3 offseason mistakes the Pittsburgh Penguins will come to regret
By James Reeve
The Pittsburgh Penguins have made a number of moves this offseason in hopes of remaining a contender, but not all of them are likely to pan out.
As with any move in the NHL, there is a certain level of risk to making changes to an existing roster – whether that is by adding someone knew, removing an existing piece or simply keeping things as they are.
For the Pittsburgh Penguins, they have been active this offseason as they look to maintain and strengthen a roster they hope has at least one or two more shots at contending for the Stanley Cup.
But those gambles don’t come without regrets.
3. Pittsburgh Penguins Acquiring Jeff Petry
The Penguins wanted some beef on the back-end, and they certainly got that when they traded Michael Matheson and a fourth-round pick to the Montreal Canadiens primarily to acquire experienced defenseman Jeff Petry.
The 34-year-old stands at 6-foot-2, 201lbs and has racked up over 1600 hits and 1200 blocks in 803 regular season games with the Canadiens and Edmonton Oilers – able to kill penalties as well as provide some offense with four consecutive seasons of over 40 points between 2017 and 2021.
While the deal certainly fills some needs for the Penguins in the immediacy, there’s a serious chance that things decline sharply and Petry’s contract becomes cumbersome very quickly.
He holds an AAV of $6.25 million for the next three seasons with a modified no-trade clause where he must submit a list of 15 teams he can’t be traded to – making it a challenge to move should his production decline.
And decline is the only real direction for the veteran blueliner, who will turn 35 in December and will be half-way to 38 by the time his contract is finished.
With his advancing age, and the physical style he has employed throughout his career, there’s a real chance that the Penguins have tied themselves to a player that will not hold his value for much longer.
If Petry can maintain his high performance levels throughout the rest of his contract, it will be a masterstroke for the Pittsburgh Penguins, but the odds are certainly against them in this case.