The Pittsburgh Penguins have re-signed forward Josh Archibald and defenseman Derrick Pouliot, it was announced today by executive vice president and general manager Jim Rutherford. Both players signed one-way contracts. Archibald's contract is a two-year deal that contains an average annual value of $675,000. Pouliot inked a one-year deal with an average annual value of $800,000. Both players have contributed to Pittsburgh's back-to-back Stanley Cup championship runs. Archibald skated in four playoff games in 2017. One of Archibald's appearances this spring was in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final against Nashville, which means his name will be engraved on the Cup. Pouliot appeared in two clutch wins in the Washington series during the 2016 Cup run, and earned a day with the Stanley Cup that year. Archibald and Pouliot were also members of the "Black Aces" practice squad. Pouliot, 23, has 67 NHL games under his belt with 14 points (2G-12A). He broke into the NHL in December 2014 and scored on the first shot of his NHL career. He finished the 2014-15 season with 34 games played, and seven points (2G-5A), earning him the Pens' Rookie of the Year award. He has seven assists in 33 games with Pittsburgh over the previous two seasons.
A 6-foot-0, 208-pound Estevan, Saskatchewan native, Pouliot has played three seasons for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League, accumulating 70 points (20G-50A) in 114 games. His combined 47 points (13G-34A) and plus-17 in 2014-15 and '15-16 earned him back-to-back AHL All-Star Game selections. The eighth pick overall pick by Pittsburgh in the first round of the 2012 NHL Draft, Pouliot, played four seasons with the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League (WHL). The Winterhawks won the WHL championship in 2013 behind Pouliot's 20 points (4G-16A) in 21 playoff games. In 2013-14, he was named the CHL Defenseman of the Year, and recorded the most assists (27) and second-most points (32) in the WHL playoffs while serving as the alternate captain.
Archibald, a 24-year-old native of Regina, Saskatchewan, played 10 games at the NHL level this past season, registering three goals and a plus-4, after playing in one game in the 2015-16 season. The 5-foot-10, 176-pound forward had a memorable outing in his first NHL game this season on February 11, 2017 against the Arizona Coyotes, scoring two goals, including his first NHL goal to open the scoring. He also added a shorthanded tally in the third period. Archibald, a sixth-round pick (174th overall) of the Penguins in 2011, spent most of the 2016-17 season with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in the American Hockey League, and put up a career-high 29 points (16G-13A) in 61 games played. He has improved his point total every year he has played in WBS. Archibald came to WBS following a three-year college career at Nebraska-Omaha, where he put up 94 points (58G-36A) over 112 games in three seasons. Following his final season at Omaha (2013-14), Archibald was named NCHC Player of the Year and Forward of the Year, an NCAA First-Team All-American and a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award as the top player in college hockey. He also represented the United States at the 2012 World Junior Championship, appearing in six games and registering two assists.
Niemi - The Pittsburgh Penguins have signed goaltender Antti Niemi to a one-year contract, it was announced today by executive vice president and general manager Jim Rutherford. The deal has an average annual value of $700,000. Niemi, 33, adds a veteran presence for the Penguins to pair in goal with Matt Murray. Like Murray, Niemi has been the starting netminder for a Stanley Cup champion, having won all 16 playoff games for the Chicago Blackhawks during their 2010 championship run.
The 6-foot-2, 215-pound Finnish product is a veteran of eight-plus NHL seasons, having spent the past two years with the Dallas Stars following successful runs between the pipes for Chicago and the San Jose Sharks before his stint in the Lonestar State. A native of Vantaa, Finland, the left-handed-catching Niemi has played in 423 career regular-season games, compiling an overall record of 227-125-51 to accompany his 2.49 goals-against average, .913 save percentage and 35 shutouts. Niemi has four 30-win seasons on his resume.
Since jumping to the NHL on a full-time basis with the Blackhawks in the 2009-10 campaign, Niemi has won 226 regular-season games, the fifth-highest total in the entire league during that span. His 420 games played and 404 starts during that same period rank seventh and eighth, respectively. Niemi, who joined the Blackhawks organization as an undrafted free agent following a lengthy career in the Finnish League, has gone 36-29 in 67 career NHL playoff contests. One year after leading the Blackhawks to the 2010 Stanley Cup title, he backstopped the San Jose Sharks to a Western Conference Final appearance in his first year with that team.
During his two years in Dallas, Niemi split goaltending duties with Kari Lehtonen. Two seasons ago, Niemi saw the majority of the action, winning 25 games in 43 starts as the Stars finished with the second-best record in the NHL, and the top record in the Western Conference. Niemi was teammates with Olli Maatta on the 2014 Finnish Olympic Team that won a bronze medal at the Sochi Games.
Schultz - The Penguins have re-signed defenseman Justin Schultz to a three-year contract, it was announced by executive vice president and general manager Jim Rutherford. The deal runs through the 2019-20 campaign, and it carries an average annual value of $5.5 million.
"Justin plays a very important role for our team," Rutherford said. "It's very good to know that he will be returning to us for the next three years."
Schultz, 26, was a key catalyst in Pittsburgh's second-straight Stanley Cup win, providing a huge boost to an injury-ravaged defensive group by producing a career year. He ended the regular season tied for seventh among all NHL defensemen with a personal-best 51 points (12G-39A) and a plus-27 in 78 games. His plus-minus total was sixth-best among NHL blueliners, while his offensive numbers represented career highs across the board. Schultz emerged as an offensive force during the month of December, when he led all NHL defensemen with six goals and 18 points, becoming the first Pittsburgh D-man since Sergei Zubov in March of 1996 to collect at least 17 points in a calendar month. Only teammates Evgeni Malkin (21 points) and Sidney Crosby (20 points) had more points among all NHL players in December. The 6-foot-2, 193-pound Schultz continued his stellar play right into the postseason, when his 13 points (4G-9A) in 21 contests led the team and placed third (tied) among all league blueliners. His two game-winning goals and seven power-play points led all defenders in the postseason. Schultz opened the scoring in the Pens' pivotal 6-0 victory in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final. Three nights later, Patric Hornqvist scored the Cup-clinching goal by banking a Schultz shot that had missed the cage into the net for the winning marker in the decisive Game 6. Pittsburgh acquired the Kelowna, British Columbia native from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for a 2016 third-round draft pick in February of 2016. Since migrating east to Pittsburgh, Schultz has totalled 59 points (13G-46A) in 96 regular-season games, and has added 17 points (4G-13A) in 36 postseason games. Schultz has skated in 344 career NHL games with Pittsburgh and Edmonton, scoring 41 goals, 119 assists and 160 points. He made the NHL's All-Rookie Team with the Oilers in 2012-13. Schultz was drafted by the Anaheim Ducks in the second-round (43rd overall) of the 2008 NHL Draft. He elected to not sign with the Ducks, and instead joined the Oilers as a free agent after a four-year collegiate career at Wisconsin.
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