With the re-signing of Matt Cullen earlier this week, the Penguins have locked up the last notable unrestricted free agent from the team that won the Stanley Cup back in June. In doing so, GM Jim Rutherford has managed to keep the majority of the team intact from last season, something that hasn’t always been the case with the champions in recent years.
This summer, Pittsburgh has lost three players of some note. Defenseman Ben Lovejoy logged nearly 18 minutes per game in the postseason and signed a three year, $8MM deal with New Jersey in free agency. Winger Beau Bennett, who played in 33 games during the regular season, was dealt to the Devils at the draft while goalie Jeff Zatkoff, who actually opened the playoffs as Pittsburgh’s starter, signed with Los Angeles.
Of those, Lovejoy’s loss is the most significant and Rutherford was able to offset that by re-signing Justin Schultz, who was acquired before the trade deadline as an expected rental player. Bennett’s hold on a regular roster spot was tenuous, especially after playing in just one postseason contest (he did miss some time with injury too) while the emergence of Matt Murray between the pipes made Zatkoff expendable.
In a salary cap era where contenders often try to load up at the trade deadline, being able to retain all of the core players from a Stanley Cup winning team is far from a guarantee. For comparison, here is a look at the summer roster turnover from the past three champions.
2015 – Chicago
Trades
Brandon Saad to Columbus
Patrick Sharp to Dallas
Kris Versteeg to Carolina
Lost In Free Agency
Johnny Oduya to Dallas
Antoine Vermette to Arizona
Brad Richards to Detroit
2014 – Los Angeles
Lost In Free Agency
Willie Mitchell to Florida
(The Kings’ major roster turnover came the following year as goalie Martin Jones, defensemen Slava Voynov and Robyn Regehr, plus forwards Justin Williams, Mike Richards, and Jarret Stoll all left by July of the next summer.)
2013 – Chicago
Trades
Daniel Carcillo to Los Angeles
Michael Frolik to Winnipeg
Lost In Free Agency
Dave Bolland to Toronto
Viktor Stalberg to Nashville
Ray Emery to Philadelphia