Is that Marc-Andre Fleury’s music? There’s a lot to sift through, but the path for Fleury to return to Pittsburgh just got a lot easier in my opinion if that’s what they want to do. First, let’s talk about the trade itself. The Golden Knights traded the reigning Vezina Trophy winner for nothing. The Chicago Blackhawks are the team hypothetically acquiring him, but it is a little more complicated than that.
Why now?
It gets better the Golden Knights didn’t even tell Fleury, who has been the face of their franchise, that they were moving him
Now THAT is stabbing Fleury in the back, not playing Lehner over him.
What a really terrible move by Vegas to treat him this way. Also, I can’t think of a worse team to send somebody as likeable as Fleury to as the morally bankrupt Chicago Blackhawks. I have criticized Fleury’s on-ice play at various times throughout his career, because let’s be honest, he deserved criticism for large chunks of his career. But as a person? Never. He does not deserve this treatment at all and it doesn’t even account for him winning the best goalie of the year literally last month.
The Penguins want a new starting goalie. Marc-Andre Fleury probably would love to return to Pittsburgh. I think there’s a path here to the point where I predict Marc-Andre Fleury will return to the Penguins.
This has been a weird path, but what is even weirder is I am actually in support of the idea. There aren’t many other great options to be had. Fleury only has one-year left at 7M. I like the idea of the reigning Vezina Trophy winner playing well rather than Tristan Jarry. I’m sure some will call me a hypocrite because of my past criticisms, but situations change and the Penguins don’t have a lot of great options. Being open to a Fleury return doesn’t change past criticisms or the opinion the Penguins made the correct choice to move on from him originally. My support of re-acquiring Fleury has everything to do with his recent sample and the Penguins current situation. I do not want to move forward with Jarry as the starter. There's nothing in his sample that merits gambling on him.
With Fleury potentially hreatening retirement and I think this opens the door for a reunion with the Penguins some have been desperately clamoring for. There’s a path back to Pittsburgh now. It's a real one and it actually makes sense.
How do you make the money work if the Blackhawks don’t want to eat some salary after being rebuffed by Fleury? How does Marcus Pettersson and Tristan Jarry sound?
I don’t know how things will exactly go down, but I just have a gut feeling something will get done to make this happen. The Penguins have been chasing Fleury for the last year or so and Fleury would like nothing better than to return to Pittsburgh. I feel like this is on the Penguins front burner now.
If Fleury does return and things don’t work out on the ice I’m fine with that, too. At this point the Penguins are likely to never be true Cup contenders during this era again. Letting Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, and Marc-Andre Fleury ride into the sunset together is fine by me and might be the best case scenario for a team who’s window has closed.
The Penguins should go save Marc-Andre Fleury because it makes sense both on and off the ice. I think it happens.
Thanks for reading!
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