Penguins A to Z: Jeff Carter finishes his story

With the Pittsburgh Penguins’ 2023-24 season coming to an end without any postseason action, the Tribune-Review will offer Penguins A to Z, a player-by-player look at all 51 individuals signed to an NHL contract — including those whose deals do not begin until next season — with the organization, from fourth-line center Noel Acciari to reserve winger Radim Zohorna.

This series is scheduled to be published every weekday leading into the second day of the NHL Draft on June 29.

(Note: All contract information courtesy of Cap Friendly.)

Jeff Carter

Position: Center

Shoots: Right

Age: 39

Height: 6-foot-3

Weight: 219 pounds

2023-24 NHL statistics: 72 games, 15 points (11 goals, four assists), 12:34 of ice time per game

Contract: In the final year of a two-year contract with a salary cap hit of $3.25 million. Pending unrestricted free agent this upcoming offseason.

(Note: Carter’s contract had a full no-movement clause.)

Acquired: Trade, April 12, 2021

This season: Seemingly from the moment he was acquired at the 2021 trade deadline, the Penguins were in awe of Jeff Carter.

And not just the younger, inexperienced members of the team.

The older core players who had better resumes than Carter revered him as if they collected his hockey cards.

“Guys want to be around him off the ice, like at dinners,” Penguins defenseman Kris Letang said in 2021. “Or when we’re just hanging out, they want to be around him listening to the stories.”

The story of Carter’s career came to an end this season as he announced his retirement following the Penguins’ regular season finale on April 17.

Carter’s tale had plenty of question marks entering the 2023-24 campaign. Mainly, where did a forward in his late 30s with fading foot speed fit into a lineup supposedly predicated on quick skating (to say nothing of an era of hockey that demands it)?

After all, Carter faded badly down the stretch of the 2022-23 season and with new management taking over the team – the previous regime made the dubious decision to give Carter a two-year contract extension early in the 2022 calendar year – there were plenty of questions of how Carter would be situated in a retooled roster.

As it turned out, not much changed for Carter as far as where he was stationed. Much like the conclusion of his 2022-23 season, he entered 2023-24 as a right winger on the fourth line.

Opening the season with center Noel Acciari and left winger Matt Nieto as linemates, Carter adapted to a lesser role than what he was typically accustomed to as an All-Star earlier in his marvelous career.

Things started slowly for Carter as he went without a point in his first nine games of the season and wound up becoming a healthy scratch for the first time in his career for two games at the start of November.

When injuries struck incumbents in the lineup, Carter returned to the ice and by the end of the month, Carter scored his first goal of the season, a game-winning score in a 4-2 road win against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Nov. 30.

Pittsburgh goal!

Scored by Jeff Carter with 17:11 remaining in the 3rd period.

Assisted by Matt Nieto and Marcus Pettersson.

Tampa Bay: 2
Pittsburgh: 3#PITvsTBL #GoBolts #LetsGoPens pic.twitter.com/wEx0hH0gcV

— NHL Goals (@nhl_goal_bot) December 1, 2023

(Note: The far more notable offensive contribution in that game came from Tristan Jarry, who became the first goaltender in franchise history to score a goal.)

Despite his limitations at this stage of his career, Carter found ways to be useful for the Penguins. Most notably, he was their most successful faceoff specialist, winning 62.5% of his draws (265 wins, 159 losses). And he managed to carve out steady roles on the second power-play unit (1:40 of average power-play ice time per contest) and the penalty kill (1:27 of average short-handed ice time per game).

And while Carter’s offensive figures were only a fraction of the prolific figures he provided earlier in his career, he did manage to share the team lead in game-winning goals (four).

In a vacuum (i.e. without considering Carter’s ample salary cap hit), his production was satisfactory for a fourth-liner primarily playing with the likes of Acciari and Jansen Harkins.

Arguably, Carter’s most impressive goal of the season was the penultimate score in his career. During a 6-5 home overtime win against the Detroit Red Wings on April 11, Carter, while killing a penalty, broke up a pass by Red Wings forward Daniel Sprong, found a reserve speed burst, chased down the puck in the neutral zone and attacked the net, putting a dart of a wrister by goaltender Alex Lyon’s blocker on the far side.

10 goals on the season for Big Jeff Carter! ????

This is the 19th season Carter has reached double-digit goals, a feat that only 25 players in @NHL history have accomplished. pic.twitter.com/DR938qc9vW

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) April 12, 2024

Less than a week later, with the Penguins formally eliminated from playoff contention, the team found motivation in celebrating Carter’s career during a 5-4 road loss to the Islanders. In the late stages of that contest, Crosby, one of Carter’s most fervent teammates/fans, did everything he could to set up Carter for his 11th goal of the season (and the 442nd of his career). During a power-play sequence in the third period, Crosby slipped a clever backdoor pass to the left of the crease for an easy tap-in by Carter.

Power play goal for Pittsburgh!

Scored by Jeff Carter with 09:04 remaining in the 3rd period.

Assisted by Sidney Crosby and Michael Bunting.

New York: 4
Pittsburgh: 4#PITvsNYI #Isles #LetsGoPens pic.twitter.com/ZQS0WZiyj3

— NHL Goals (@nhl_goal_bot) April 18, 2024

Barely an hour afterward, Carter formally announced he was retiring after 19 seasons in the NHL.

The future: In the immediate sense, the only thing in Carter’s future is whatever interest his children have, be it youth hockey practices, dance recitals or anything of that ilk. He’s done as a hockey player and has become a full-time dad.

It was a wonderful — albeit imperfect — script that allowed Carter to finish his story on his terms.

Follow the Penguins all season long.