The Penguins are going to slowly rebuild.

Like president of hockey ops/GM Kyle Dubas said, the Penguins won’t “strip it down to the studs,” not least because that’s impossible given the number of no-movement clauses and untradable contracts Dubas must cope with.

So, for the immediate future, the only hope is that the Penguins overachieve. It’s possible. Lesser teams do it all the time.

But the Penguins won’t.

Their roster isn’t wired that way.

They don’t have gritty guys whose method can be contagious. Not beyond Michael Bunting. One isn’t enough.

Sidney Crosby and Kris Letang dig deep and go the extra mile. But not many Penguins do.

Consider goaltender Tristan Jarry.

Jarry is 29. He lost the starting job to Alex Nedeljkovic late last season, but it didn’t raise his pulse rate. Pin me, pay me. Jarry didn’t react with anger or resolve, a sad fact noted by coaching and management.

Jarry has mostly underachieved. He’s inconsistent. Whatever it is Jarry never had, he still hasn’t got. He’s had more bad moments than good. He’s never won a playoff series. He got his big payday last offseason, then wilted more.

Jarry hasn’t lived up to his contract or his talent.

Will that make him think, “Gee, I need to get my head out of my backside and fix it”?

Nope. No chance. Jarry isn’t wired like that.

Consider center Evgeni Malkin.

Malkin, 37, is still pretty good. He had 67 points in 82 games.

But, to repeat what this space said earlier this week, “Malkin doesn’t play winning hockey. He led the Penguins in penalty minutes. Most were of the nickel-dime variety. He did cut down his turnovers this past season, but he’s a liability in the neutral and defensive zones. He poisons the power play. He’s clearly slowed.” (I’m 63 and couldn’t be more established. I can quote myself.)

Is Malkin going to think, “I need to have a hard summer of training like Crosby does and reinvent how I play to some degree”?

Nope. No chance. Malkin isn’t wired like that.

The same applies to coach Mike Sullivan.

The Penguins have a slow team. But they will continue to play a fast game, and mostly fail at it.

But fast hockey is what Sullivan prefers, and what his stars like.

Trying to finagle more wins via guile won’t figure enough into anybody’s thinking. Pride will. Not before the fall, but as it continues.

That’s how you prevent yourself from overachieving.

I’m not mad about any of this.

Not about the decline. Not at Jarry, Malkin or Sullivan.

Some local media that merely dabble in hockey are screaming for Crosby to be traded “while you can still get something for him!”

But it’s different when you’ve followed the Penguins since 1967 and covered them on-and-off since 1980.

The Penguins won two Stanley Cups during the Mario Lemieux era.

The Penguins have won three Cups during the Crosby era.

They made the playoffs every year from 2007-22 and were legit Cup contenders every year from 2008-18.

Now it’s their turn to not be very good. That’s inevitable in a capped league.

That’s unfortunate for Crosby as he nears the end of his career.

But he’s got to understand, and I’m sure he will.

At any rate, the Penguins will still have a team after Crosby retires. Just like after Lemieux retired.

Dubas knows what he’s doing. The pendulum will again swing the other way. It just might take a while.

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