PITTSBURGH — It's too early to break up the Penguins' core. It's also too late.
Let me explain.
First, let's be clear: By "core," we mean three players: Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang. And if we're asking if time's up — which people have been asking for a few years — we're really asking this: Is it time to trade Letang and/or Malkin?
Crosby isn't going anywhere. He is signed through 2024-25. He is a franchise icon. He remains one of the best players in the league.
This is about the other two, and here's the bottom line: It's no longer possible to make any kind of franchise-altering move with Malkin or Letang, in terms of potential return. They've hit their mid-30s, each with one year left on his deal.
Once upon a time, either man would have drawn a significant return. Especially a younger Malkin. Not now. Malkin will be 36 when his next contract kicks in. Letang will turn 36 that season (2022-23).
I have wondered at various times, in previous years, if it was time to move on from either or both. No more.
It's too late.
But that's not necessarily a bad thing, because Malkin and Letang can still play. Which is why I believed general manager Ron Hextall on Wednesday when he said "we see a future with this core."
Some people only see a past. They worry the Penguins will become the riches-to-rags Los Angeles Kings and Chicago Blackhawks of recent vintage, if they haven't already.
I still see an open window, and from the sounds of it, so does Penguins management. This team has several quality younger pieces surrounding the core. It just won a rugged division. It lost a playoff series because the goaltending crumbled (and goaltending is a major issue).
This question must be answered first in evaluating Malkin and Letang: Will they be good players into their late 30s?
It's not about what they've done. The Penguins aren't handing out lifetime achievement awards here, or at least shouldn't be. They must ask themselves if Malkin and Letang can still play at a relatively high level for, say, three more years.
The evidence — viewed from this vantage point — suggests they can.
First, Letang. This is a supremely conditioned athlete coming off an excellent season. If anything, his game has matured. His skills remain intact. His body shows little sign of erosion, which is remarkable considering all he's been through.
Malkin is more problematic because of his recent injury history, plus the fact that he came into camp in less than ideal condition and had a mostly miserable season.
But that's only part of the story. The other part is that as recently as last season, Malkin finished seventh in the NHL in points per game, putting up 74 in 55 games. And once he rounded into shape this season, he was a monster in March before he sustained an unlucky knee injury.
Then, playing on one leg in the playoffs, he put up five points in four games — two fewer points than the entire first line combined in six games — and displayed a still-enormous will to win (witness the seismic hit on the wildebeest that is Matt Martin; hey, somebody on this team had to stand up to the guy).
I still believe you can win with Malkin and Letang, but that gets us to the second significant question: At what price?
It's one thing to say "we want to finish our careers together." It's quite another to agree to a major discount to make it happen, and a major discount is the only way it should.
I don't think asking either player to take a steep discount in his late 30s should be considered insulting. It's reality. If either believes he can hit the open market at age 36 and strike it rich, god bless 'em.
Malkin makes a team-high $9.5 million per year. He has long been the highest-paid player on a team with Crosby. Letang has made $58 million, a number that matches his jersey number. He'll make another $7.5 million next season.
If I'm the Penguins' braintrust, I approach each with an offer this offseason: two-year extensions at a discount of a few million with Letang, several million with Malkin.
If that is met with heavy resistance, I take one more run with the core, see how it plays out, let Letang and Malkin test the market and see if they change their minds about the price.
I would also reserve the right to deal them at next year's deadline — even for minimal return — if the season goes sideways, realizing Malkin has a full no-movement clause and Letang a partial one.
This is delicate. It's difficult. It's getting late.
But it's still too early to shut the window.
