It's a new year and a new season, but with the same goal - to win the Stanley Cup.
In order to do that, Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford spent the offseason retooling the roster, surrounding the core leadership group of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang with more youth, enthusiasm and speed. Rutherford also revamped the coaching staff and hockey operations department, adding new and fresh perspectives.
Now that the 2020-21 season is officially set to begin, PittsburghPenguins.com takes a look at the team's defensemen and goalies in the second installment of a three-part organizational breakdown and refresher.
Breakdown: Defense and Goalies
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The Penguins will enter the 2020-21 season with a carefully assembled young blue line that will be overseen by new assistant coach Todd Reirden.
"When you look at the makeup of the defense corps we have, we think we have guys that are complementary in the sense that they all do something a little bit different that helps us become the team that we want to become," head coach Mike Sullivan said.
There are a couple of notable additions, with Pittsburgh acquiring Mike Matheson from Florida and inking Cody Ceci as a free agent out of Toronto. There are also a couple of notable departures, with the Penguins buying out veteran Jack Johnson and two-time Stanley Cup champion Justin Schultz signing with the Washington Capitals
Here's how the Penguins' defense pairings are projected to look:
Dumoulin-Letang
Pettersson-Marino
Matheson-Ceci
NOTE: All players on the left side are lefthanded shots, while all players on the right side are righthanded shots.
Veterans Kris Letang and Brian Dumoulin will continue to anchor Pittsburgh's blue line as the top pairing, while the talented young duo of Marcus Pettersson (third season) and John Marino (second season) will look to continue growing their games together as they have similar styles and good chemistry.
Matheson and Ceci, who played together for Team Canada at the 2016 World Championship, bring different skillsets that should allow them to work well together. Matheson is a skilled, mobile blueliner with great offensive instincts, while Ceci is a simple, reliable player who plays a strong defensive game.
There will also be opportunities for the defensemen to step into bigger roles on Pittsburgh's special teams, as Johnson led Penguins defenseman in shorthanded time on ice, while Schultz assumed power-play quarterback duties with Letang.
Meanwhile, a new era will begin between the pipes as Tristan Jarry is taking over as Pittsburgh's starting goaltender after the Penguins traded Matt Murray to Ottawa in October. It's the role the team had always envisioned for Jarry after drafting him in the second round back in 2013, and after taking his time with the development process, he is ready for it.
Jarry has made huge strides during the last couple of years, which resulted in an All-Star season where he established career highs in games played (33), wins (20), goals-against average (2.43), save percentage (.921) and shutouts (3). He finished in the top-10 among all NHL goaltenders in save percentage (T-8th), goals-against average (9th) and shutouts (T-8th).
Jarry will be joined by Casey DeSmith, who spent all of last season with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in the American Hockey League after playing the entire 2018-19 campaign with Pittsburgh. With a condensed schedule that features six back-to-backs, the Penguins will be relying on both netminders to help them win hockey games.
"It's going to require two goaltenders participate," Sullivan said. "There's a fair amount of games in a short period of time, and so we're going to have to manage the workload appropriately. We believe we've got two real capable guys, and we'll do our best to put both of these guys in positions to be successful."
In addition, the Penguins will be permitted to have a 4-6 man taxi squad in an effort to minimize any roster shortages due to COVID-19 protocols. One goalie is required to be on the taxi squad for teams with less than three goalies on the active roster.
General manager Jim Rutherford said that third goalie will be Maxime Lagace, who signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Penguins on the first day of free agency. The 27-year-old spent the 2019-20 campaign with the Providence Bruins, helping them to the second-best record in the AHL. Rutherford said they will also have Alex D'Orio close by in Wheeling if he's needed.
Here's an individual breakdown of the Penguins defensemen and goalies on the
training camp roster
heading into the 2020-21 season.
DEFENSEMEN
CODY CECI
HEIGHT: 6-foot-2
WEIGHT: 210 pounds
AGE: 26
The Penguins brought in Ceci to help improve and stabilize their defensive corps. They'll mostly be looking for Ceci to fill more of a defensive role like he did last season in Toronto, where he ranked second on the Maple Leafs with 92 hits, third with 79 blocked shots and averaging a team-leading 2:50 shorthanded minutes per game. However, Ceci - who hit the 10-goal mark in 2015-16 with Ottawa, where he spent the first six seasons of his career - said that he would like to rediscover the offensive side of his game as well.
