After recently reporting that Thomas DiPauli was close to an agreement with the Pittsburgh Penguins, the NHL itself has made it official. DiPauli has signed a two-year entry-level deal with the Penguins on Friday.
After re-signing Matt Cullen this week, the Penguins would seem to be short on spots in their bottom-six for the Notre Dame winger, meaning he may have to head to the AHL to start. While he’s not considered as polished as fellow NCAA grad Jimmy Vesey, Pittsburgh is a solid fit for him going forward. The Penguins employ a strong four-line game, and may try to develop DiPauli’s offensive game even further.
After not providing much offense through his first two seasons, DiPauli has scored 29 and 32 points in his junior and senior years, and seems to be on a strong development path. He also will reunite with former Fighting Irish Bryan Rust, who played with DiPauli in both 2012-13 and 2013-14.
Another solid signing by the Pens. If he is sent to the AHL he becomes a top 3 or 4 forward prospect. On the big club he slots in nicely as another energy forward who’s tenacious on the forecheck. These kind of low cost players who fit the system are invaluable to the Penguins. They provide cheap support options to the big salary stars. In these next ( hopefully ) few seasons the Canadian dollar will rebound and create opportunity for the 73.4 million NHL salary cap to rise into 80s or more. If this ( hopefully ) occurs , the team friendly cap hits like Crosby’s 8.7 , Kessel’s 6.8, Letang’s 7.25 and Maata’s 4 will put the Penguins in much better position with their salary cap than other teams with that kind of high paid stardom ( Chicago, LA, etc.). These low cost signings play into this idea for biding time for some much needed financial flexibility down the road.. =32=