The Penguins, particularly general manager Ron Hextall, feel that they’re in a good spot from a talent and depth standpoint.
But both of those things come with a cost. And the Penguins, as currently constructed, are too expensive.
Pittsburgh is projected to be nearly $1.5 million over the salary cap right now, meaning that Hextall will need to find a way to shed some of that money before the season begins.
“Plans? Not necessarily,” Hextall said Friday during the Penguins’ training camp. “Obviously there's some mechanics that we'll have to do to get under. We have good depth and we’ll see how the preseason goes. We've got some tough decisions to make, make no mistake.”
The Penguins aren’t alone. There are currently a dozen NHL teams projected to be over the cap. Pittsburgh, in fact, is the closest of those 12 to being under.
“There's a lot of teams over,” Hextall said. “I guess some teams, you kind of wonder what they're going to do. We're obviously in that situation. There's only a few suitors in terms of wanting to take on money. So it's a tough market right now.
“The last couple of years with basically a flat cap, it's been challenging for all of us, for sure. You guys know what we went through this summer with our guys and trying to fit everybody in. So it's a tough market right now. And yes, it does make it harder to make a move.”
Those ‘guys’ would be Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, Bryan Rust and Rickard Rakell, who Hextall found some way to collectively bring back. He also added a $6.25 million defenseman in Jeff Petry and another blue liner, Jan Rutta, who is set to make $2.75 million.
“A trade is certainly something that's there,” Hextall said. “I think probably a lot of teams that are in the situation we're in, so we'll continue to kind of look there and see if that makes sense.”
A trade would likely have to come from the defensive group. In addition to Petry, Letang, and Rutta, the Penguins also have higher-priced NHL level defensemen in Brian Dumoulin ($4.1 million) and Marcus Pettersson ($4.025 million). On the cheaper side, they have Ty Smith — who they acquired from New Jersey via a trade of John Marino — as well as Chad Ruhwedel, Mark Friedman and P.O. Joseph.
“We're just going to have to kind of watch our pairs,” Hextall said. “I really like the mix on D that we have between guys that are puck movers and skill guys and kind of defensive defenders. So I really like our mix with the guys that we've added along with the guys that we had.
“We have nine NHL defensemen. They can all play. So we have some tough decisions and, quite honestly, right now we don't exactly know where we're going. Obviously you have some ideas, but some tough decisions for us.”
An extension for the guy in net?
Penguins goalie Tristan Jarry is entering the final season of his current contract and is set to make $3.5 million.
Jarry’s case is an interesting one. In 2021, his meltdown in the postseason cost the Penguins a chance at advancing. But he seemed to get his play straightened out last season, and was among the game’s better goalies for the majority of the season. That it, until a foot injury took him out of the playoffs until Pittsburgh’s Game 7 loss to the Rangers.
“We’ve been talking to Jars so we'll see where it goes,” Hextall said. “There's no real urgency there, I don't think, from either side. But we'll continue talking if we can get something done. I don't anticipate talking when the season starts, but who knows?”
Hextall — a former goalie himself — seems to be comfortable with the idea of bringing the team’s goalie back next season, for sure.
“He's kind of getting that age where he's really growing up in terms of being an athlete maturing and he's been through some things that you go through to make yourself a better player and a better athlete,” he said. “I think maturity wise, Jars is in a much better place to handle things than he was a year and a half ago. And in probably another year and a half will be even more.”
Getting the band back together
The moves to bring back Malkin and Letang came as a bit of a surprise. When the Rangers hit the net in overtime to take Game 7, most thought it would be the last time the ‘Big 3’ would skate off the ice together.
That wasn’t the case. And now, with a team that will once again spend to the cap and look to be in contention with a superstar in Sidney Crosby at the center, there’s some pressure on to validate keeping a group together that has lost four consecutive first round series.
“Yeah, I mean, there's urgency,” Hextall said. “Every year is a new year. Like, okay, we lost the last two years in the playoffs. Certainly since I've been here, we felt like we certainly could have won both series. But I think that's what gives you the hope that it's still there.
“These guys are still very good players. Obviously with signing Tanger and Geno this summer, we felt like this group can still go on a run and do a lot of damage. So we're happy with our group.
“I see Geno right now and he's a hungry guy. It's like, wow, that's pretty good. He just signed a four year deal and I think he's been here for a month. He looks like a beast right now. And Tanger’s the same. They're hungry guys. This group is hungry. Obviously. Sid. We all know Sid. So I'm really excited about where we are right now as a team. The feeling around the room, there's a lot of hunger.”