Everyone knew Ville Koivunen would get re-signed by the Pittsburgh Penguins at some point this offseason, but it ended with a surprise. General manager Kyle Dubas might've made his boldest, yet foolish move yet as the top decision maker in Pittsburgh. He extended Koivunen's contract with a new eight-year deal worth $32 million.
That is insane for a player who has yet to stick in the NHL.
The good news is that it appears the Penguins could buy themselves out of this contract without an insane penalty if this deal falters. They are betting on Koivunen to turn around his career and finally translate his immense AHL success into a solid contributor for the big club. This is a massive risk by Dubas, but the hope is the young forward will finally take a step forward this season in Pittsburgh.
When news broke about Ville Koivunen's new contract, it's hard not to stack it up to terrible deals the franchise has tossed out before.
Although this move still leaves you scratching your head, there is an escape plan in place in case failure hits. Other moves throughout Penguins history aged like milk under the hot sun. This might be a bad contract, but there were others who might've turn out to be worse.
Pittsburgh Penguins' Ville Koivunen contract could rival terrible deals in franchise history
Tristian Jarry: 5 years $28.87 million
One of the worst moves Kyle Dubas has made as Penguins GM is re-signing Tristian Jarry. Everyone knew it has a high probability to going south at the time of the contract extension, and it soured in a hurry. Dubas was in a tough spot at the time of the deal as the team needed a starting goalie, and Jarry presented to be that option. He flunked out quickly, and luckily Dubas was able to move him.
Ryan Graves: 6 years $27 million
Another massive failure by Kyle Dubas, especially early on was landing Ryan Graves in free agency. For the most part, this contract was praised as many thought Graves would be a nice addition to the Penguins defensive group. Sadly, that failed and not only did Graves regress, but he's unplayable. Three long seasons await until the Penguins finally have him off their books.
Rob Scuderi: 4 years $13.5 million
Bringing back Rob Scuderi seemed like a smart move as the Penguins attempted to get over the hump and win another Stanley Cup. That logic failed on paper as Scuderi never found a fit during his return to Pittsburgh. The good news that resulted from this contract failure was the acquisition of Trevor Daley for Scuderi. Daley turned out to be a massive factor in those Stanley Cup teams.
Jeff Carter: 2 years $6.25 million
Ron Hextall made plenty of puzzling moves during his time in Pittsburgh, but extending Jeff Carter was one of them.
The aging forward was coming off a rebound season but rewarding him early with a two-year deal was bad business. Perhaps waiting to see how the market turned out and sticking with a one-year contract would've sufficed. The Penguins suffered an extra year because of Hextall's miscalculation.
Jack Johnson: 5 years $16.25 million
The free agent addition of Jack Johnson might've triggered the end of the Sidney Crosby Stanley Cup contention window. No one understood why Jim Rutherford signed Johnson to a long-term deal as no other team appeared to want Johnson at the time. It was a failure and eventually led to a buyout. He was a terrible defenseman, cost too much, and the contract length never made any sense.
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