The Penguins have signed all-star defenseman Kris Letang to a six-year-extension today. The total contract is for $36.6 million, with an average annual value of $6.1 million.
“Kris epitomizes what it means to be a Pittsburgh Penguin,” general manager Ron Hextall said when announcing the deal. “The role he plays on our team is irreplaceable, he is a leader in our locker room, and has made countless contributions to the organization over the last 15-plus years, which includes three Stanley Cup Championships. We are thrilled to make him a Penguin for life.”
Count me among those who didn’t think we’d ever get a deal done, at least not until recently. But Letang traded off salary for term to remain in the ‘Burgh.
Also count me among those who feel this signing is critical if the Pens wanted to avoid an immediate crash and burn. Although underappreciated at times by the black-and-gold faithful, he’s one of the best defensemen in the league. As I wrote in a recent article, he does so many things well. In addition to quarterbacking the power play and driving the transition game, he hits and blocks shots…all with a feisty edge. Echoing Hextall’s sentiments, there’s just no way to adequately replace all the things he does.
At age 34, he enjoyed arguably the finest of his 16 NHL seasons in 2021-22, tallying career-bests in assists (58), points (68), even-strength assists (38) and hits (171). His decision-making seemed to improve. Overall, I thought he let the game come to him rather than trying to force high-risk plays as he has in the past.
Hopefully, those trends will continue.
The contract term? Certainly a concern. How will Letang perform as he ages? Will his ultra-heavy workload finally catch up to him?
On the sunny side, Hall-of-Famer Chris Chelios led the league in plus/minus and finished second in the Norris Trophy voting at age 40…which is how old Letang will be when his contract expires. Given Tanger’s superb conditioning, there’s every hope he’ll follow a similar skate track.
With Letang in tow and $15.3 million in cap space to work with, Hextall can now set about the task of building a team around No. 58 and captain Sidney Crosby. Signing Evgeni Malkin would seem to be the immediate priority, although Hextall admitted in a recent interview they weren’t as close to securing the big Russian’s services.
Fellow UFAs Rickard Rakell, Evan Rodrigues, Brian Boyle and Nathan Beaulieu also remain unsigned. In addition, GMRH needs to determine whether he wants to extend qualifying offers to RFAs Danton Heinen and Kasperi Kapanen.
With Letang serving as the back line cornerstone for six more seasons, a restructuring of the defensive corps may also be a possibility. Marcus Pettersson and John Marino could be prime trade bait due to the value and length of their contracts. Moving one or both would also create a spot for Pierre-Olivier Joseph, a far cheaper option who appears to be NHL ready following a strong season at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
Stay tuned.
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Hey rick,
Interesting signing because of the length of the contract. It shows the ownership group isn't afraid to throw money down and possibly throw money away to keep the cap down and keep the team competitive. Malkin could get a similar deal which would really open up some interesting trade possibilities.
For the draft tonight i'm hoping the Pens grab Maveric Lamoureux. I know they will have better prospects available at pick 21, but without a second round pick, they would need to grab him first round. He's currently working with an ex-Penguins trainer to get his weight up.
Hey Phil,
Is the world ending today? I agree with you!?!?! On both counts. Boy, am I confused. After reading all of the smoke about Letang wanting $8 mil for 5 years, this contract doesn't look all that bad. Don't like the years but to get the cap down, very interesting.
I also want Lamoureux. Watching him play, I love this kid. He reminds me of a cross between Chara and Ulfie. His reach stifled opponents, he set opponents on their wallets in the corners and in front of the net and like Ulfie, he showed the adroitness of being able to knock forwards down in open ice skating through the Neutral Zone and/or crossing the blueline, slowing down attacking wingers with the fear of open ice hits.
Furthermore, he can skate well and not just for a big man and owns a pretty heavy shot that will force opponents to cover their full defensive zone, not just from the face off dots down.
The Other Rick & Phil
The Owen Pickering pick is obviously for 3 or 4 years down the road. After seeing highlights of some
of these kids other than McGroarty who I loved I think they should of taken the kid who went to Anaheim with the 22nd pick "Gaucher"
This kid has great size 6"3 207 and looks to be NBA ready.
As for Letang "ouch" Not a good move by Hextall. The money is
tolerable for the 1st 2yrs after that its a death wish. IMO unless Malkin
now takes a short deal for 5 - 6mil you have to let him walk.
Hey Phil, I loved the big kid as well. He was in my top 3 prospects for
the Pen's to draft at 21. I thought they may be able to move down in
a trade for Arizona's 27th pick and still get him.
I was sick watching the draft tonight thinking how great it would of
been to have Bill Guerin as our GM - He'll have the Wild competing
for the cup in the next 2 to 3yrs.
Hey Mike,
Your top 2 guys McGroarty and Bichsel were gone by the time we drafted.
Pickering scares me and hopefully I will get the chance to write about him later today. I have not just watched highlights but full games of his. There is a reason why his +/- was -27 last season.
Anytime a team decides to rely on FA and veteran trades to fill out their roster, finances will always be a problem, so I understand what you are saying about Malkin. I personally would set my numbers a hair higher, 3 years at $7. If they could unload Pettersson or some other useless contract, I could be persuaded to up that to $7.5, but as much as I want Malkin to retire a Penguin, the team has painted itself into a corner with season after season of relying on over-paid, under-performing veterans and paid-too-early kids that have failed to develop. They really may not be able to afford Geno.