Ron Hextall responds to fans demanding he be fired

It was an ugly scene during last night's game at PPG Paints Arena in downtown Pittsburgh, as the host Pittsburgh Penguins were absolutely decimated by the visiting Edmonton Oilers to the tune of a 7-2 defeat. It was just the latest setback for the Penguins, who have experienced a concerning slide in the standings that has now put them in real danger of missing the postseason for the first time in 17 years. 

And as the Oilers goals began to pile up behind both Tristan Jarry and Casey DeSmith, the frustrated fans who hadn't already made the decision to get an early start on the traffic decided to let maligned Penguins general manager Ron Hextall know exactly how they feel: 

You can bet that Hextall certainly heard the disdain from the fans, and he has a message to those who were chanting for his job - it doesn't impact him.

“It doesn’t impact me at all. I understand the fans’ frustrations. We have high expectations as well, and we haven’t met them,” Hextall said afterward. “So I totally get it. When you’re a GM, you know what you’re signing up for. We work in the public eye, and they pay good money to come to the rink, and they certainly have the right to say whatever they choose. So it’s not going to affect anything I do or don’t …. since I was 22 and came into the league, criticism is part of the business, and you have to deal with it.”

“Our intent is to continue to try to make this team better this year and years beyond this year. We want to stay competitive. We made that commitment last summer with our core,” Hextall continued. “Those (core) guys have played well. I guess the hardest part about our team right now is probably the volatility. It’s a tough one, quite frankly, to put a finger on.”

The Penguins will be visiting St. Louis tomorrow to take on the Blues, who are also struggling and were publicly called out by head coach Craig Berube after a loss last night to Vancouver. Game time is set for 3:30 PM EST.