Penguins A to Z: John Marino shows he's ready
While the NHL is on hold due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the Tribune-Review will offer Penguins A to Z, a player-by-player look at all 55 individuals under NHL contract with the organization, from mid-level prospect Niclas Almari to high-profile trade acquisition Jason Zucker.
Player: John Marino
Position: Defenseman
Shoots: Right
Age: 23
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 181 pounds
2019-20 NHL statistics: 56 games, 26 points (six goals, 20 assists)
Contract: First year of a two-year entry-level contract with a salary cap hit of $925,000. Pending restricted free agent in 2021.
Acquired: Trade, July 26, 2019
This season: John Marino wasn’t ready for the NHL when he first stepped on the ice for the Penguins.
No, he needed about 2 1/2 periods.
A few minutes into his first professional game, a 5-4 preseason overtime loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Sept. 16 in State College, Marino tried to skate the puck up ice from his zone through the neutral zone and into the offensive zone, an act he likely performed with ease on countless occasions at Harvard.
Sabres defenseman Colin Miller provided an abrasive introduction to Marino on how much more difficult that task was in the NHL by slamming Marino to the ice with a meaty hip check at the center red line.
Early in the third period, Marino showed he was undeterred and made another daring dash up ice, this time up the right wing. From the corner boards, he fed a slick pass to the crease that rookie forward Sam Lafferty converted into a goal.
From that moment on, Marino showed few signs NHL hockey was too overwhelming.
A healthy scratch early in the regular season, Marino eventually earned playing time in favor of veteran defensemen, prompting management to deal away Erik Gudbranson (and his $4 million salary cap hit) to the Anaheim Ducks in mid-October.
Injuries forced Marino to graduate to the second pairing and, even for a little while, the top pairing with fellow right-handed shooter Kris Letang. Additionally, with Justin Schultz hobbled with various ailments, Marino began to see minutes with the second power-play unit. Overall, Marino’s 20 minutes, 15 seconds of average ice time is fifth-most on the team.
Given injuries to the likes of Brian Dumoulin, Letang and Schultz, the Penguins have frankly needed Marino to provide a stabilizing presence.
Seemingly, the only hiccup in Marino’s fine rookie campaign came Feb. 6 when he was struck in the face by a deflected puck. He missed the next 11 games with bone fractures in his face.
He returned to the lineup March 3, and by the time the NHL halted play March 12, Marino was firmly entrenched on the team’s second pairing with Marcus Pettersson and was working with Letang on the second power-play unit.
The future: Marino will be bolted onto Marcus Pettersson assuming the NHL season resumes. Marino’s steady play and Schultz’s struggles have earned Marino that deployment.
Additionally, he is a key component to each special teams unit, particularly the penalty kill as he has averaged a robust 2:02 of short-handed ice time per game this season.
Long-term, general manager Jim Rutherford has suggested Marino and Pettersson could be a duo with the Penguins for a decade.
There’s little evidence Marino isn’t ready for that.
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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