With their back end beset by injuries, including the news Thursday morning that Trevor Daley underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee and would be out six weeks, the Penguins made a trade to bolster their defense.
The Penguins acquired defenseman Ron Hainsey from the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for a 2017 second-round draft pick and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton forward Danny Kristo.
"He’s a real character guy," Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford said of Hainsey. "He’ll fit into our room. We were looking to add an experienced defenseman. He has lots of experience. He probably doesn’t have to play in the same situation here as he did in Carolina. He’s a good penalty killer. That’s an area where we’d like to improve a little bit. He can skate, move the puck and should be able to fit into our system."
Hainsey, 35, makes $2.833 million but will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, meaning he’s likely a rental.
Carolina will retain half of Hainsey’s salary.
"There wasn’t any other choice," Rutherford said. "We’re right up against the cap. If they don’t take back what they did, there’s no deal."
Dealing draft picks is not a habit Rutherford would like to develop, but he did recognize the urgency to acquire a healthy defenseman now.
"We’re still in pretty good shape with our draft," Rutherford said. "We still have seven picks in this year’s draft. It’s more than we’ve had in a long time. This is a year that kind of put a premium on them. Even though it’s not as strong of a draft, we’d like to add a few more players and start to build up the cupboard again."
Rutherford indicated that, within the next 24 hours, the team will decide whether to add a second defenseman.
In addition to Daley, Olli Maatta is out until close to the end of the regular season following hand surgery. Justin Schultz is coming off a concussion, and Kris Letang is day-to-day with an upper-body injury.
"It’s a little bit of a challenge, but I don’t think it’s anything that overwhelming for our team," coach Mike Sullivan said. "We have a good veteran group. I think our guys have a real clear understanding of how we’re trying to play.
"When we add new players into the group, these guys will help them along the way. I don’t think it’s anything where we’re not capable of meeting that challenge."
Penguins players have minimal familiarity with Hainsey, other than the fact that he's been in their division for the past few seasons.
Many spoke of Hainsey's stay-at-home game and experience as traits that could help the team.
"I think he’ll be a good fit for what we’re looking for," Matt Cullen said. "He moves well. He skates well. He’s a big body with long reach. He’s a hard guy to play against because he skates well and he defends hard. Especially with the position we’re in right now with losing a few guys, he’ll be a good addition."
"A pretty steady guy," Sidney Crosby added. "Stay-at-home D man, good skater, can move the puck. That’s kind of his game."
Hainsey has played in all 56 games this season, recording four goals and 14 points. He’s 6-foot-3 and weighs 210 pounds. He also shoots left-handed.
Other stats for Hainsey: He averaged 22:20 minutes of ice time and 3:03 shorthanded, while his 79 hits led Hurricanes defensemen and his 92 blocked shots ranked third.
Although Hainsey has logged 891 NHL games, he's never taken part in the Stanley Cup playoffs, something that figures to change come April.
"I think it’s a breath of fresh air for a player," Sullivan said. "To a certain extent, it’s a new start. He has an opportunity to come in and be a part of a team that has high expectations of itself. I think that is exciting for a player. We really think Ron is going to help us become a better team."
Jason Mackey: jmackey@post-gazette.com and Twitter @JMackeyPG.
First Published: February 23, 2017, 3:32 p.m.
