Upcoming Penguins UFAs Clear Space for Change
The Pittsburgh Penguins will have plenty of cap space to work with if they let the right free agents walk.
The summer of 2023 is setting up to be one of the most pivotal summers the Pittsburgh Penguins have seen in a long time.
And by long time, we mean a year as last offseason was also quite important for the Penguins, especially when it came to free agency decisions.
As this offseason started, Fenway Sports Group decided they had seen enough from Ron Hextall, Brian Burke, and Chris Pryor and fired them just hours after the last game.
Whoever FSG hires as a replacement will have the tall task of retooling the lineup back to glory, but that may be easier than originally expected.
The Penguins have seven players about to become unrestricted free agents, and for most of them, the right move is to let them walk.
If each of the UFAs hit the open market, the Penguins will have an extra 18.275 million to work with; that’s not including decisions to be made with restricted free agents and the slight salary increase.
Before getting into the discussion of RFAs, what should the Penguins do with each upcoming UFA?
Jason Zucker
Right away, it’s not an easy answer; Jason Zucker had an outstanding season with 27 goals and 21 assist for 48 points in 78 games, his most productive and healthiest season with the Penguins.
What’s so hard about re-signing Zucker? He’s proven he can stay healthy and productive.
Well, the Penguins need to get younger and Zucker is already 31. Plus, health isn’t guaranteed.
A new front office staff also throws a wrench into the situation; it’s possible they just don’t want Zucker in the lineup and are willing to let him walk for better, younger options.
Zucker’s season could also fetch him a lucrative payday for what could be his final big-money in hockey.
It might be an uneasy decision, and it may come at a cost, but whoever steps in as Penguins’ GM should make Zucker the top priority to re-sign.
Pittsburgh is where Zucker wants to be, and it’s where the fans want him to be; he may be old but he’ll be worth while for at least a couple more years.
Tristan Jarry
Decisions don’t get any easier as Trsitan Jarry is due for a new deal and it’s likely he played his way right out of Pittsburgh.
Jarry stated that he struggled with injuries all season and it may have cost him his spot with the Penguins.
When Jarry was playing well in December, there was plenty of chatter that he should have been offered a contract extension mid-season.
Then the injury bug turned its head and arguably cost Jarry millions no matter where he plays.
The Penguins need a healthy, reliable face in net; for three straight seasons now, Jarry has proved to be the exact opposite.
It might be time to move on from what had the potential to be a franchise altering netminder.
Nick Bonino
What happened with Nick Bonino following the trade deadline is beyond unfortunate; he gets traded from sunny California to play in the town he won a pair of championships with.
Just three games into his return, he suffers a lacerated kidney and is forced to miss the remainder of the season.
Hitting the age of 35, it’s likely the Penguins again let Bonino walk to free agency, this time with a much bleaker ending.
Brian Dumoulin
If you say Brian Dumoulin wasn’t one of the best defensive defensemen this franchise has ever seen you’re straight up wrong.
Things haven’t been great these last few seasons, but the Penguins don’t win the Stanley Cup in back-to-back season without him.
That being said, this is probably the end of the road for Dumoulin in Pittsburgh; the Penguins need to revamp their defense and he doesn’t do much to help the cause.
Dumoulin’s expiring contract earned him $4.1 million against the salary cap and that’s a good chunk of change the Penguins will want to utilize.
Kris Letang vouched for his favorite defensive partner, but that probably isn’t enough.
That’s a lot of money coming off of the books and if FSG is shooting for a more analytically minded front office, Dumoulin won’t survive more than a few hours.
Danton Heinen, Josh Archibald, Dmitry Kulikov
Let’s lump all of these names together because they are easy decisions to just let hit the open market.
Danton Heinen couldn’t put it together this year; Josh Archibald was useful but probably won’t fit with the new front office’s scheme; and Dmitry Kulikov was likely always meant to be a rental.
Each of these players will find an NHL contract before the puck drops on the 2023-24 season; for most of them, it shouldn’t be with the Penguins.
The organization is in need of a lot of change and once the front office is situated, the on-ice product comes next.
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