The 8^th installment of our epic 32 trilogy features the one and only, Tobias Cordell.

The Pittsburgh Penguins had a rough season.

• Record: 24-43-11 (7th in Metropolitan) – firmly near the bottom of the standings.
• Powerplay (PP): 15.98% (26th) – very weak, one of the worst man-advantages in the league.
• Penalty Kill (PK): 74.61% (31st) – near dead last, major struggles killing penalties.
• Goals For (GF): 2.77 (24th) – bottom-tier scoring, not enough firepower offensively.
• Goals Against (GA): 3.54 (29th) – one of the worst defensive teams in the league.

Forwards: C-
You have some good building blocks here:

• Quinton Byfield and Cole Perfetti are both very young and talented with major upside.
• Nick Schmaltz, Nico Hischier, and Kyle Palmieri bring decent depth but aren’t enough to carry an offense.
• Yanni Gourde and Jason Zucker are aging and just decent secondary pieces.
• Reilly Smith, Taylor Raddysh provide some scoring depth, but not at a high level.

The problem is you lack true star forwards aside from Hischier (and possibly Perfetti long-term). This team is missing elite scoring punch and heavily reliant on development.

Defense: D+

• Artem Zub, Juuso Valimaki, Kevin Bahl, Nicolas Hague, Brenden Dillon, Nate Schmidt – lots of size and defensive-first players, but very few puck movers or offensive threats.
• Depth is very poor. You have Logan Stanley scratched, and that’s about it for extra options.
• No elite D-man here currently, and no big upside unless Zub/Valimaki make jumps.

Your blueline needs a serious overhaul if you want to be competitive.

Goaltending: B

• Jeremy Swayman is your true gem. Very good young goalie and a top-tier option in the NHL.
• Mackenzie Blackwood, Martin Jones (scratched) are shaky backups at best.
• Aaron Dell is not relevant.
• Thomas Milic and Nico Daws in the system could be long-term depth, but neither is ready yet.

You have one franchise goalie (Swayman), but the depth is non-existent.

Prospects: B
You have a solid (but not elite) group of prospects:

• Dalibor Dvorsky is a major piece, and could develop into a top-line center.
• Quentin Musty is a nice high-upside winger.
• Filip Nordberg, Owen Pickering, Tristan Bertucci – a bunch of D-prospects that could become NHLers, but no guarantee any are top-pair material.
• Domenic DiVincentiis, Niko Huuhtanen, Jordan Frasca – decent depth, but no standout names.

Biggest Issue:

• You have quantity over quality.
• Only Dvorsky looks like a true difference-maker.

Draft Picks: A

• 2025 PIT 1st, 2026 PIT 1st, 2026 DAL 1st – this is gold.
• Multiple early picks give you a huge chance to rebuild fast.
• 2025 and 2026 will be critical drafts for your future.

Overall Organization Grade: B

• Short-term: This team is very bad right now. It’s going to be another tough year or two unless major moves are made.
• Long-term: You have the picks and a couple key prospects (Dvorsky, Musty) to rebuild if you draft and develop well.
• Priority: Add elite young forwards and defensemen, especially at the top of the draft.

1. Trade Veterans for Picks or Prospects

• Guys like Yanni Gourde, Jason Zucker, Reilly Smith, Brenden Dillon, Nate Schmidt have no long-term future on your roster.
• Trade them even if the return is small — 2nd/3rd round picks or young prospects would be a win.
• Focus on acquiring any young player under 23 or additional 2025/2026 picks to stack your rebuild.

Goal: Make your roster younger and create more shots at finding future stars.

2. Build Around Byfield, Perfetti, and Hischier

• These 3 are your franchise forwards.
• Prioritize giving them top-line minutes and responsibility this season. Let them develop through the growing pains.
• Absolutely do not trade Byfield or Perfetti unless you’re getting an elite young player back.

Goal: Give your future core the chance to grow and take over the team.

3. Draft for High-End Skill, Not Safe Players

• You already have a lot of "safe" depth players (Valimaki, Bahl, Hague). You need difference-makers.
• Use your 2025 and 2026 1st rounders to swing for high-upside forwards and dynamic defensemen.
• If you have a chance to draft a pure scorer or #1 defenseman, do it even if they are a risky pick.

Goal: Stop building a team full of second-liners and 4-5 defensemen. You need top-end talent to actually compete later.

Bonus Tip:
If someone in your league really wants Jeremy Swayman badly and offers a massive haul (ex. multiple top young players/picks), consider it.
Goalies are easier to find later once your rebuild is closer to being done. Right now, you need skaters more than a goalie.

Toby you are in 8^th place as you turned this team into a laughing stock into one that has the blocks for a proper franchise in the future. As you are the better man and a great brother, you have given up your team so that Devon could have his team back. I have no doubt you do great things in Minnesota. Your father Richard Eugene Corbell has taught you well.