The Penguins have signed Jan Rutta to a three year deal worth 8.25M. It will be for an AAV of 2.75M. The big factor I see is that he is right-handed. I think I hear John Marino's music. Maybe the Penguins are looking to make a big splash.

Rutta won back-to-back Stanley Cups with Tampa Bay recently. He is currently 31 years old.



He's just a guy. Just kind of there.

Personally, I would rather move one of the left-handed defenseman, but Marino is likely the player most coveted among other teams.

I can't help but look west to Jim Rutherford and the Vancouver Canucks. Rutherford recently said he was unable to clear the cap space he wanted to. The team then signed Ilya Mikheyev to a four-year deal worth a 4.75M AAV. Currently on Capfriendly the Canucks are the team with the second fewest room in the salary cap. Technically, they are 2.75M over the cap at the moment. JT Miller and Connor Garland are two potential players who could help the Penguins. I could see a Marino/Kapanen combo being in play here.

There's definitely more to the Rutta deal. We'll have to see where this plays out. I think it ends with Marino being traded for an impact forward, but we still might see a left D head out

Penguins hand added former Lightning defenseman Jan Rutta for three years at $2.75M average annual value. That gives them nine defensemen on one-way deals, which means at least one move is coming.
Have heard they’re taking calls on multiple left-side defensemen, for cap relief.

— Rob Rossi (@Real_RobRossi) July 13, 2022

Thanks for reading!

Join the Discussion: » 429 Comments » Post New Comment

» Sidney Crosby's 600th provides a sliver of light in a season of darkness

» Jets might be gettable

» They are who they are

» Jake is back

» Ain't nobody messing with you, but you