Pittsburgh Penguins Refuse to Release Lineup Ahead of Possible Blockbuster Trade

The Pittsburgh Penguins are being very cryptic about their roster tonight as everyone outside of Kris Letang is considered a game-time decision.

Letang is the only player head coach Mike Sullivan would confirm for the game against the San Jose Sharks. However, he was not confirmed to be in the lineup, in fact it is the opposite! According to the coach, he is out with an illness while the entire lineup will not be revealed until game time.

Naturally, Penguins fans were confused and shocked by this decision. It is certainly not a good look for a coach to refuse to name even a single player that will play just hours later.

This has lead to speculation about Sullivan's job security. After all, this move does reek of desperation, especially since they are playing the Sharks, one of the worst teams in the league. They should not need to go to this extreme just to try and get an advantage over them.

Of course, the real reason Sullivan is taking things this way could be completely unrelated to his job security or desperation to win. It very well could be about protecting players who may be traded soon. Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas did recently say that everyone outside of Crosby is on the table in terms of trades. As such, this move could mean that there are several players currently being discussed in trade negotiations. Perhaps even Letang has been in those discussions as we know he is not playing tonight.

The Penguins already made on trade, sending a depth forward to the Washington Capitals earlier this month. It is starting to sound like that deal was just the beginning. The beginning of the end for this era of Penguins hockey and the start of something new. Regardless of what happens, the team will surely be in the news a lot in the coming weeks and months.

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