Penguins Return Tomasino for 2nd Chance

Perhaps capping off their methodical day, the Pittsburgh Penguins re-signed winger Philip Tomasino to a one-year deal Tuesday afternoon.

According to the team, the contract is worth $1.75 million for one year.

The Penguins acquired Tomasino from the Nashville Predators last November for a fourth-round pick. The former first-round selection (24th overall in 2019) had fallen out of favor in Nashville, where he had just one assist in 11 games and numerous healthy scratches before the trade.

With the Penguins, the 23-year-old Tomasino scored 11 goals with 12 assists in 50 games, largely playing top-six minutes beside center Evgeni Malkin.

Former coach Mike Sullivan said Tomasino was “all-in” for the effort to learn a complete game, including being harder to play against, winning more puck battles, and defensive zone awareness. Like most of the Penguins, Tomasino was in the red in the negative plus-minus category, at minus-10.

The Penguins declined to qualify Tomasino on Monday, making him an unrestricted free agent on Tuesday. Had Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas tendered a qualifying offer, Tomasino had arbitration rights. Dubas indicated on Monday afternoon that the team and Tomasino were still negotiating.

Earlier, the Penguins also re-signed Connor Dewar to a one-year deal worth $1 million. Dewar was the other RFA forward who was non-tendered a QO.