Former Penguins defenseman Justin Schultz signs with Capitals
Former Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Justin Schultz signed a two-year contract with the Washington Capitals. The contract will carry a salary cap hit of $4 million.
Just completing a three-year contract with a salary cap hit of $5.5 million, Schultz, 30, spent parts of five seasons with the Penguins and was a member of their Stanley Cup championship teams in 2016 and ’17.
Initially acquired by the Penguins at the 2016 trade deadline in a transaction with the Edmonton Oilers, the right-handed Schultz appeared in 234 career games for the Penguins and scored 113 points (22 goals, 91 assists).
Benefiting from the structure provided by the Penguins under former assistant coaches and Jacques Martin and Sergei Gonchar, Schultz reinvigorated his career in Pittsburgh after largely struggling in Edmonton. His best campaign came in 2016-17 when he appeared in 78 games and scored a career-best 51 points (12 goals, 38 assists).
Injuries hampered Schultz for the better part of the past two seasons. In 2019-20, he was limited to 46 games and 12 points.
With Schultz’s departure, reserve defenseman Chad Ruhwedel is expected to replace him on the right side of the Penguins’ third defensive pairing.
Seth Rorabaugh is a TribLive reporter covering the Pittsburgh Penguins. A North Huntingdon native, he joined the Trib in 2019 and has covered the Penguins since 2007. He can be reached at srorabaugh@triblive.com.
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