Kris Letang continues to add to his resume with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

When the Pittsburgh Penguins traded for Erik Karlsson, much of the response focused on what it meant for Kris Letang. The initial reaction was that Letang would likely take a back seat to the three-time Norris Trophy winner. 

That prediction has come to fruition in some ways for the Penguins defenseman. Letang has played very little on the power play and is currently averaging less total ice time (24:40) than in eight of his previous nine seasons. And yet, Letang has quietly put together one of his most impressive starts to a season in his career. 

Letang made history last night, registering five assists in a single period, becoming the first defenseman to accomplish that feat in NHL History. He also tied the record for the most assists in a game by a defenseman in NHL history with six.

His history-making performance will get him in the national spotlight, but the less celebrated parts of the game have headlined his terrific start to this season. 

While Letang is averaging less overall ice time, he is on pace to set a career-high in shorthanded ice time. Letang currently ranks second on the Penguins in shorthanded ice time and third on the team in blocked shots while shorthanded. 

His success on that unit has helped the Penguins to an 83% success rate this season, which ranks ninth in the NHL.

The one area that had suffered from Letang's added commitment to the defensive zone was his scoring. However, the defenseman's nine points (1G - 8A) in the past two games have catapulted him to fourth on the Penguins in scoring. He is now on pace to score 57 points, which would be the third-highest-scoring season of his career.

Even more impressive is that he is on pace to score 52 points at even strength. Letang has only surpassed 40 even strength points once (46 in 2021-22) in his first 17 seasons.

At 36, Kris Letang may be playing the best hockey of his potentially Hall of Fame career.

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