- Out with a concussion ever since a blow to the head from Winnipeg Jets’ defenseman Brenden Dillon on February 6th, Pittsburgh Penguins’ forward Noel Acciari has returned to practice in a non-contact jersey (X Link). Brought in as an unrestricted free agent last offseason, the Penguins were hoping that Acciari could give a major boost to Pittsburgh’s bottom-six. In 39 games before entering concussion protocol, Acciari scored three goals and four points for the Penguins as well as delivering 92 total hits to opponents.
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Penguins Rumors
Pittsburgh Penguins Recall Magnus Hellberg
Before their game tomorrow night against the New York Islanders, the Pittsburgh Penguins have recalled goaltender Magnus Hellberg from their AHL affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. The move could simply be precautionary but indicates that either Alex Nedeljkovic or Tristan Jarry may not be able to suit up in tomorrow’s contest.
If one of the two regular netminders is unable to go tomorrow night, it is still unlikely that Hellberg will play in the game. Nevertheless, he did serve as valuable depth for the Penguins at the beginning of the season, producing a 1-0-0 record in three games with a .922 save percentage covering for the injured Nedeljkovic.
Penguins Activate Jansen Harkins, Send Down Jonathan Gruden, Vinnie Hinostroza
The Pittsburgh Penguins have activated forward Jansen Harkins off injured reserve, per a team announcement. Harkins has been out of the lineup for a little over a week, suffering a concussion in the team’s February 10th game against the Winnipeg Jets.
Shortly before the first game of the regular season, Harkins was brought to Pittsburgh from the Jets organization by way of a waiver claim. Similar to his usage in Winnipeg throughout his career, Harkins was thought to be an effective bottom-six player for the Penguins this season.
Harkins, who is now averaging the lowest average ice time of his career this season, has been a bit of a mixed bag in his role for Pittsburgh. In 34 games on the year, he has yet to score a goal up to this point, but his physical play has certainly picked up as he’s achieved a new career-high in hits with 59 already.
On a positive note, with strong defense largely expected in many team’s bottom six, Harkins has certainly delivered for the Penguins in that regard. Through nearly half a season, Harkins has produced a CorsiFor% of 48.4%, and an On-Ice Save Percentage of 93.9%, both of which are higher than his career averages.
In the same announcement, Pittsburgh also stated that the team had moved down both Jonathan Gruden and Vinnie Hinostroza to their AHL affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. With both players serving as organizational depth at the forward position, both have been shuffled back and forth quite regularly this season.
Of the two, Hinostroza has been relied upon much more than Gruden at the NHL level this year, playing in 14 games already compared to Gruden’s five. In those 14 contests, Hinostroza has averaged just under 10 minutes of ice time per night, scoring one goal and three points while carrying a -3 rating.
Harkins (Concussion) A Full Participant In Practice
- Penguins forward Jansen Harkins was a full participant in practice today after missing the last two games with a concussion, relays Seth Rorabaugh of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (Twitter link). The 26-year-old has been on the waiver wire a couple of times this season but still has played in 34 games with Pittsburgh, recording four assists while averaging a little over eight minutes per night.
Penguins Claim Matthew Phillips Off Waivers From Capitals
The Penguins claimed forward Matthew Phillips off waivers from the Capitals on Friday, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports.
Washington placed Phillips, 25, on waivers yesterday after making him a healthy scratch in 15 of their last 16 games. The undersized winger had one goal and four assists in 27 appearances with the Caps after signing a one-year, one-way deal worth $775K last summer upon reaching Group VI free agency.
A member of the Flames organization for more than half a decade after they selected him in the sixth round of the 2016 draft, Phillips developed into one of the best players at the AHL level over the past two seasons. He posted back-to-back seasons above a point per game with their affiliates in Stockton and Calgary in 2021-22 and 2022-23 and produced at a top-six pace for a pair of campaigns prior.
