The Penguins Need To Find Their Next Superstar

It’s been decades since the Pittsburgh Penguins’ fanbase wondered who their next superstar would be, as they’ve been spoiled for 40 years by the likes of Mario Lemieux, Jaromir Jagr, Ron Francis, Sidney Crosby, and Evgeni Malkin. This question, though, is on the minds of many Penguins fans and is clearly something Kyle Dubas sees as a problem, especially given that he is eyeing the future and has rebuilt the Penguins’ prospect pool into a respectable one in just two short years. What he lacks, though, is the hardest thing to acquire, and that is the next great superstar to pull on a Penguins jersey. At the moment, there is no clear path for the Penguins to get that player who can define an era of Pittsburgh hockey.

Every successful run of Penguins hockey has been built around the aforementioned superstars. Lemieux saved the Penguins (more than once), Jagr and Francis followed, and so did the titles. Then Crosby and Malkin ushered in a new era of championship hockey, and Pittsburgh’s dominance continued. But they haven’t been a true Cup contender in nearly a decade, and history suggests they need their next star sooner rather than later. That was supposed to happen in this year’s draft with a bottom-five finish in the standings, but the Penguins surprisingly made the playoffs, which sent them back in the draft to pick 22nd.

Stockpiling young talent has been a recent phenomenon for the Penguins, but the time for stockpiling is over, and at some point Dubas has to turn quantity into quality. That’s why so many media outlets and fans have been clamouring for Dubas to make a big splash and acquire Dallas Stars forward Jason Robertson. Is Robertson the guy, though? He certainly fits the part as a mid-20s star who can do it all offensively. But just how much will the Penguins be willing to give up, and is he the guy to build around? Only time will tell, but he won’t come cheap, and he will get paid if the Penguins trade for him. As good as Robertson is, he doesn’t feel like the right superstar for the Penguins.

Dubas has done well via trade, bringing in young talent, but the likeliest path to nabbing a future NHL superstar is through the draft. Unless the Penguins finish lower in the standings and get some lottery luck, it might not even be possible. But not all superstars arrive through the draft, and plenty have been traded for. Despite the heater Dubas was on over the past year, it doesn’t feel as though he’s found his superstar yet.

The Penguins have some good pieces, such as Harrison Brunicke, Benjamin Kindel, Rutger McGroarty and Tanner Howe, but none look like superstars unless they dramatically exceed expectations. Even recently acquired and extended Egor Chinakhov looks like a gamer, but it’s hard to believe he is going to morph into a superstar, even though he has an incredible shot.

There is one option for the Penguins that has long been a third rail in NHL circles, and that is the offer sheet. The Penguins are well positioned to offer sheet just about any NHL player in the next year or two, but it would come at an exorbitant cost, and there is a ton of risk involved. But given what Dubas has built and how well he has drafted so far, would giving up four first-round picks to acquire Connor Bedard be worth it? It sure seems that way if there is no other option. Given that the team still employs Crosby and company, they don’t feel like a lottery team anytime soon, which means Dubas is limited in his options to get his next star. It’s also possible that if the Penguins successfully gave up their next four first-round picks but got a superstar in return, those picks could all be late first-round picks.

Another truth about the Penguins is that they haven’t exactly drafted well in the first round when they have used their own pick in the past 10 years. Sure, their 2025 first-round pick was great, and Kindel looks like he should be a terrific NHLer for a long time, but this is a team that also took Owen Pickering, Samuel Poulin and Brayden Yager with their three previous first-round picks, and those players aren’t exactly knocking down the door to get into the NHL. Mid- to late-first-round picks, like most draft picks, are lottery tickets; sure, they have better odds of winning than later picks, but there are no guarantees they turn into full-fledged pro players, while grabbing a player like Bedard or an Adam Fantilli guarantees you get an NHL star right away. It could be a worthwhile gamble for Pittsburgh.

Rebuilding a roster is not easy; retooling is even harder. While Dubas’ work has been admirable, his most difficult task has yet to be completed, and it may require a move so risky that it could set the entire Penguins’ retool back 5- 10 years. It is likely the move that will define Dubas’ tenure in Pittsburgh more than any of the good trades or the good drafting. Pittsburgh has long been an NHL franchise built on drafting generational talent, but this next era of Penguins hockey could be defined by a superstar that was acquired in a different manner, that is if they continue to field a competitive team during the last years of Crosby and Malkin’s NHL careers.