KEVIN CZUCZMAN
HEIGHT: 6-foot-2
WEIGHT: 206 pounds
AGE: 29
Czuczman is a depth defenseman whose main role with the Penguins organization is to provide leadership at the American Hockey League level, serving as a WBS alternate captain in 2019-20 for the third straight season. Czuczman was limited to 38 games played at the AHL level because he was recalled by Pittsburgh twice, but did not appear in any NHL games. His 13 career NHL games all came with the New York Islanders in the 2013-14 season.
BRIAN DUMOULIN
HEIGHT: 6-foot-4
WEIGHT: 207 pounds
AGE: 29
Pittsburgh's most consistent blueliner will be coming into this season fully healthy after being limited to just 28 games in 2019-20. Dumoulin missed 37 straight contests after having surgery on Dec. 1, and returned for Pittsburgh's five games in March before the NHL pressed pause. The Penguins will be looking for Dumoulin be his usual reliable self, particularly on the penalty kill.
PIERRE-OLIVIER JOSEPH
HEIGHT: 6-foot-2
WEIGHT: 185 pounds
AGE: 21
Joseph appeared in 52 games during his first season of pro hockey with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, recording three goals and 17 points. New Pittsburgh assistant Mike Vellucci, who coached Joseph the entire year in the AHL, called his growth "outstanding" - saying that the young defenseman gained a lot of strength and has given himself a real good chance to play some NHL games this season. He is a solid two-way defenseman with a high hockey IQ that can move the puck well.
CAM LEE
HEIGHT: 6-foot-0
WEIGHT: 190 pounds
AGE: 23
Lee first got on the Penguins' radar when he attended their annual prospect development camp in 2019. After completing his senior season at Western Michigan University, where Lee led all defenseman and tied for fifth on the team with 21 points (3G-18A) in 26 games, he signed a two-year, entry-level contract with Pittsburgh. Rutherford described him as a good-skating, offensive-minded blueliner who fits the style of play in today's NHL.
KRIS LETANG
HEIGHT: 6-foot-0
WEIGHT: 201 pounds
AGE: 33
Letang is ecstatic to be reuniting with Todd Reirden, who helped him play some of the best hockey of his career during his first stint as an assistant coach. In that four-year stretch from 2010-14, Letang averaged 0.74 points-per-game while being named an All-Star in 2011 and '12 and a Norris Trophy Finalist in '13. Letang, who finished tied for third among league defensemen with 15 goals last season, will be looking for more of the same under Reirden's guidance.
JOSH MANISCALCO
HEIGHT: 6-foot-2
WEIGHT: 205 pounds
AGE: 21
Maniscalco was a highly sought-after college free agent who chose to sign a three-year entry-level contract with the Penguins after completing his sophomore season at Arizona State University. His 11 goals ranked second among NCAA blueliners while his 32 points tied for sixth. Maniscalco is a solid offensive defenseman who can move the puck and jump into the rush, and the Penguins feel that his style is complementary to their group.
JOHN MARINO
HEIGHT: 6-foot-1
WEIGHT: 181 pounds
AGE: 23
After the Penguins acquired Marino from Edmonton in exchange for a sixth-round pick last July, he shattered all expectations by not only making Pittsburgh's roster out of training camp, but becoming a vital part of the blue line. And what's so exciting about Marino is that he's just going to keep getting better and better, especially now that he's had the time to add strength and muscle during this unique layoff. Look for Marino to bring that same calm, consistent play while growing different parts of his game, like his ability to chip in offensively and kill penalties.
MIKE MATHESON
HEIGHT: 6-foot-2
WEIGHT: 188 pounds
AGE: 26
The Penguins are thrilled to add a player of Matheson's caliber to the blue line, as there's a lot to like about his game. "He's a real mobile defenseman," Sullivan said. "He can help us get back to pucks. He's going to help us get out of our endzone efficiently. He's got good size, he's got a long reach, he has a good stick. There's a lot of aspects of his game that we really like." While Matheson's last season in Florida didn't go as planned - he had eight goals and 20 points in 59 games but was a healthy scratch at times throughout the season - the Penguins believe he has a lot of upside and that they can help him reach his potential.
