Counting on Carter

After coming to Pittsburgh from Los Angeles at the trade deadline last season, Jeff Carter stepped in and immediately filled an important role for the Penguins, playing behind Sidney Crosby while Evgeni Malkin missed significant time.
And make no mistake about it, he excelled in his new role, tallying nine goals in 14 regular-season games and four goals in six postseason games while also acting as a stabilizing force off the ice.

"Carts played extremely well for us. His offensive production, I think, speaks for itself," Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan said. "He's a terrific person, he's a great leader. He can play the style of play that we're trying to play here in Pittsburgh. I thought he fit in unbelievably last year. It was so seamless. He's a smart player, so he picks up things really fast. I can't say enough about what he brings to this team."
Now, with both Malkin and Crosby
out to start the season
, the Penguins will be relying on the 36-year-old veteran forward even more - both from a leadership and a production standpoint.
"You look at where we're at right now with the two big guys, and obviously Jeff is a big piece for us," general manager Ron Hextall said. "I think he's a big piece on the ice and he's a big piece off the ice as well with his leadership and his professionalism."
While Carter said it's impossible to replace the Two-Headed Monster, he's willing to do whatever he can to help fill the void.
"I'll do my part to kind of alleviate that pressure, but we're going to need it from everybody," Carter said. "It's going to be a big task for everybody, but I think we'll be fine."

The role Carter may be counted on to fill - that of first-line center - isn't new to him. He led the Philadelphia Flyers in goals scored for three straight seasons, from 2008-2011, while primarily playing the same position.
While he recognizes it's been a while since he's consistently taken the opening faceoff, he's ready to do it again if called upon.
"(The last time I did was) probably in Philly or Columbus, so it's been a while, but it's exciting," Carter said. "It's something I used to do, but as you get older, things kind of change. If that's how it plays out, I'm looking forward to it."
As one of the older, more experienced players on the roster - not to mention a two-time Stanley Cup champion with Los Angeles in 2012 and '14 - he's quickly earned the respect of his teammates as a natural leader off the ice. To the point where Carter's name was mentioned by his teammates as being right up there with Crosby, Malkin and Letang as soon as he arrived.
"He's just a veteran player. He's been through it all," forward Jake Guentzel said. "He's been in the league for a long time and he's seen a lot of experiences and opportunities. He's a guy who we can lean on that's been through a lot for us, and we're just lucky to have a guy like that and know we can lean on him."
And the respect is mutual. When Hextall first acquired Carter from the Kings, he said one of the reasons he knew the veteran would fit well is because he would just come into the room, go out and play hockey, and be a good guy and be a good teammate. That's exactly what Carter has done.
"I've been around long enough that I probably know when to say things and when not to, and I'm not going to overstep anybody," Carter explained. "There are still a lot of good leaders in that room, so I'll just kind of follow their lead and see how it goes."
Throughout the offseason, Hextall has said that guys like Evan Rodrigues, Radim Zohorna and Brian Boyle will have expanded responsibilities that may not have normally been available, and that perhaps Carter could help guide them.
Carter agreed with this, admitting that it'll need to be a team effort to "replace" the likes of Crosby and Malkin, and that there is plenty of talent on the roster to be competitive.
"It's an exciting team; you have a little bit of everything, honestly," Carter said. "You have some top-end skill, some really good bottom-six forwards, some checking-line guys that can take care of some big minutes against some other teams' top players. I think our team is kind of well-rounded, and we have some young guys coming in that can help fill some holes, so it should be an exciting year."