The Penguins, after 2 years, are officially Kyle Dubas’ team

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There is plenty of uncertainty surrounding the Pittsburgh Penguins these days.

One certainty, though, is the amount of power Kyle Dubas wields. Unlike in the previous two years, the Penguins president and general manager is using his power liberally.

We are nearly two years into Dubas’ reign. While he did execute some flashy and regrettable moves in his first few months on the job — the Erik Karlsson trade, the Reilly Smith trade, the Ryan Graves signing, the Noel Acciari signing and the Tristan Jarry contract extension, to name a few — there was always the sense that he was just getting comfortable. He was trying to fit in. He didn’t want to exert his power too much at first because he was something of an outsider. Yes, he was placed in a very prominent role, but there was a feeling-out process.

It was still Sidney Crosby’s team, and Evgeni Malkin’s team and Kris Letang’s team. It was still Mike Sullivan’s team.

For a while, Dubas wanted to quietly observe from a distance, figuring out a path for the Penguins that made sense. At first, he fell into the trap that buried previous GM Ron Hextall. Dubas tried to help the Penguins compete instantly upon his arrival, hence all of those splashy moves in the summer of 2023. In his heart of hearts, I’m not sure that he truly believed those Penguins had a chance, but it seemed like he wanted to endear himself to Crosby. And to the Penguins. And to Pittsburgh. He didn’t want to be the bad cop. It’s not his personality. So he gave in a little bit. There has long been a seductive quality to these Penguins, a fool’s gold element, because even in the worst of their recent seasons, they go on binges where they tease onlookers into thinking they’re better than they are.

It was understandable that Dubas decided to give in. But it was wrong.

That was the time to rebuild, and Dubas set the movement back by getting aggressive in the short term that summer. Rest assured, he won’t make that mistake again.

The Penguins announced Monday that Sullivan was no longer the Penguins’ coach by mutual agreement. This might technically be correct. I believe, based on recent conversations with Sullivan, that he wanted to remain in Pittsburgh as head coach. He was never going to quit on the Penguins, the organization he credits with saving his career. No way, no how. Sullivan recently looked me in the eye and said he wanted to be in Pittsburgh for many more years, until the Penguins got great again.

Dubas and Sullivan, both men say, always enjoyed a good relationship and hold favorable opinions of each other. Yet, Sullivan is now gone, a giant in Penguins history forever. History, not present.

A day after the shocking news, it’s worth stepping back and acknowledging the guts Dubas has shown. Sullivan has won the Stanley Cup twice. Dubas, despite a very clear eye for young talent and an impressive resume, has won one playoff series. It would be easy to defer to the coach, and, for a while, I think he did.

Dubas is obviously among Fenway Sports Group brass, but that group holds Sullivan in particularly high esteem. He’s not just a head coach who has won the Stanley Cup twice. He’s a Boston guy. He’s one of their own. Fenway executives don’t make their presence felt in Pittsburgh all the time. But you notice them when they’re around Sullivan. A Penguins source once told me that Sullivan is “their Belichick,” meaning Fenway views Sullivan on the same plane as Bill Belichick.

This wasn’t just another coach. He might end up in the Hall of Fame. He’s already got two Stanley Cup rings and, if he adds an Olympic gold medal to his resume, he might well someday have his bust in Toronto.

Then, there is Crosby. And Dubas’ relationship with the captain. And Dubas’ knowledge that Crosby and Sullivan are especially close.

This is heavy subject matter. One segment of Penguins fans is saying: “You’ve got to make Sid happy no matter what. He’s Sid. He’s bigger than the franchise, bigger than the game. You can’t risk ever making him happy or giving him reason to walk away from the Penguins at some point.”

Others see things this way: “With all due respect, Sid isn’t going to be here much longer. It’s about the young guys. You can’t make decisions just based on making Sid happy.”

The truth, as it usually does, lies somewhere in the middle.

Gently nudging Sullivan out the door, which I believe is what happened, was quite a bold move from Dubas. He looked at a coach who is extraordinarily close with Crosby, Malkin and Letang, and told him to move on.

Sullivan wasn’t a problem by any stretch, but he didn’t share Dubas’ vision. The coach wanted to win right this instant, which is fair, because all coaches operate that way.

Dubas decided he needed someone more patient, more on board with the plan. So he made the move.

That took some guts.

You know what else requires a pretty healthy amount of backbone? Looking at a soon-to-be 38-year-old Crosby, who is still playing at a remarkably high level, and telling him he might have to wait for a while, that help might not arrive until he is 40. And telling Crosby that he will spend the remainder of his career away from Sullivan, his favorite coach. That’s not what Crosby wants to hear.

I’m not sure if it’s the right or wrong move. But Dubas is playing the long game. He is being perfectly transparent with anyone who will listen that it’s his way or the highway. He’s going to see his plan through, no matter how long it takes.

You may agree with Dubas, or you may think he’s out to lunch. The choice is yours, and, truthfully, the jury remains out.

He was entirely too passive when he arrived in Pittsburgh. A good general manager does what he wants and does so unapologetically.

Slowly but surely, we’re seeing Dubas become more comfortable flexing his muscles. He traded Jake Guentzel because he felt it was appropriate, even if it angered Crosby and the locker room. He kept Rickard Rakell even as fans had a meltdown because Dubas didn’t trade him. He called out Karlsson at a recent news conference.

This is a hard job, and Dubas needs to trust his ability to navigate the Penguins back to the promised land. It’s what he was hired to do. Dubas is finally starting to build things according to his own vision. It has to be this way.

(Photo courtesy of the Pittsburgh Penguins)

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