An Offseason of Changes
Here's a look back at everything that happened with the Penguins these past few months
MARCH 12
The NHL pressed pause on the 2019-20 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, effectively cancelling the remainder of the regular season. Prior to the stoppage, Pittsburgh accumulated a 40-23-6 record (86 points) in 69 games, good for third place in the Metropolitan Division and seventh place across the entire NHL.
MARCH 17
The Penguins added young depth to their blue line by signing college free agent defenseman Cam Lee to a two-year, entry-level contract. The 23-year-old, a good-skating, offensive-minded defenseman that fits the current style of play in today's NHL, played four years at Western Michigan.
A few days prior, the Penguins had signed another college free agent, forward Drew O'Connor, out of Dartmouth. The 21-year-old, who has a unique blend of size, scoring touch and skating, recorded a team-leading 21 goals in 31 games in his sophomore season.
MAY 26
The NHL announced a Return to Play Plan for the 2019-20 season, where 24 teams would compete for the Stanley Cup at two hub cities later in the summer.
JUNE 8
Clubs reopened training facilities in their home cities for individualized on- and off-ice activities.
JULY 10
Formal training camps began.
AUG. 1
Pittsburgh's streak of consecutive playoff appearances officially reached 14 when the puck dropped for Game 1 of their Qualifying Round matchup against the Montreal Canadiens.
AUG. 7
The Penguins were eliminated from postseason contention as Montreal won their best-of-five series in four games.
AUG. 12
The Penguins did not renew the contracts of assistant coaches Sergei Gonchar, Jacques Martin and Mark Recchi. "We are in the process of conducting a review of our organization because we have underperformed in the playoffs the last few years," Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford said. "We just thought we needed to change the dynamic of our coaching staff. We have very high standards here in Pittsburgh, and we want to continue competing for Stanley Cups. The message to our fans is that 'We are not rebuilding, we're re-tooling.'"
AUG. 17
Evgeni Malkin underwent successful left elbow surgery and was given a recovery timeline of 3-4 weeks, while Zach Aston-Reese underwent successful left shoulder surgery and was given a recovery timeline of six months.
AUG. 21
The Penguins signed college free-agent defenseman Josh Maniscalco to a three-year, entry-level contract. The 21-year-old had completed his sophomore season with Arizona State, where he recorded 11 goals and 32 points - which tied for sixth in the NCAA among blueliners - in 36 games played. Rutherford described him as a solid puck-moving, offensive defenseman.
AUG. 25
Rutherford pulled the trigger on his first big trade of the offseason, acquiring forwards Kasperi Kapanen and Pontus Aberg and defenseman Jesper Lindgren from Toronto in exchange for Evan Rodrigues, David Warsofsky, Filip Hallander and a 2020 first-round draft pick.
Kapanen, 24, was originally drafted in the first round by Pittsburgh in 2014 and will get an opportunity on a line with Sidney Crosby and Jake Guentzel to start the season.
AUG. 28
The Penguins re-signed reliable depth defenseman Chad Ruhwedel to a one-year contract extension that will kick in following the 2020-21 season.
AUG. 30
Malkin was named Pittsburgh's 2019-20 Team MVP for the fifth time in his career, an award that is voted on by the players. He was arguably Pittsburgh's most consistent player all season and played his best hockey when the Penguins were decimated by injuries. Offensively, Malkin piled up 74 points (25G-49A) in just 55 games while defensively, he was committed to playing away from the puck.
SEPT. 1
Sidney Crosby underwent successful arthroscopic wrist surgery and was given a recovery timeline of 3-4 weeks.
SEPT. 2
Todd Reirden and Mike Vellucci joined Pittsburgh's staff as assistant coaches. Reirden, who is returning for his second stint with the club after spending the last six seasons with Washington, will oversee the defensive group and power play. Vellucci, who completed his first season as head coach and general manager of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League, will work with the forwards and oversee the penalty kill. The team also signed goaltending coach Mike Buckley to a two-year contract extension.
SEPT. 5
The Penguins re-signed defenseman Juuso Riikola to a two-year contract with an average annual value of $1.15 million. "We feel he is going to take the next step forward in his development," Rutherford said of the 27-year-old, who originally joined Pittsburgh as a free agent after playing six seasons in Finland's top professional league.
SEPT. 11
J.D. Forrest was named head coach of WBS after spending the previous four seasons as the team's assistant coach.
