Rodrigues Plans to Explore Free-Agent Market

CRANBERRY — While it still is possible that Evan Rodrigues will re-sign with the Pittsburgh Penguins, it apparently won’t happen until he has at least explored the open market.

Rodrigues is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent Wednesday at noon, and a source familiar with the situation said via text Tuesday that Rodrigues “is gonna look around” before deciding where he will play next season.

He was a versatile and valuable role player for the Penguins in 2021-22, moving up and down the lineup and logging ice time at all three forward positions.

Evan Rodrigues, who was playing on a one-year contract with a salary-cap hit of $1 million, finished the season with 19 goals and 24 assists in 82 games.

The Penguins acquired Rodrigues and Conor Sheary from Buffalo for Dominik Kahun on Feb. 24, 2020. His rights were traded to Toronto that August in the deal that brought Kasperi Kapanen back here, but rejoined the Penguins as a free agent a couple of months later.

Since coming to the Penguins, Rodrigues has 27 goals and 31 assists in 124 games.

Other members of the 2021-22 Pittsburgh Penguins who are poised to hit the market as free agents Wednesday include Evgeni Malkin, Danton Heinen, Brian Boyle, Louis Domingue and Nathan Beaulieu.