Penguins Update: Pettersson Perfect Partner for Petry?

At this stage of the summer, our Penguins resemble “a jigsaw puzzle with a couple of pieces gone,” to borrow from the old Jim Croce classic, Bad, Bad Leroy Brown. Actually, “pieces out of place” is more appropriate.

Specifically, we have a glut of nine defensemen under one-way NHL contracts, including newcomers Jeff Petry and Ty Smith, while appearing to be at least one bottom-six forward shy. Not to mention the fact that we’re roughly $480 K over the cap limit according to CapFriendly following the (generous) Kasperi Kapanen signing.

Obviously, something has to give before the start of the season.

Smith can be sent to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton without passing through waivers, which would pare $863 K from the payroll and make us compliant, right?

Well, no. That’s because CapFriendly doesn’t list Pierre-Olivier Joseph and his $825 cap hit on the current roster. Even with Smith pared from the roster, we’d still be about $440 K over.

So who should we move?

Defenseman Mark Friedman is a likely candidate. He isn’t waiver exempt and would likely be claimed if we attempted to send him to the Baby Pens, lopping $775 K off the books. Personally, I’d hate to lose Friedman. I love his feistiness, not to mention his speed, versatility and penchant for jumping into the play.

Now that we have Jan Rutta in tow, Chad Ruhwedel could also be a casualty, although certainly not of his own doing. Chad did a solid job in a third-pairing role last season and has been a sturdy No. 7 defenseman throughout his career. Hold the phone on moving him, at least for now.

If GM Ron Hextall seeks to free up a bigger chunk of dinero? Brian Dumoulin and his $4.1 million cap hit could be on the move, perhaps to a team like Arizona that has plenty of cap space. It’s no secret that our heretofore stalwart endured a difficult 2021-22 campaign. Still, trading “Dumo” would likely destabilize the left side while leaving it in the hands of unproven kids like Joseph and Smith. Which would also create the not-so-small challenge of finding a suitable partner for Kris Letang.

Ironically, the player I don’t think we should move? The oft-speculated-to-be-on-the-block Marcus Pettersson.

This isn’t to suggest MP is without blemish. There’s his cap hit for one, a shade over $4 million for the next three seasons. Another Jimmy Rutherford overpay.

Pettersson’s shot won’t break a pane of glass. Although always willing to compete and even mix it up on occasion, his gangly 6’3” 177-pound frame mitigates against him being a physical force.

Yet for all his perceived flaws, Marcus is an effective stay-at-home defenseman. Very effective.

According to data provided by JFresh, Pettersson’s overall WAR (Wins Above Replacement) is 74 percent over the past three seasons. His even-strength defensive WAR? An uber-impressive 97 percent. Last season his numbers were very similar, 75 percent WAR overall and 96 percent on the defensive side of the ledger, which speaks to his consistency as well as performance.

Although decidedly not an offensive threat, Marcus handles the puck well and makes a nice first pass.

Sure, he appears awkward at times. But the bottom line? He gets the job done while serving as a stabilizer for his partners. Jack Johnson and the recently departed John Marino played their best hockey for the black and gold when paired with the rangy Swede.

I think he’d do the same for high-profile newcomer Petry, who works best when paired with a defensive-minded partner. A role Pettersson seems born to play.

Another possibility? Dealing Pettersson and shifting Rutta to the left side on the second pairing, which would open up a full-time slot for Ruhwedel, not to mention considerable cap space. But beware. Rutta’s three-year overall WAR is a less-than-stellar 33 percent and his even strength defensive WAR is 54 percent. Metrics that pale in comparison to MP’s.

No, Pettersson’s not perfect. But he may be the perfect partner for Petry. Or at least as close as we can get among our current batch of blueliners.