A few years ago, the Penguins’ talent pipeline was all but clogged with promising young defensemen.
Olli Maatta. Derrick Pouliot. Simon Despres. Joe Morrow. Scott Harrington. Philip Samuelsson.
It seemed a shame that none of them could play goal, for there was precious little talent in that area of the organizational depth chart.
That all has changed, however. Maatta is a fixture in the NHL and Pouliot still projects as an impact player, but Despres, Morrow, Harrington and Samuelsson have been traded, and there are no other defensive prospects of real note in the Penguins’ system.