The Penguins also acquired a conditional 2021 draft pick from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for forward Nick Bjugstad (and will retain a portion of his salary for this upcoming season). Bjugstad was acquired by the Penguins along with Jared McCann from the Florida Panthers on Feb. 1, 2019. His time in Pittsburgh was impacted by injuries, appearing in just 45 games over that span.
SEPT. 18
Rutherford signed McCann, a versatile young forward with upside to his game, to a two-year contract with an average annual value of $2.94 million. The 24-year-old scored 14 goals in 66 games in his first full season with Pittsburgh in 2019-20 after totaling 19 between the Panthers and the Penguins the year before.
SEPT. 24
The Penguins acquired defenseman Mike Matheson and forward Colton Sceviour from the Florida Panthers in exchange for forward Patric Hornqvist. It was an incredibly difficult decision for Rutherford to part ways with Hornqvist, a two-time Stanley Cup champion, character and leader. But Rutherford felt he couldn't pass up the chance to get a young, skilled defenseman and a good, veteran winger who will fill his role well.
OCT. 3
Goaltender Tristan Jarry signed the first big contract of his NHL career, a three-year contract with an average annual value of $3.5 million. He earned it after an All-Star season where he finished in the top-10 among all NHL goaltenders in save percentage (T-8th), goals-against average (9th) and shutouts (T-8th).
OCT. 5
The Penguins placed Jack Johnson on unconditional waivers for the purpose of a buyout. The veteran defenseman had finished the second season of a five-year contract he signed on the first day of free agency in 2018.
OCT. 7
The first day of the 2020 NHL Draft began with another big trade from Rutherford, who acquired forward Jonathan Gruden and a 2020 second-round draft pick (52nd overall) from the Ottawa Senators in exchange for goaltender Matt Murray. Murray had backstopped the Penguins to back-to-back championships in 2016 and '17, but salary cap limitations necessitated a trade.
The Penguins went on to add five draft picks to the organization: goaltenders Joel Blomqvist and Calle Clang and forwards Luka Svejkovsky, Raivis Ansons and Chase Yoder.
OCT. 8
Forward Sam Lafferty earned the first one-way deal of his NHL career, a two-year contract with with an average annual value of $750,000.
OCT. 9
On the first day of free agency, Rutherford accomplished his goals of adding depth to the bottom-six by adding forwards Mark Jankowski and Evan Rodrigues into the mix. Jankowski had spent the first four seasons of his NHL career with Calgary, while Rodrigues returned to Pittsburgh as a free agent after not receiving a qualifying offer from Toronto after the Penguins traded him there in August.
The Penguins also added some depth players, signing forwards Josh Currie and Frederick Gaudreau and goaltender Maxime Lagace.
In addition, Dominik Simon, Patrick Marleau and Conor Sheary all became unrestricted free agents.
OCT. 10
Forward Anthony Angello, who appeared in eight games with Pittsburgh last season, signed a two-year, two-way contract. "We're really pleased with Anthony's development," Rutherford said of the 24-year-old. "We thought he did well when we brought him up to the NHL and look forward to watching his continued growth as a player."
OCT. 17
The Penguins added defenseman Cody Ceci to improve and stabilize their blue line. The 26-year-old is capable of playing a two-way game, but will mostly be relied on to be strong defensively and kill penalties. Additionally, forward Sam Miletic - coming off of his second season with WBS - signed a one-year, two-way contract.
OCT. 26
The Penguins added Trevor Daley as a hockey operations advisor. Rutherford had seen management potential in the former defenseman when he helped Pittsburgh win back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2016 and '17, and persuaded him to join the staff after deciding to retire following a 16-year career.
The Penguins also relieved assistant general manager Jason Karmanos of his duties.
NOV. 4
The Penguins promoted head of amateur scouting Patrik Allvin to assistant general manager. They also promoted Sam Ventura to the role of director of hockey operations and research.
DEC. 12
Penguins prospects Joel Blomqvist (Finland) and Calle Clang (Sweden) were named to their respective national teams for the 2021 World Junior Championship.
DEC. 20
HOCKEY IS BACK!!! The NHL and NHL Players' Association announced an agreement to play a 2020-21 regular season schedule of 56 games starting on Jan. 13. Training camp will open on Jan. 3.
"We're excited to be back, and Penguins players are ready to start skating next week at PPG Paints Arena," said David Morehouse, president and CEO of the Penguins. "This great news means so much for our ownership, our players, the City of Pittsburgh, our partners and the best fans in hockey. We thank our fans for standing with us during these challenging times, and we are ready to compete for another Stanley Cup."
