Three Struggling Penguins Expected to Stick Around

The Pittsburgh Penguins will expect bounce-back seasons from multiple struggling players.

PITTSBURGH – For most of the 2023-24 season, the Pittsburgh Penguins were a flawed team with numerous players underperforming at crucial junctures. Many of those who struggled were fresh faces brought in by president and general manager Kyle Dubas.

Fans quickly turned against guys like Reilly Smith and Ryan Graves, and while Dubas didn’t bring him in, Tristan Jarry was extended on the opening day of free agency.

At multiple points throughout the season, each of these names cost the Penguins or held them back, but Dubas is looking forward to seeing what the 2024-25 season has in store. Fans may want them gone at all costs, but Dubas believes they have more to give.

Smith started the 2023-24 season well alongside Evgeni Malkin, but he hit multiple rough patches throughout the year. Aside from Jake Guentzel, there was rumored to be a ton of interest in Smith around the trade deadline.

“He knows he wasn’t as good as he was last year,” Dubas said. “If you look at his history, I would expect a big bounce back from him next season.”

Smith played in 76 games with the Penguins and scored only 13 goals, with multiple lengthy droughts plaguing his offense. Dubas believes that the third-line spot with Lars Eller and Valtteri Puustinen benefitted Smith, but it’s obvious there needs to be an improvement if he comes back in 2024-25.

Graves was Dubas’s first big free agent signing with the Penguins, and it quickly turned into a failure. Despite the poor first season, Dubas is hopeful Graves can turn things around as he enters the second year of a six-year contract.

“I think it’s a massive summer for him,” Dubas said. “We have to arm him with the path to get there. And then he has to execute it.”

Dubas took partial blame for Graves’ struggles but also put the ball in his court and has much higher expectations for next season. The Penguins are looking closely to see how Graves responds to a down year and are hopeful for a bounce-back.

For Jarry, things get interesting. The Penguins have a top goalie prospect in Joel Blomqvist, whom they expect to battle for an NHL role. Alex Nedeljkovic made a valid argument to stick as a starter. According to Dubas, however, it looks like Nedeljkovic might be the odd man out, and Jarry is likely to return next year.

“I’m excited to see how Tristan responds,” Dubas said. “This is really all about how guys like that are able to push back when things don’t go their way.”

Jarry penned a five-year contract heading into the 2023-24 season, and overall, it wasn’t a great year. In 51 games played, Jarry notched a 19-25-5 record with a .903 save percentage and 2.91 goals against average. As mentioned before, Nedeljkoivc essentially stole the starting job from him.

The Penguins are expected to see another summer full of change, but these three names are likely among the names sticking around for at least another year.

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