It hasn't been the start to the season that the Pittsburgh Penguins were hoping for, but it hasn't all been bad. They are in the middle of the standings and have a shot at turning things around if they can figure out a perfect blend of veteran presence and an influx of young players.
They made a massive gamble this past offseason by re-signing Ville Koivunen and things might be looking up for him and the team.
After giving Koivunen an eight-year extension worth $32 million, the Penguins clearly made a gamble. At the point of him putting pen to paper on his new deal, the young forward only had 48 NHL games under his belt and an uninspiring 14 points to go along with it. Things had yet to click, and after a tough start to his season this time around, Koivunen seems to be starting to turn the corner.
Having this young winger emerge as a top forward for this team would be a massive development. His contract is a risk because he has yet to show consistent scoring at the NHL level, but if he does prove he can accomplish that, then Pittsburgh's gamble of extending him long-term could pay off big time. That would mean they would only pay a top nine forward, or better, only four million bucks per year.
Pittsburgh Penguins gamble on Ville Koivunen might be starting to pay off this season
Through 12 games this season, Ville Koivunen has gotten a spot in the lineup for ten of them. It's obvious that Pittsburgh's staff has to see what the young forward has after giving him a ton of money. Any sort of failure to give him a legit shot in the NHL this year would reflect poorly on the organization. Koivunen has yet to set the hockey world on fire, but he's getting more comfortable.
Following his first ten games this season, the young winger has tallied two goals and three assists. That's good enough for a promising five points as of now. It's unfair to assume that Koivunen will keep this momentum going, but if he did, this trajectory would land him a season with 42 points.
He might not become a star, but if he can land somewhere near that production, it would already make the Penguins seem like geniuses by making that contractual gamble.
Perhaps one of the promising things from Koivunen has been him starting to settle into the NHL game. He lit up the AHL for a long time, but for some reason during his short stints of big-league action over the past two years saw him regress. Maybe he is finally starting to get comfortable in Pittsburgh, and it's allowing his game to grow. It would be a great development for the Penguins.
Right now, Koivunen is starting to show he is ready to take a big step in his progression as a player.
In his last five games alone, he's produced a goal and two assists, totaling three points. That level of production is nothing to scoff at. It's either going to turn out to be a blip that disappoints everyone or the start of a solid pro career. Either way, this is the time for Koivunen to finally show he's ready.
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