The Aporia · Penguins run it back maybe one last time the Big Three after a surprise 2nd-place finish

Penguins run it back maybe one last time the Big Three after a surprise 2nd-place finish

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APA MLA Chicago

Graves, W. (2026, September 22). Penguins run it back maybe one last time the Big Three after a surprise 2nd-place finish. Toronto Star. https://www.thestar.com/sports/hockey/penguins-run-it-back-maybe-one-last-time-the-big-three-after-a-surprise-2nd-place-finish/article_4d114575-ec8a-5f75-a199-8ef140d343d0.html

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Quick Summary

The Pittsburgh Penguins are looking to build on their surprising second-place finish from last season, largely sticking with their core of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang. Despite some player departures, they made a few additions including forward Hendrix Lapierre and defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk. The team faces challenges such as aging players and ineffectiveness in overtime games but remains hopeful that the experience and skill of their key figures can propel them to playoff success again this year.

Written by AI on 2026-09-22, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

The Pittsburgh Penguins surprised many by finishing second in their division last season, losing only to Stanley Cup winner Carolina in the playoffs. Despite this success, they made minimal changes over the summer, retaining their core players: Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang, known as "the Big Three." General manager Kyle Dubas chose not to spend heavily on new free agents but instead kept the team's existing strong lineup intact. The Penguins added a few minor reinforcements like forward Hendrix Lapierre and defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk but largely maintained their current roster.

Crosby, now 39 years old, continues to play at an elite level, averaging a point per game for an impressive 21 consecutive seasons. Malkin re-signed with the Penguins on a one-year deal, demonstrating his commitment despite the team's need for consistency and stability heading into another competitive season. The key challenge will be finding reliable goaltending after Tristan Jarry's inconsistent performance; the team relies heavily on newly signed goalies Arturs Silovs and Sergei Murashov to stabilize this crucial position.

Written for “Penguins Hockey Team Future” on 2026-11-03, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

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sentences that state something as happening or true

Uncertain

1 of 12 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")

Leaning

not political

takes no side on a contested political question

Publisher signals

64/100

Toronto Star's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.

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Who wrote this

Will Graves

17 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction

🔮 It was an exciting finish to a game that often felt like a slog in the brilliant fall sunshine, with one of the biggest pops from the crowd coming in the fourth quarter when it was encouraged to support baseball’s Cleveland Guardians, who were set to host Tampa Bay in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series about a mile south.

2026-10-18 · assertive framing · Deshaun Watson leads drive for winning field goal and Browns rally for 13-10 victory over Ravens

🔮 Graham’s preference would have been to stay in the box.

2026-10-12 · assertive framing · Mike McCarthy’s sideline call for Patrick Graham shows the 'pliable' nature of the Steelers staff

🔮 PITTSBURGH (AP) — Mike McCarthy spent the weekend after Pittsburgh’s uneven performance in a Thursday night loss to Cleveland poring over tape to find areas where the Steelers could improve.

2026-10-08 · assertive framing · McCarthy is staying the course as uneven Steelers try to steady themselves vs. the improving Colts

🔮 In the frantic aftermath, the longest-tenured coach in Pitt history encouraged AP Top 25 voters to “wake your (butts) up,” just as Narduzzi promised ACC commissioner Jim Phillips he would after the Panthers improved to 5-0.

2026-10-05 · assertive framing · The ACC's quest for respect in football is eternal. The fight is starting early in 2026

🔮 The four-time NFL MVP urged anyone who would listen to avoid being lured onto the emotional roller coaster that often can be a trap during a 17-game season.

2026-09-28 · assertive framing · Mike McCarthy expected bumps early in his first year with Steelers. They might be smoothing out

🔮 Cincinnati later gifted the Steelers a field goal when punt returner Ke’Shawn Williams let the ball smack off his facemask.

2026-09-28 · assertive framing · Bengals' revamped defense regresses against Steelers as Cincinnati falls short of 3-0 start

🔮 Yes, there were days — particularly during a two-month stretch from mid-May to mid-July — in which the towering 24-year-old went winless.

2026-09-25 · assertive framing · Paul Skenes set an impossible bar. The Pirates ace is undaunted after not meeting it in 2026

🔮 Jones, who returned from Tommy John surgery in late May, tied a season high with nine strikeouts in seven innings and improved to 3-0 with a 1.13 ERA in four starts in September.