MARCUS PETTERSSON
HEIGHT: 6-foot-3
WEIGHT: 177 pounds
AGE: 24
Pettersson has been incredibly steady for the Penguins since they acquired him from Anaheim in December 2019. He's got good size and long reach, takes up a lot of space and is hard to play against. Overall, Pettersson has been so solid that it can be easy to forget just how young he is. But he is just 24 years old, and different parts of his game are still works in progress. Like Marino, he'll also look to continue rounding himself out as a player this upcoming season, which is the first of a five-year contract.
JUUSO RIIKOLA
HEIGHT: 6-foot-0
WEIGHT: 189 pounds
AGE: 27
Riikola spent the entire 2019-20 season in Pittsburgh and was in and out of the lineup, appearing in 36 total games and registering a goal and six assists. Riikola, a solid skater who boasts one of the best shots on the team, even filled in at forward a couple of times when called upon. After re-signing Riikola to a two-year contract in September, Rutherford said they feel he is going to take the next step forward in his development this season.
CHAD RUHWEDEL
HEIGHT: 5-foot-11
WEIGHT: 191 pounds
AGE: 30
It's quite a luxury to have a defenseman like Ruhwedel to rely on throughout the course of a season, as he keeps himself in great shape and is always game ready. The 2017 Stanley Cup Champion appeared in 41 contests last season with the Penguins, his second-highest total with Pittsburgh. All in all, he's dressed in 137 total games for the Penguins. When he's in the lineup, Ruhwedel brings a simple approach and uses his skating to his advantage.
ZACH TROTMAN
HEIGHT: 6-foot-3
WEIGHT: 217 pounds
AGE: 30
Trotman is another solid depth defenseman that the Penguins utilize throughout the course of. a season. He has appeared in 24 total games with Pittsburgh going back to the 2017-18 campaign, including eight last year. He brings a different dimension to the Penguins' blue line with his size and physicality. He dealt with a lot of injury issues last season - a sports hernia, concussion and skate blade to the face - but is now healthy and ready to go.
GOALIES
TRISTAN JARRY
HEIGHT: 6-foot-2
WEIGHT: 194 pounds
AGE: 25
The Penguins feel that the sky is the limit for Jarry, who is excited about the opportunity and challenge ahead of him. "He is a really talented goaltender," Sullivan said. "Tristan has grown up a lot. And he deserves a lot of credit for the work he's put in to bring his game to where it's at. And so our expectation is that Tristan stays on that path. And as long as he does that, I believe that he has the ability to be a premier goalie in this league."
CASEY DeSMITH
HEIGHT: 6-foot-0
WEIGHT: 181 pounds
AGE: 29
After signing a three-year, one-way contract extension last January, DeSmith didn't expect to spend the entirety of the 2019-20 campaign in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. But that's what happened after Jarry's breakout season, and DeSmith was proud of how he handled the situation. He was pleased with his numbers and consistency, along with the positive attitude he was able to keep through some tough stretches. Now, DeSmith will return to Pittsburgh as a capable complement to Jarry. DeSmith has 50 games of NHL experience - 36 coming during the 2018-19 season - and has shown the ability to step up when needed.
MAXIME LAGACE
HEIGHT: 6-foot-2
WEIGHT: 190 pounds
AGE: 27
Lagace will serve as the Penguins' third goaltender. He has played in 158 games across six seasons at the AHL level split between Providence, Chicago and Texas, and is coming off of a season where he posted a 22-7-3 record, 2.37 goals-against average, .919 save percentage and five shutouts in 33 appearances with the Bruins. Lagace also has 17 games of NHL experience, all with the Vegas Golden Knights from 2017-19. "He has experience, he's been in this situation before," Rutherford said. "He knows his role. He can do a good job with it."
ALEX D'ORIO
HEIGHT: 6-foot-2
WEIGHT: 209 poinds
AGE: 21
D'Orio completed his first full professional season with Wheeling of the ECHL last season, appearing in 31 games. He then attended Pittsburgh's Phase 3 training camp prior to the playoffs. The young netminder has been with the organization ever since he earned a contract following a strong performance at the 2017 Prospects Challenge in Buffalo. D'Orio had attended Pittsburgh's annual prospect development camp as a free-agent invitee earlier that summer after three seasons in the QMJHL.
