Letang done?

by TimStros on Feb 22, 2009 10:10 AM EST Comment 5 comments

Healthy scratched the last 2 games right? We'll see about today but it seems as if he may not be playing anymore unless someone gets injured. Is he possibly injured like earlier in the season when he was "healthy scratched"? Letang seemed to be just getting his feet under him. I may be in the minority but i'd rather see Letang out there than Gill. Too often do I see Gill get beat around the edges, Letang is much better on his skates.

The content expressed in fanposts does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the staff here at Pensburgh.com. FanPosts are opinions expressed by fans of various teams throughout the league but may be more Pittsburgh-centric for obvious reasons.

0 recs | Comment 5 comments

Story-email Email Printer Print

Comments

I think this is "punishment"

for not practicing as hard as the new coach would like. I read somewhere that Bylsma didn’t think Letang practiced hard enough… so we’ll see.

I don’t think Letang is hurt.. I just think he’s drawn the short straw so far and being he’s the youngest D-man, he doesn’t get any royalties.

Yea, here it is from here
“We thought Kris didn’t play particularly well in Long Island,” Bylsma said yesterday of his first game behind the bench, a 3-2 shootout loss Monday against the New York Islanders in which Letang had a plus-minus rating of minus 2.

“I talked to Kris about it. Really, this is about playing the way we need to play and practicing the way we need to practice. You’ve got to bring that every day.”
Letang, a skilled second-year NHL defenseman who has five goals, 19 points this season, acknowledged the conversation with Bylsma but didn’t elaborate.

He wants to see more from Letang in practice.

“Kris is a very, very talented individual,” Bylsma said. "He’s very much on the high end of skill — his skating, his puck-handling. You can go on about how good he is.

“But he needs to continue to work at it and get better every day. That’s a practice thing, and that’s a game thing.”

by Stros Bro on Feb 22, 2009 11:17 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

Gill and Letang are almost complete opposites of one another. Like you said, Letang can take the edge better but unlike Gill you won’t see him bullying anyone out of the crease. Letang can put some decent wristers on net (or in net) and Gill’s more of a dump-in sorta guy.

We all know Letang is capable of more. Maybe Bylsma is trying to get Letang to believe in himself. I don’t think this is the first step in moving Tanger out of town, mainly because I don’t want to accept it (ie. it’s likely a dumb one). Some rumors suggested Letang was going to the Habs last week, but the Penguins literally made a public statement to shoot down those suggestions. So who knows?

Follow the Penguins on SBN @ Pensburgh.com

by FrankD on Feb 22, 2009 11:18 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

I don’t think Letang’s done by any means…As mentioned, he was a -2 in Long Island (on one of the goals a puck went directly between his skates) and he did need to be sat. The Pens have won two straight since then, so even if Letang is a better option than Gill and Eaton (and he is) the team is just playing well right now.

Letang’s far from done, just needs to refocus and commit himself to playing better.

by Hooks Orpik on Feb 22, 2009 11:58 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

Kris Letang

I think this new coach needs his glasses changed, regarding Kris Letang, Kris is a phenominal athelete and he is , face a lot younger than Hal gill, i mean i like Gill, but come on give credit where credit is due, It was alright when Gonchar was out, and Whitney was out that Letang was the man, but now with the old folks back, it’s not fair to Letang to get pushed down becuase the old folks are back, and might i say they both are not playing up to their potential, i think it’s a slap in the face for Letang, he has proved himself over and over again, give him the chance he so deserves!

by VAYscreamer on Feb 23, 2009 9:34 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

Letang vs Gill

Trust me, you’re not in the minority. Letang is a much better defenseman than Gill. I can’t understant Letang being scratched. Letang is Sergei Zubov reincarnated. Smallish frame but strong legs and balance to pack a punch with checks, great skater, soft hands, rather pass than shoot. See the similarities? A big part of the Pens problem this year is personnel decisions and that’s a primary reason for Therrien’s firing. Why is Goligoski in the minors while Gill gets beat like a drum every game and looks like he’s standing still! Why is Letang scratched? Why do we constantly have Malkin and Crosby on the same line? Why do we bring up Caputi and then send him right back down when we have no wingers? Why is Staal still playing center? And most of all, why is it that 65 games into the season we are still experimenting with our lines?

by Bobtimus on Feb 26, 2009 9:37 AM EST reply actions 0 recs