The forward did not practice after going without a goal for the 14th time in 15 games Thursday, a 7-2 loss to the Edmonton Oilers. Kapanen has 20 points (seven goals, 13 assists) in 43 games this season, his third with Pittsburgh since being acquired in a trade from the Toronto Maple Leafs on Aug. 25, 2020.
"I just think when a team doesn't live up to expectations, as ours has as of late, I think change is inevitable," Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. "I'm sure that's a part of it. 'Kappy' is a really talented player. To a certain extent, it's on all of us because we didn't find a way to maximize his potential."
The Penguins (27-21-9) have lost four straight entering their game against the St. Louis Blues at Enterprise Center on Saturday (3:30 p.m. ET; ESPN+, ABC, SN360, SNW).
Kapanen signed a two-year, $6.4 million contract ($3.2 million average annual value) with Pittsburgh on July 21 and can become an unrestricted free agent after next season. He had 32 points in 79 games last season and 30 points in 40 games in 2020-21.
Penguins general manager Ron Hextall said Kapanen will be sent to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League if he goes unclaimed on waivers.
"I think it was two years ago 'Kap' had 30 points in 40 games and was looking like he was a pretty good player," Hextall said. "Feeling was last year was a bit of a down year and he would bounce back. He's still almost a half-a-point-a-game guy and I think he can be a productive player. Unfortunately, it hasn't worked here. So tough decisions have to be made along the way. That's what this was with Kappy."
Forward Danton Heinen, who has been a healthy scratch the past eight games, could play Saturday. He was third-line right wing during practice Friday with center Jeff Carter and left wing Brock McGinn. Heinen has 15 points (five goals, 10 assists) in 15 games this season.
Kapanen was moved from the third line to the fourth Thursday. Carter, McGinn and Kapanen have combined for six goals since Dec. 27 (Carter, four; Kapanen, two).
Jan Rutta could return against St. Louis after missing 15 games with an upper-body injury. He was on a defense pair with Pierre-Olivier Joseph during practice. Rutta, who has eight points (three goals, five assists) in 42 games this season, hasn't played since Jan. 14.
"Definitely rested," Rutta said. "It was building up for a while. I was hoping to be back a little bit sooner. Obviously, I'm not happy the wait took so long, but I'm really looking forward to tomorrow."
Hextall said placing Kapanen on waivers was also necessary to activate Rutta from injured reserve.
"Yes, that was part of the thought process," he said. "We had to make a hard decision to get 'Ruts' back on. That was the one we made. It wasn't easy. 'Kappy' is still a good player. Is he a perfect player? No. But there's not many perfect players. So 'Kappy' brought an element with his speed and his skill. As we said earlier, it just hasn't worked here. We'll see where it goes."
