Byslma Should be on the Hot Seat

Yeah the Pittsburgh Penguins played awful against the Philadelphia Flyers and thus got beat in six games.  To say the least, the Pens got their ass whooped. A lot of criticism was and has been thrown around. Pens fans have suggested trading Evgeni Malkin(dumb), Sidney Crosby(retarded), Marc-Andre Fleury(idiotic), and of course Jordan Staal, which I wouldn't be a fan of but it is the most logical.


That being said, why not mention head coach Dan Bylsma? Why is he not on the hot seat as much as he should be? We all threw Paul Martin under the bus, but it's not like Martin has always been this bad. Martin was really good in New Jersey and was even supposed to have a big role with the US Olympic team in 2010.

Did Martin just start sucking? Did he forget how to play hockey? Or was a mixture of Bylsma not able to adjust to players?

I mean Martin has sucked as a Penguin, but Byslma hasn't helped much. Bylsma is mediocre at getting the proper match-ups for his players, and sometimes he asks players to do things they aren't used to.Too many times Martin was out against the opposing team's top line. Too many times Martin was on the PK. Too many times Martin was asked to play a stay at home defensive role.

That's not Martin's game. In the same view Bylsma has asked defensive defenseman Deryk Engelland to do the exact opposite. Engelland has been given way too much freedom on the ice to join the rush and thus taking away from Engelland's real strengths. No reason Engelland should be carrying the puck into the zone for a rush. Engelland should be staying at home, playing good d, and F*cking people up.

Bylsma also struggled to get Evgeni Malkin away from Sean Couturier in the first round loss to the Flyers. Malkin didn't play well but Couturier was all over him, and even at home Bylsma couldn't get Malkin away from that line.

The power play has sucked for way too long. Even with Sidney Crosby and Malkin both back in the lineup the power play has not been where it should be. Pens should have a top 5 PP every season with the talent they have. Either Bylsma needs to bring in a PP specialist, or the Pens need to find a coach that will or can fix it.

Not trying to pick on Bylsma. This is a rant of course but at the end of the day, instead of trading away All Star players, Selke finalists, etc, maybe the Pens would be better off making one big change instead of a bunch of changes.

Hockey coaches get fired all of the time. I'm not a yinzer who thinks Bylsma should be fired right now, but after losing in the first round two years in a row, Bylsma should certainly be on the hot seat.

The Pens should be contending for Stanley Cups with all of this talent. Instead they have one playoff series win in three straight playoff appearances which is unacceptable with this talent.

Last year Bylsma got a pass for the Pens losing in the first round because of no Crosby and no Malkin. This year the Pens had both and the team was healthy. What if the same thing happens again next year? Is Bylsma safe because he won a cup 3 years ago? What if the Pens get off to a slow start next year? I have a feeling that Ray Shero and the Pens aren't dead set against making a change no matter how likable Bylmsa is.

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