After a 2023-24 season that saw the Pittsburgh Penguins fall short of a playoff spot for the second season in a row and the loss of their first-round pick, this offseason leads one to believe the team may end up in a similar situation next season. Heading into the offseason, general manager Kyle Dubas and the organization had just over $13 million in cap space to work with, and he made it clear he wanted to be able to get younger after having the NHL’s oldest roster last season. To this point, Dubas has made a handful of moves, but none that are truly going to move the needle for the 2024-25 season.
Dubas’ Offseason Moves
Free Agency
- D Sebastian Aho: 2 years, $1.55 million
- D Matt Grzelcyk: 1 year, $ 2.75 million
- C Blake Lizotte: 2 years, $3.7 million
- C Anthony Beauvillier: 1 year, $1.25 million
- D Nate Clurman: 1 year, $775,000
- LW Bokondji Imama: 1 year, $775,000
- D Mac Hollowell: 1 year, $775,000
- C Jimmy Huntington: 1 year, $775,000
Re-Signings
- G Alex Nedeljkovic: 2 years, $5 million
- D Ryan Shea: 1 year, $775,000
- C Emil Bemstrom: 1 year, $775,000
- RW Corey Andonovski: 1 year, $775,000
Trades
- Acquired C Kevin Hayes (+ $3.57 million cap hit) and a 2025 second-round pick from the St. Louis Blues for future considerations.
- Acquired LW Bennett MacArthur from the Tampa Bay Lightning for C Lukas Svejkovsky.
- Acquired a 2027 second and 2025 fifth-round picks from the New York Rangers for RW Reilly Smith (retaining $1.25 million).
More Depth Added Than NHL Help
While Dubas made plenty of offseason signings, it seems most of them are “depth” moves and additions for the organization’s American Hockey League (AHL) team, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Outside of Grzelcyk, Aho, and Lizotte, there is no free-agent signing who has played more than 15 games in the NHL (Imama has played 15 games in seven seasons).
The two defensemen, Grzelcyk and Aho, will likely not be top-four defensemen on the Penguins and will take over the third pairing together, with Grzelcyk being the more seasoned veteran, having played 445 regular season games and being a mainstay in the lineup for the Boston Bruins. Aho spent four seasons with the New York Islanders but was unable to have a continuous impact in the lineup (46 points in 168 regular season games).
The player Penguins fans should be most excited about out of all the free-agent signings is Lizotte, who was named the Los Angeles Kings’ “Unsung Hero” for the…
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