As the Pittsburgh Penguins’ most recent Stanley Cup grows further into the rearview mirror, there stands only four players left under contract for next season who appeared in that 2017 championship run.
Sidney Crosby, of course. His running mate, Jake Guentzel, was a rookie that year. Brian Dumoulin isn’t surprising, either.
So who’s the fourth? In light of their expiring contracts, it’s not Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang or Bryan Rust. That means by late summer, the Penguins’ fourth-longest tenured player could be … Chad Ruhwedel?
It’s true. And coming off his best NHL season and armed with a two-year contract extension, the reliable defenseman’s Penguins career doesn’t seem to be ending any time soon, either.
“I’ve stuck here for the last six years, and they’ve had me and it’s been a good fit,” Ruhwedel said this week after the Penguins’ season ended.
“Having a full season being in the lineup, contributing every night, it’s been great for the confidence and the mental side of this sport. So overall, very happy it went the way it did this year.”
While negotiations with All-Star Kris Letang continue to unfold, the #Penguins on Saturday inked Chad Ruhwedel to a two-year contract that carries a salary cap hit of $800,000. https://t.co/ARMdyLdIMK
— Tribune-ReviewSports (@TribSports) February 23, 2022
Ruhwedel appeared in 85 of the Penguins’ 89 games this season (counting playoffs). He manned the right side of the Penguins’ third defense pairing for 78 of their 82 regular-season games, blowing past his previous career high of 44 games.
Through five previous seasons in the organization, the 44 games Ruhwedel played in 2017-18 represented the only time he appeared in more than half of the Penguins’ games. His worth and value to the Penguins were exhibited in that they kept signing him: his current deal is the fifth contract (all in one or two years in length).
But depth at the position and other quality options for coach Mike Sullivan to choose from often left Ruhwedel as a mere “break glass in case of emergency” option as a No. 7 or No. 8 defenseman.
That changed this past season when Ruhwedel earned himself a spot in the lineup for the opener at the Tampa Bay Lightning. He appeared in every Penguins game over that first calendar month of the season.
Ruhwedel’s only missed games in 2021-22 came in November because of a stint in NHL covid-19 protocols. Counting the playoffs, Ruhwedel finished the season on a streak of 76 games played.
“That was a goal after last year ended, to just try to get into the lineup every night,” Ruhwedel said. “It was nice for that to come to fruition.”
All those games allowed Ruhwedel to achieve career highs in goals (four), assists (nine) and points (13). Of course, Ruhwedel’s game isn’t at all centered around offense. In averaging 15 minutes, 20 seconds of ice time per game, Ruhwedel accumulated the Penguins’ third-most hits (149) and fourth-most blocked shots (86). Only three players played more minutes killing penalties for the Penguins.
Ruhwedel’s advanced metrics relating to possession compare favorably among the team’s other regular defensemen. Per naturalstattrick.com, Ruhwedel led Penguins defenseman in the all-encompassing “team expected goals for percentage” while he was on the ice 5-on-5. Ruhwedel ranked in the top three among the seven defensemen who played significantly for the Penguins this season in percentage of attempted shots, shots on goal and scoring chances the team generated relative to opponents at 5-on-5 when he was on the ice.
It took until his age-31 season for Ruhwedel to establish himself as an NHL regular. He believes maintaining consistency is what it will take to allow him to hold onto that role going forward.
“Playing every night, that definitely helps,” Ruhwedel said, “but there have been times through the year I thought my game could have been better. Just trying to iron out those wrinkles. Obviously contributing offensively is nice, but my goal first is definitely contributing on the defensive side and being sound and steady back there. So (the goal is) a lot of the same thing going into next year I’d say.”
