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Penguins re-sign forward Joona Koppanen to 1-year deal | TribLIVE.com
Penguins/NHL

Penguins re-sign forward Joona Koppanen to 1-year deal

Seth Rorabaugh
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In 11 games with the Penguins this past regular season, forward Joona Koppanen had one goal.

The Pittsburgh Penguins re-signed forward Joona Koppanen on Tuesday to a one-year, two-way contract that carries a salary cap hit of $775,000.

Koppanen was scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent July 1. He initially joined the Penguins by signing a two-year, two-way contract with a salary cap hit of $775,000 during the 2023 offseason.

A left-handed shot, the 27-year-old Koppanen appeared in 11 NHL games this past regular season and scored one goal, his first at the NHL level.

Primarily stationed with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton throughout the 2024-25 campaign, Koppanen (6-foot-5, 215 pounds) skated in 56 games for that club and posted 23 points (eight goals, 15 assists) while largely operating as a bottom-six center.

With Koppanen re-signed, 17 players who finished the 2024-25 season under contract with the Penguins are scheduled to become free agents with regard to their NHL status on July 1:

Unrestricted

Forwards: Jimmy Huntington, Marc Johnstone, Mathias Laferriere, Matt Nieto

Defensemen: Nathan Clurman, Matt Grzelcyk, Mac Hollowell, Filip Kral, Colton Poolman

Restricted

Forwards: Raivis Ansons, Emil Bemstrom, Connor Dewar, Vasily Ponomarev, Philip Tomasino

Defensemen: P.O Joseph, Conor Timmins

Goaltender : Taylor Gauthier

(Notes: Ansons has signed an AHL contract with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton for the 2025-26 season. Hollowell, Kral and Ponomarev have signed contracts with European teams.)

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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Categories: Penguins/NHL | Sports
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