His 5-foot-7, 140-lb frame was always going to make life difficult for him in the NHL, however. He got off to a strong start this season, posting three points in his first four games, but he hasn’t recorded a point in over two months and has a poor 43.1% Corsi share at even strength.
Pittsburgh takes a chance on him with four regular forwards out of the lineup due to injuries – Noel Acciari, Jake Guentzel, Jansen Harkins, and Matthew Nieto. Despite his struggles this season, Phillips is a higher-ceiling scoring option than most of the minor-league call-ups they have occupying bottom-six roles in their absence, and he carries little to no financial impact on their deadline plans with a league-minimum cap hit.
The Penguins will maintain control of Phillips’ signing rights this offseason, as he’ll be an RFA with arbitration rights when his contract expires.
Penguins Place Jake Guentzel On Injured Reserve, Recall Three
In an announcement coming from the Pittsburgh Penguins, the team has placed forward Jake Guentzel on injured reserve while recalling Jonathan Gruden, Vinnie Hinostroza, and Valtteri Puustinen from their AHL affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. In a subsequent announcement, Chris Johnston of TSN reports that Guentzel is expected to be out for around a month, putting his trade deadline candidacy into question.
Ultimately, Guentzel’s injury status will likely not steer any teams away from acquiring his services by March 8th, given that his playoff track record has been so strong since he first entered the league. As a team already on the bubble of the 2024 Stanley Cup playoff race, the absence of Guentzel will almost certainly hurt Pittsburgh’s playoff hopes.
If the Penguins wait until March 8th to trade Guentzel, the acquiring team will only be missing Guentzel for about a week, unless there is an unexpected setback with his current injury. Because he may only miss a few games on a new team, Guentzel’s price tag likely won’t drop by the time the trade deadline rolls around.
In regards to the trio of players recalled in this transaction, Gruden and Hinostroza have both been in the AHL for a month or more. Of the three, Puustinen has been the most successful playing in Pittsburgh this season, scoring one goal and eight points in 21 games serving in a depth role.
Kris Letang Will Play Wednesday
- Penguins defenseman Kris Letang will play against the Panthers on Wednesday after departing Monday’s practice for precautionary reasons, head coach Mike Sullivan said (via Seth Rorabaugh of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review). The team is down to 18 healthy skaters after placing Noel Acciari and Jansen Harkins on IR with concussions in the last 48 hours and has no salary cap space for a recall from AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. As such, the team will dress 11 forwards and seven defensemen against Florida out of necessity to avoid waiving any of their depth defensemen. The 36-year-old Letang has 30 points and a +14 rating in 49 games while averaging 25 minutes in the second season of his six-year, $36.6MM extension.
Penguins Place Noel Acciari On IR
The Penguins placed depth forward Noel Acciari on injured reserve Tuesday, per a team announcement. The 32-year-old was diagnosed with a concussion after a hit from Jets defenseman Brenden Dillon on Feb. 6, which warranted a three-game suspension.
Acciari has missed two games already, and it’s unclear when he’ll be ready to return to the lineup. Concussion recovery timelines can range wildly, and although he’ll be eligible to come off IR at any time, it could still be a weeks-long absence.
The Rhode Island native has struggled in his first season in Pittsburgh, scoring three goals and adding one assist in 39 games. His 0.10 points per game are his worst since his first stint as an NHLer with the Bruins in 2015-16 when he notched one assist in 19 games (0.05 per game).
His usage under head coach Mike Sullivan is the main culprit behind his dropoff in production. He’s started just 12.9% of his even-strength shifts in the offensive zone, nearly 22% below his career average.
Acciari’s 41% Corsi share at even strength also paints him as a defensive liability, but that number is inflated due to his extreme shutdown usage. In terms of controlling expected goals, he’s been a fine shutdown presence when paired with Jeff Carter and Jansen Harkins. That line has controlled 55% of expected goals through 105 minutes together, per MoneyPuck, but two-thirds of the unit is now on IR. Harkins, who is also out with a concussion, landed on the list Monday.
