Yeah really.
And if you're referring to Evgeni Malkin as one of the best players in the world then I'm sorry but you clearly don't watch the Pens. Malkin is probably one of the most overrated players in the game right now. He has the composure of a 5 year old and he's notorious for being lazy and careless. Not to mention his goal production this year has been utterly dismal. Atleast for his paycheck that is. And what does them being second in the conference have to do with anything? You even said it yourself that it's a whole new season when the playoffs start. My point exactly. The penguins are lacking discipline, secondary scoring, and tenacity. Those two games against the Flyers prove my point.
Every Pens season has been pretty much the same the last couple of years. Crosby or Malkin lead the league in points, the pens do well in the standings, everybody gets hyped up thinking everything is going just fine into the playoffs and then they completely humiliate themselves with an early exit not by being outplayed by a better team but because of poor coaching, a lack of leadership, a lack of composure, tenacity, a lack of accountability from the coaching staff and it's captain. The skill and talent is there and has been for a long time now but it doesn't matter because the things I mentioned aren't there.