Pittsburgh Penguins: New Contract, Last Chance for Derrick Pouliot
On July 12th Derrick Pouliot signed a one-way deal with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
While this new deal is great news for the young defenseman, it also brings some expectations for his 2017-2018 season. The deal, which carries an average annual value of $800,000, signifies that the Pittsburgh Penguins expect Pouliot to be a mainstay at the NHL level. Being a one-way contract, this means that regardless of whether Pouliot is playing at the NHL or AHL level, he will be earning the $800,000 salary.
Pittsburgh Penguins
This confirms that the Penguins think Pouliot is ready for the show, or at least want him to prove he is worthy of the one-way status. After all, if he is earning the $800k, you would want him to earn it at the higher level.
If it turns out he isn’t ready to hang at the top level, the easy solution would be to send him down. The Penguins don’t want to pay his $800,000 to play in the AHL, but it’s a drop in the bucket. The problem lies in that Pouliot is no longer exempt from waivers.
This means that if #51 wasn’t performing in Pittsburgh, every team would have an opportunity to claim him before he reached the Penguin’s AHL affiliate. But losing him for nothing is not what Penguins management has in mind.
Stat Line
In 67 regular season games, Pouliot has produced 2 goals and 12 assists for 14 points. Drafted 8th overall in 2012 due to his highly toted offensive instinct , he could to be a viable option on the second power-play unit.
He weaknesses lie on his play without the puck. He has a lifetime minus – 11 rating. On a winning team, that doesn’t support any claims regarding his defensive play.
Pouliot has shown he does still posses point producing talent. Last season with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, he put up 23 points in 46 games.
Future with the Pittsburgh Penguins
I believe Pouliot has a solid chance to make the team. He can provide offensive spark from the left side, given that Letang and Schultz are both righties. And the kid did snipe his first shot in the NHL over a pretty decent goaltender.
If the coaching staff doesn’t trust him on the back-end, he will sit. But there is no point on having a one-way contract that doesn’t play on a Cup contenting roster. He’s only 23, and he still has potential (although some Pens fans think otherwise).
Given the options, Derrick Pouliot should be traded if it doesn’t work in 2017-2018. They gave it time, but not too much to diminish his value. He might be able to fetch a player that fills a hole, so come deadline time, he could very well be on the move.