Regardless, the three-year, $6MM deal with trade protection he signed when free agency opened in July seems quite steep less than a year in. The three-time 10-goal scorer is an evident favorite of GM Kyle Dubas, who also acquired him as a member of the Maple Leafs before last season’s trade deadline alongside Ryan O’Reilly.
With Acciari out, the Penguins are now down to the bare-minimum 20 players on the active roster and only 11 forwards. Without moving one of Acciari or Harkins to LTIR, however, they do not have the cap space for an additional recall from AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. As such, they may be forced to dress 11 forwards and seven defensemen against the Panthers on Wednesday.
Penguins Notes: Letang, Harkins, Malkin
Seth Rorabaugh of Tribune-Review Sports is reporting that Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang left practice today for what is being described as precautionary reasons. Not much else is known about the 36-year-old’s status, but head coach Mike Sullivan told reporters that Letang is banged up a little bit.
Letang could be dealing with a nagging issue as his play has slipped as of late. He has just a single point in his last seven games despite having been elevated to the team’s top power-play unit in place of Erik Karlsson. Overall, he is having one of the finest seasons of his career with four goals and 26 assists in 49 games while playing some of his best defensive hockey. He has flourished in a different role this season even if his play has trailed off as of late.
In other Penguins notes:
- Rorabaugh is also reporting that Penguins forward Jansen Harkins has been placed on the injured reserve with a concussion. The 26-year-old had become a regular on the Penguins fourth line alongside veterans Noel Acciari and Jeff Carter and had been taking much of the team’s defensive zone starts in recent weeks. Harkins has been okay in a depth role for the Penguins, although he hasn’t provided much in the way of offense with just four assists in 34 games this season. No word yet on a timeline for Harkin’s return but he will presumably miss the Penguins games this week.
- Rorabaugh has also reported that Pittsburgh forward Evgeni Malkin had a maintenance day today and did not practice with his teammates. The 37-year-old skated briefly in a sweatsuit before the team’s practice while he was monitored by Penguins medical staff. Malkin hasn’t been himself this season as it appears the aging curve has started to catch up with the former Hart Trophy winner. In the last ten games, Malkin has struggled with just a single goal, and this is the second maintenance day he has received in the last few weeks leading to speculation that he could be dealing with a nagging injury of his own.
Salary Cap Deep Dive: Pittsburgh Penguins
Navigating the salary cap is one of the more important tasks for any GM. Teams that can avoid total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.
PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation for the 2023-24 season. This will focus more on players who are regulars on the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Current Cap Hit: $84,629,281 (over the $83.5MM Upper Limit)
Entry-Level Contracts
None on the active roster.
Signed Through 2023-24, Non-Entry-Level
F Jeff Carter ($3.125MM, UFA)
F Jake Guentzel ($6MM, UFA)
F Jansen Harkins ($850K, UFA)
D Pierre-Olivier Joseph ($850K, RFA)
G Alex Nedeljkovic ($1.5MM, UFA)
D Chad Ruhwedel ($800K, UFA)
Guentzel’s situation is well-known at this point. There haven’t been any substantive discussions about a new deal but the 29-year-old is set to be one of the top forwards available in free agency this summer and will be eyeing a multi-million-dollar raise on a long-term agreement. That will still be the case whether it’s Pittsburgh or someone else giving it to him. Whoever has him on their roster after the trade deadline will be the only team that can offer the max-term eight-year deal; everyone else will be limited to seven.
Carter did well in his first year and a bit with the Penguins, earning this extension as a reward. But on this contract, he has struggled considerably, especially this season. Now 39, it’s fair to wonder if this will be his final year. If it’s not, he’ll be looking at a deal worth close to the league minimum with perhaps some small incentives. Harkins came over in October as a waiver claim before clearing waivers less than three weeks later. Despite that, he has spent most of the season in the NHL on the fourth line. That gives him a chance at securing another one-way contract but it’s also likely to be at or very close to the $775K minimum salary.
