Defenseman Erik Karlsson finding himself in an unfamiliar spot: on the Penguins' penalty kill

On Monday, Erik Karlsson did something he’s expected to do on a regular basis.

He scored a goal.

The defenseman’s first goal of the season opened the scoring during a 4-3 road loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs.

He also did something he’s been doing with somewhat surprising regularity for the past two weeks.

He killed a penalty.

During the Maple Leafs’ lone power-play opportunity, Karlsson led all Penguins defensemen with 1:16 of short-handed ice time.

Overall, this season, Karlsson has averaged 1:48 of short-handed ice time in 14 games. But he didn’t become a steady presence on the penalty kill until a 5-1 home win against the Vancouver Canucks on Oct. 21. In that contest, he was often one of the first players over the boards to start the kill as he totaled 3:15 of short-handed ice time.

In the eight games since Oct. 21, Karlsson has clocked a robust average of 2:52 of short-handed ice time per contest. Only his regular defensive partner, Parker Wotherspoon, has averaged more (3:01) over that span.

“Overall, our (penalty kill) has been good all year,” Karlsson said in Cranberry on Oct. 26. “It seems like we’re coming up big when we have to, which is huge.”

Penalty killing hasn’t exactly been a huge part of what is often celebrated about Karlsson, a three-time winner of the James Norris Memorial Trophy as the league’s top defenseman.

In fact, the first seven letters of his position’s title are often a point of scrutiny directed at Karlsson.

That’s a diplomatic way of suggesting he isn’t often accused of playing stiff defense.

A quick examination of Karlsson’s short-handed ice time during his previous two seasons as a member of the Penguins would validate that postulate.

Between the 2023-24 and 2024-25 campaigns, Karlsson averaged only 28 seconds of short-handed ice time per game. In contrast, journeymen defensemen such as John Ludvig (51 seconds) and P.O Joseph (38 seconds) outpaced him over that span.

To be certain, Karlsson has killed penalties regularly prior to joining the Penguins. But his most recent season in which he was north of two minutes of penalty killing ice time per game came in 2019-20 as a member of the San Jose Sharks (2:35 per contest).

Chaz Palla | TribLive

Penguins defenseman Erik Karlsson logged 2:40 of short-handed ice time during a 6-3 win against the St. Louis Blues on Oct. 27.

“He has killed penalties before,” coach Dan Muse said. “Just maybe not as much recently, but he has. He has experience there. Every defenseman needs to be ready to kill penalties. … Typically, you’re going to have some that are killing more than others. But I think every defenseman in your lineup needs to have the ability to.

“He’s gone out there, he’s done a good job. You see it there in terms of his skating, especially not allowing (opponents) teams to maybe enter the (offensive) zone. Being up on the lines, just good gaps, a number of instances there of good stick detail in zone as well. And he’s able to take away time and space as well just with his skating.”

Karlsson professes ease with the task.

“Penalty killing isn’t very hard, I don’t think, at least for the (defensemen), unless you get stuck out there for an extended period of time,” Karlsson said. “But as a forward, I think you skate a lot more. As a (defensemen), I think it’s more about positioning and relying on some bounces in front of the net here and there.”

Defenseman Ryan Shea, one of the team’s more regular penalty killers with an average of 2:30 of short-handed ice time per contest, likes what Karlsson offers in that domain.

“’Karl’ is ‘Karl.’ He’s good at everything,” Shea said. “You can see it in the way he breaks out the puck. He almost acts like it’s five on five. He uses those little bumps to the middle to secure the clear. He’s such a smart player that he can play in any role. I think he’s actually enjoying the (penalty kill).

“It’s just another opportunity for him.”

Karlsson concurs with Shea’s suggestion.

“I enjoy killing penalties,” Karlsson said. “I think it’s a fun aspect of the game. It feels nice to be able to do it again.”

With Karlsson’s contributions, the Penguins’ penalty kill has been sturdy. Through Monday, they are 10th in the NHL with a success rate of 83.3% (7 goals against on 42 opposing power-play chances).

“Hopefully, we can continue doing a good job as a team,” Karlsson said. “And we can keep it as is.”

Note: The Penguins had a scheduled day off Tuesday.