Penguins Ink Ruhwedel to 2-Year Deal

The Pittsburgh Penguins signed defenseman Chad Ruhwedel to a two-year contract, the team announced via Twitter Thursday afternoon. The defenseman appeared in only 18 games for the Penguins this season, as the team struggled to find a consistent top-six defensive corps.

The deal is for a reasonable $700,000 per season and runs through 2020-21.

Ruhwedel posted two points and a minus-nine rating in 18 games this season and spent most of the year as a healthy scratch.

“Chad has exemplified what it means to be a team player the past two years. His work ethic and conditioning have allowed him to jump into the lineup at a moments notice, which is vital to a team,” said Penguins General Manager Jim Rutherford in a team statement.

Ruhwedel, 29, just completed a two-year, $1.3 million contract which he signed after a surprising show in the NHL on the Penguins 2016-17 Stanley Cup championship team. In 96 career games with the Penguins, Ruhwedel has five goals and 17 points. The Buffalo Sabres signed the right-handed defenseman as an undrafted free agent in 2012-13 after three seasons at UMass-Lowell.

Ruhwedel is the Penguins seventh signed defenseman for the 2019-20 season, and Finnish rookie Juuso Riikola will be a restricted free agent.