2026-09-23 · assertive framing · Jones takes perfect game into the 6th, Pirates top Cardinals 2-0 for 5th straight win

🔮 Any significant dropoff by one of their high-priced stars could put them in a tight spot as they try to prove last year’s success was not a last stand for Crosby and company.

2026-09-22 · assertive framing · Penguins run it back maybe one last time the Big Three after a surprise 2nd-place finish

🔮 The four-time MVP was talking about his reaction to one specific play, though it might as well double for where the Steelers (1-1) find themselves through the first two weeks of Rodgers’ final season, one he might struggle to make through intact if the protection in front of him doesn’t improve quickly.

2026-09-22 · assertive framing · Steelers find themselves at an early season crossroads after a shaky performance in New England

Also by Will Graves

The Browns hoped to send a message in Pittsburgh. Instead, it looked like more of the same

2026-11-02 · Toronto Star

Deshaun Watson leads drive for winning field goal and Browns rally for 13-10 victory over Ravens

2026-10-18 · Toronto Star

Mike McCarthy’s sideline call for Patrick Graham shows the 'pliable' nature of the Steelers staff

2026-10-12 · Toronto Star

McCarthy is staying the course as uneven Steelers try to steady themselves vs. the improving Colts

2026-10-08 · Toronto Star

Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.

All 17 articles by Will Graves →

Topics

Carolina PITTSBURGH Penguins Philadelphia Pittsburgh Penguins

Subjects

PITTSBURGH GPE · 5× Penguins ORG · 5× Malkin PERSON · 3× Carolina ORG · 2× Crosby PERSON · 2× Philadelphia GPE · 2× Anthony Mantha PERSON · 1× Dan Muse PERSON · 1× Pittsburgh Penguins ORG · 1× Ryan Shea PERSON · 1×

Narrative

He was even better in the playoffs, a needed development for a club that’s been looking for a franchise goaltender — two-time All-Star Tristan Jarry’s inconsisent run in Pittsburgh doesn’t count — since Matt Murray and Marc-Andre Fleury helped backstop the Penguins to consecutive Cups in 2016 and 2017.

framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-22

🔮 Any significant dropoff by one of their high-priced stars could put them in a tight spot as they try to prove last year’s success was not a last stand for Crosby and company.

2026-09-22 · Toronto Star

Penguins run it back maybe one last time the Big Three after a surprise 2nd-place finish · assertive framing

Claims (12 extracted, 1 hedged)

What to expect The Penguins largely stood pat after a somewhat surprising run to a second-place finish in the Metropolitan Division behind Stanley Cup-winning Carolina. asserted

Penguins → expect → Carolina

General manager Kyle Dubas had money to spend in free agency but instead opted to run it back behind the longtime core of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang. asserted

Dubas → have → Crosby

Malkin signed a one-year deal to remain in Pittsburgh, and the hope is there’s enough magic left to help put the Penguins in position to win a playoff series for the first time in nearly a decade. asserted

hope → sign → decade

Crosby remains seemingly ageless. asserted

Crosby → remain → ?

The now 39-year-old center averaged a point a game for the 21st straight season last year and while Sid is no longer a kid, he is an elite playmaker whose legs still seem to have plenty of life left in them. asserted

legs → average → them

Defenseman Erik Karlsson is coming off an impressive bounce-back season (15 goals, 51 assists) and his expertise quarterbacking the power play is a big reason why only two teams — Carolina and Colorado — scored more goals than Pittsburgh last year. asserted

teams → come → Pittsburgh

The Penguins also find themselves in what Karlsson described as a “weird” stage of their rebuild, with a roster dotted with players in their late 30s (or in Malkin’s case, early 40s) and a handful of youngsters like 19-year-old Ben Kindel. asserted

Karlsson → find → Kindel

Any significant dropoff by one of their high-priced stars could put them in a tight spot as they try to prove last year’s success was not a last stand for Crosby and company. uncertain

success → price → Crosby

Players to watch Egor Chinakhov was a revelation after arriving in a December trade with Columbus. asserted

Chinakhov → watch → Columbus

The 25-year-old seemed to mesh flawlessly with fellow Russian Malkin, and the three-year contract he signed over the summer is a vote of confidence that he is a vital part of the team’s future. asserted

he → seem → future

Murashov, just 23, will be given every chance to earn the starting job after a sterling performance in the AHL last season, where he went 24-9-3 with a 2.20 goals-against average and a .919 save percentage. asserted

he → give → average

Murray → need → 2016