There is, to be sure, work to be done by the Penguins this season.
They have yet to clinch a playoff berth officially, and how they fare in the Stanley Cup playoffs if they do make it obviously remains to be seen.
Despite those uncertainties, one thing should be crystal clear in the Penguins' future.
Dan Bylsma should be their head coach next season.
At this point, Bylsma's tenure in Pittsburgh has been an unqualified success. Since he took over from the departed former coach Michel Therrein in mid-February, the team has only lost two games in regulation time.
They are 15-2-3 in that span.
They are scoring nearly three-quarters (.75) more goals per game, and at a pace which would easily lead the league if maintained for an entire season.
They have shaved nearly 1 and a half goals per game off their team goals against average.
Their power play and penalty killing have improved -- notably in the latter's case.
And, just as important as anything else, Bylsma has helped restore both the confidence and chemistry of the players on and off the ice.
Undoubtedly, things had become stale in Pittsburgh under Therrein. Therrein's strict style and defense-first system was wearing on the players. There had been talk for months before Therrein was fired that he may have lost the room.
Whether true or false, it's hard to deny that the players simply weren't responding to his message any longer.
Bylsma, in contrast, brought the perfect attitude to this club.
Earlier this week, one of the players talked about how meaningful it was to see the door to the coach's office propped open after his first day with the team.
That's just an example of what the Penguins needed more of -- and really, it's no surprise given the relative youth of most of their core players.
Bylsma and his staff, including the not-to-be-overlooked impact of new Assistant Coach Tom Fitzgerald, have done such a good job that the only real question mark surrounding them at this point is what they will do when the Penguins hit a rough patch.
Although it's hard to see that happening now, it surely will happen at some point.
Still, that's far from a reason to hold out a verdict on Bylsma's work so far.
His aggressive, skating system has fit the talents and skills of the Penguin players, and he has proven that if they do what they are shown, they'll see results.
And I think that's perhaps the biggest reason why the interim tag should be removed from Bylsma's title.
He's done a fantastic job putting the players in the best position to succeed, which is all you can really ask of a coach.
Coach's coach. Player's play. In the end, the players need to get it done on the ice. And sure, the Penguins' players deserve credit for the team's turnaround, too.
But without Bylsma helping put them in that position, who knows what might have happened.
I, for one, was surprised that Bylsma was called on to succeed Therrein.
Regardless of how well the Baby Penguins were doing, he didn't have a lot of coaching experience, and even though you heard this after he was promoted, I don't recall hearing a lot of talk in NHL circles before Bylsma was brought up that he was a bright, head-coaching prospect.
But he's made a believer out of me.
Regardless of how the remainder of the season plays out, Bylsma has shown that he deserves to man the Penguins' bench next season.
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