karlsson was going to work in Mike Sullivan's round hole non-system is nuts.
😶
Nope, none of this was on Ned okay, then..
This comment is for those that are suggesting Sullivan's 'bad coaching' is to blame for Karlsson……have you not watched hockey for the last 17 years? Erik Karlsson has in his whole career been bad defensively, has always had average hockey players look great….just go and watch games of him in Ottawa and worse in San Jose…this has nothing to do with Sullivan…the guy is trying his best to make something of Karlsson….oh and EVERY TEAM KARLSSON HAS BEEN ON HAS SUCKED…with the exception of surprise run to conference finals with Ottawa he has never won….I think you have cognitive bias if you see it as Sullivan issue and not the fact that the player is playing the way the player has always have, except maybe worse because he is older.
Listen to Karlsson’s VOICE and not his words. He was VERY upset last night. Also, he’s a Swede. We’re used to North American players all but self-immolating in front of the media when they so much as stumble on a line change. 65’s always going to be more positive in his message—if not in his delivery. EDIT: Having seen his demeanor in the video of this… Yeah, VERY upset.
You can't have two Letangs on the team. You actually need some defensively sound defenseman.
Truth is , Jarry was ALWYS individually blamed for these loses here. Funny to see people scrambling for a new scape goat to protect Dubas.
J1Q rant from Josh is spot on! Very poor play, especially on defense.
Worst player we have ever got
Graves went from being the worst to the best..defense player out thier..Patterson needs to go on the ice on his belly..cause he cant stand up.trade Patterson cause he is terrible
Sully needs to put graves back with letang
There is something wrong with him, Injury, mental slump, no one knows. He looks slow out there though and we all know he’s not a slow player. Not a lot of options besides letting him get through it
Sooo, they can't sit him down??? He's UNTOUCHABLE…it seems CLEAR to me…talking to him..ISNT WORKING…sit him down..time for BAD COP
Being a goalie in Pittsburgh right now is its own kind of hell. This team is a catastrophe!
He looked absolutely terrible last night. Send Ek to hangout with Jarry in WBS
I'm a EK fan, but this version of EK is horrible!!! He blew it last night, in Vancouver, and just hasn't played well all year. Why is Sully NOT playing Petterson with him after what they showed late last year and at the World's?!?!?!
Carter’s replacement.
Obtaining veteran players who have been good and them having them come to Pittsburgh and then just suck is a Penguins tradition. I think of Brassard and Iginla as recent examples. Sure, there have been guys like Gary Robert’s, but he was a character guy and not expected to be a highly skilled player. I’m sure people will have examples to prove me wrong, but you really need to go back to the era of Barrasso, Coffey, and Francis to find these big names that we traded for who continued to perform well.
There's plenty of blame to go around. I realize these guys are professional, but I wonder if they are just complacent of being on the ice, that losing is OK. All of them need to be better, and I don't think they know how. Maybe the team needs someone to rally around. Max Talbot left everything on the ice. WWGRD? Those two weren't superstars, but they made the team better.
If you remember last season toward the end when they needed points the most, EK helped other teams win then too. It's not just this year.
Just remember … Karlsson gets paid $11M guaranteed this year regardless of how he plays or whether or not the Pittsburgh Penguins win or lose. His salary drops to $9M next season, then $7.5M the final year of the worst contract in hockey. (The cap hit is $11.5 … $10M for the Pens … throughout the contract.)
Just a question … why wouldn't Sid or Geno pull Karlsson aside and let him know that this isn't acceptable? I get that there isn't much a coach can do with an $11.5M player who won't be scratched and can't be waived and gets paid regardless. But can't the other highly paid players who are working hard out there step in here?
Karlsson has not played one good defensive game since being here. He’s had a few good plays on offensive but cannot be trusted on the blue line. We will not win games with him playing defense.
one win against an over 500 team. They might win two of the next five. Something's gotta give…the team just seems cursed right now
He came with so much promise. The belief was he'd provide that outlet pass that would get the forwards flying offensively, something the other defenseman couldn't do. But he hasn't lived up to the hype, and I recall only one game he took over and looked like superman and that was early on last season. Right now his offense is being smoked by his defensive breakdowns resulting in goals, there is no upside to having him out there. At this stage, trade him by retaining half his salary, at least free up 5 million to acquire two journeymen that can play the defensive zone. Having Karlsson on the ice when you got Letang already creates such a weak defensive team, and these two are supposed to be your two best, move on from him, he's playing at half speed and seems uninterested. Let him collect his check somewhere else.
Has a coach ever healthy scratched an entire defense?
Time to bench him!
Who here is surprised that EK doesnt play much D? The problem w. the Pens is they have too many chefs and not enough cooks. That's on Dubus..He's in charge of the composition of the team, and he's done some team destroying things like pay EK a fortune they are stuck with and not even form a half decent D.
I'm a fan but don't know everything about hockey, if Karlsson is so bad at defense why is he a defenseman and not a wing? With the talent he has on the offensive side I don't understand why he isn't playing wing
The defense held the Canes to 18 shots. Maybe the goalie shares some blame here too. I guess we're only allowed to blame Jarry or Sullivan or the defense. Everyone else is untouchable.
14 years in. 9 years EK team finished bottom of division. 5 playoff years. Last season in SJ- 101 points but a minus 26.
It's hard to stay positive as a fan, when things are falling apart. J1Q Great question and response. Thank you DK, I'm right here with you.
BENCH HIM
The consequences of firing GMJR has been catastrophic for this team. Also Karlsson sycophants need to drop the rose colored glasses, he has always been a detriment to any team unwilling to base their entire playstyle around him.
Hey DK! Thanks for using my “rant” as the question. You’re right about Graves I was taking my frustration with that game out on him unfairly. I fully intend to come by your office and say what’s up! My better half would like to sarcastically thank you as well. She “loves” that I start every day with all three shows, but she’d be miserable if I didn’t have these shows to “vent” my frustrations with my fandom. 😂 so thank you! I hope we meet up!
Last one to arrive for practice, first one out the door.
This is going to be a LONG season. The team is old slow not physical and sub par on defense. The goalie can only cover the team's backside for so long.
Karlsson needs a Mark Methot type partner. And yes, he could work on not be so so so extremely bad on D. Just kinda horrible would be a nice
The whole team stinks. It’s easy Beaton trash teams like Anaheim and Montreal. Teams who make any goalie look like a vezina winners. A little different playing cup contenders
He was never a great defensive defenseman.
DK, wanted to chime in somewhere after tonight’s game against the Craps. What a win, love the fight, felt like this was a carry over from the Carolina game. They pushed through, retained the lead and won one after losing a 2-0 lead after two. Yes, still some work, but just felt like they’ve made some strides. Let’s hope it continues Monday and we can string some wins. Let’s go! 🐧
EK thinks his play is “not bad.” Come on Karlsson, take some accountability. Your play has been subpar this season. We don’t accept this BS in Pittsburgh. Maybe in SJ or Ottawa they do, but here we have a history of winning. This is completely unacceptable. Come on Sully, get after this guy! His play has been absolute dogsh*t!!