There's no way I'd ever describe Johnson as "great". He's a physical #5 defenseman who can skate well and is good on special teams, there is nothing great about him.[/QUOTE
Dumo-Letang
Maatta-Schultz
Petterson-Johnson
Riikola-Oleksiak
Unless someone’s traded which I think will happen.
That is what I think the pairings will be also unless someone is traded.
Honestly it is hard to pick who is the worst defenseman out of the top 8. I think all are top 6 NHL defensemen or better. I think the Pens have found the best pairings for now until Schultz gets back.
JJ has been playing solid 2nd pairing defense after his terrible first 19 games. I am fine with his bad start because many very good defenseman took even longer to adjust to the Pens such as Gonchar and Martin. JJ now has played solid 2nd pairing defense and has even had top 3 minutes in 7 of his past 17 games while being a plus 1. JJ is no longer that defenseman that can get you 40 points but he can play a solid 2nd pair minutes and hold his own.
Maatta I don’t even need to defend he is a top 4 defenseman and it is not even close. Has been for 2 Cup teams and while not perfect he is a solid 2nd pairing defenseman.
Oleksiak can definitely play well as a 3rd pairing defenseman but he can have those clunkers. I like his physical attributes with his size, skating, and shot. When he plays within himself he is no doubt a solid defenseman.
I think the Pens have 8 defenseman that are all NHL start worthy and Rhuwedel as a solid number 7 that can play in the top 6 when needed. Defenseman is not the issue, Chemistry has been the problem and finding the right fit for each pairing has been most of the issues. I am fine with a Maatta-Schultz 2nd pairing going into the playoffs. Pettersson-JJ has looked like a fine pairing to me so far. Pens are going to have some choices to make when Schultz gets back. I like all 8 of those defenseman but those seem to be the best pairings I have seen for the Pens out of the 3-8 guys.