Joseph has battled injuries this season and hasn’t played a lot when he’s healthy. While his qualifying offer is for just under $900K, tendering it would give him arbitration eligibility. With over 100 NHL games under his belt, the potential award could be more than what Pittsburgh would want to pay him. If they can reach a deal beforehand, it should come in close to the $1MM mark. Ruhwedel has been a serviceable depth piece for several years now and being a right-shot player certainly helps his value. Another one-way contract close to this one should be doable.
After a particularly rough showing last season with Detroit, Nedeljkovic has bounced back quite nicely with his best performance since his breakout stretch in 2020-21. If teams feel this level of play is sustainable, then he could conceivably double this on the open market. But with the year-to-year volatility, something closer to the $2.75MM range may be more realistic.
Signed Through 2024-25
F Sidney Crosby ($8.7MM, UFA)
F Lars Eller ($2.45MM, UFA)
D John Ludvig ($775K, RFA)
F Matt Nieto ($900K, UFA)
F Drew O’Connor ($925K, UFA)
D Marcus Pettersson ($4.025MM, UFA)
F Jesse Puljujarvi ($800K, UFA)
F Reilly Smith ($5MM, UFA)
Crosby has been a Penguin for his entire 19-year NHL career and while some have openly speculated about him being traded, that doesn’t seem like a probable outcome at this point. He will have just turned 38 when the 2025-26 season gets underway so another multi-year agreement (between two and four years) isn’t entirely unrealistic. For Pittsburgh, the longer the term of the offer, the lower the cap hit would be, similar to some of the other deals their long-term veterans have received. Considering how he has performed this season, there’s a chance that his next contract could carry the same cap charge as this one and the one that preceded it.
Smith came over from Vegas in a cap-dumping move but he’s still a capable middle-six player. However, this price point is on the high side for someone in that role based on his usage with the Penguins. If he winds up being in the 40-point range (compared to the 56 he had in his final year with the Golden Knights), Smith may need to take a small pay cut heading into his age-34 campaign in 2025. Eller is still a serviceable third-line center for now but he’ll be 36 when his next contract starts. Assuming he slows down a bit more, he’ll likely have to go year-to-year with a price tag a bit below this one.
O’Connor had been more of a role player until this season where he’s averaging nearly 15 minutes a night while setting career highs offensively. If that usage and production hold next season, he could at least double his current price tag on his next deal. Nieto has battled injuries this year but, when healthy, has been a regular on the fourth line, a role he is used to holding. This has been his price range for the last two contracts and it’s unlikely that will change on his next one. Puljujarvi’s market was recently set with the winger finally signing earlier this month. Unless he can establish himself as a top-nine regular, he’ll continue to be on the fringes, keeping his price tag close to the minimum.
Pettersson had a couple of rough seasons but turned things around last year and has been even better in 2023-24, showing he can still be a top-half defender on a depth chart. However, his lack of offensive output most years will limit his earnings upside. Still, another long-term agreement and at least a small raise should be doable, an outcome that would have been surprising just a couple of years ago. Ludvig was a waiver claim but an early-season concussion has limited him thus far. If he can stick around as even a seventh defenseman, however, he could land at least a mild raise a couple of years from now.
Signed Through 2025-26
F Noel Acciari ($2MM, UFA)
F Evgeni Malkin ($6.1MM, UFA)
Malkin has certainly slowed down this season but at 37, that’s to be expected. He’s still producing at a top-six rate so for now, they’re getting a good return. As he ages, however, the value of this contract will drop. Similar to the Crosby discussion, that’s the trade-off for getting an AAV that’s lower than what his market value would have been otherwise. Acciari has shown flashes of third-line production over the year (he even had a 20-goal campaign) but is best utilized as a fourth liner with some extra faceoff utility. This contract is a bit pricey for someone with that profile but it’s not a significant overpayment either.
