Penguins Wrap: All’s (Mostly) Quiet on the Offseason Front

The early weeks of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ longest offseason in nearly two decades have been as uneventful as many of their power players were during the 2022-23 season.

GM Ron Hextall and president of hockey operations Brian Burke were fired the day after the Penguins’ regular-season finale, but there have only been a few minor personnel moves since then.

Fenway Sports Group officials have done a good job of keeping the details of their search for Hextall’s replacement quiet, and until that hire is made, it’s unlikely that significant steps to prepare the team to get back into the Stanley Cup playoffs next spring will be taken.

Here’s a look back at the past seven days, including one player leaving the organization and another opting to stay with it:

Sunday

The Pittsburgh Penguins are going to have to decide whether they’re going to try to re-sign No. 1 goalie Tristan Jarry, a free-agent-to-be who has been injury-prone and had an up-and-down season.

Monday

Upon further review, the NHL needs to seriously reduce the amount of time spent on doing frame-by-frame evaluations of plays that might have been offside.

Tuesday

There’s no question that Mikael Granlund was a profound disappointment after the Penguins acquired him from Nashville as the NHL trade deadline approached. That doesn’t necessarily mean that getting rid of him should be a top priority.

Alex Nylander has shown that he’s capable of playing in the NHL. His challenge now is to demonstrate that he can do it on a regular basis.

Wednesday

Could Drew O’Connor and Ryan Poehling help to offset the issues caused by having a roster with so many older players?

Thursday

With Jason Zucker’s contract about to expire, what would a reasonable new deal for him look like?

Friday

The Penguins can’t afford to Ron Hextall’s successor as GM be someone who requires on-the-job training.

Versatile forward Filip Hallander, a second-round draft choice in 2018 who appeared in two games with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2022-23, is returning to his native Sweden.

Saturday

Here are five free-agents-to-be who could help the Penguins change their culture.

One day after Filip Hallander opted to resume his career in Sweden, countryman Alex Nylander re-signed with the Penguins, accepting a one-year, one-way contract.