Penguins' defensive depth about to get tested ... again

Having spent nearly four decades managing hockey teams, Jim Rutherford has a pretty firm grasp on the basic tenets of his vocation.

So, he probably doesn’t need many refreshers.

But the Pittsburgh Penguins’ general manager certainly received one last season when all sorts of maladies forced his team to dress 10 defensemen over the course of 69 regular-season games.

It’s good to have a whole bunch of defensemen under contract, particularly when a lot of them get injured.

“You probably don’t need to be reminded,” Rutherford said by phone Wednesday. “You’re well aware. If you don’t have the depth at certain positions, it’s going to get you.”

All of four games into this1 season, the Penguins will be tapping into the defensive depth Rutherford stockpiled in the offseason.

With Mike Matheson (undisclosed) and Zach Trotman (right knee) already on injured reserve, Marcus Pettersson and Juuso Riikola left Tuesday’s 5-4 overtime home win over Washington with undisclosed ailments.

Rutherford did not provide an update on their statuses but acknowledged his team likely will be turning to some of its reserve defensemen moving forward.

“You can never have enough experience at those positions, and certainly in a shortened season,” Rutherford said. “We didn’t expect it all to unfold quite this quick. But it did.”

The three leading candidates to step in are right-handed Cody Ceci as well as left-handers Pierre-Olivier Joseph and Kevin Czuczman.

At the moment, Ceci is on the NHL roster, and Joseph and Czuczman are on the taxi squad.

Considering Matheson, Pettersson and Riikola are each southpaws, Joseph or Czuczman offer immediate relief on the port side. But Ceci, whom Rutherford signed to a one-year deal worth $1.25 million in October, is the most experienced (and compensated) member of that trio.

Rutherford didn’t offer any specifics on any potential promotions but endorsed all three candidates.

Ceci, 27, made his Penguins debut during the team’s season-opening 6-3 road loss to the Flyers on Jan. 13. Primarily used on the third pairing, Ceci logged 16 minutes, 29 seconds of ice time on 20 shifts and took a slashing penalty. After that, he was replaced in the lineup by Chad Ruhwedel, a fellow right-hander.

“He played fine in the game that he played,” Rutherford said. “And from the first day of camp, I thought he just got better and better and better as each day went by. Starting to get used to his new teammates and a new system and all that, it takes a little bit of time. The change was made because Chad had such a good camp, and (management) wanted to give him an opportunity. Chad went in and continued to play well. Cody just needs to build on what he’s already done here and go from there.”

Joseph, a former first-round pick of the Arizona Coyotes in 2017 who was acquired by the Penguins in a 2019 deal involving star forward Phil Kessel, opened the season on the practice squad and appears to be in line for his first promotion to the NHL roster.

“He had a terrific camp,” Rutherford said. “He’s ahead of his development of where we projected him. We’re very pleased with that. Right from camp, keeping him on the taxi squad, we’re looking forward to getting him into games. Here’s the opportunity early. He’s going to go in and have to get used to a new partner and all of that. Hopefully, that can happen very quickly.”

Listed at 6-foot-2 and 185 pounds, the 21-year-old beefed up considerably since 2019-20 when, as a first-year professional with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League, he competed at 161 pounds.

“He plays a certain style of a game where he’s got that long reach, and he can move the puck,” Rutherford said. “Adding that extra strength is going to make it easier for him in that position.”

A member of the Penguins organization for four seasons, Czuczman, 30, has not played in the NHL since he appeared in 13 games for the New York Islanders in 2013-14. But a strong training camp (as well as injuries to the incumbents) may allow him to step into the lineup.

“And he can play both sides, which is an advantage,” Rutherford said. “We felt he had a very good camp. We felt his foot speed was better. We trust him. He gets moved up. He’s on the taxi squad now and available for the coach if he wants him.”

Also stepping into a bigger role potentially will be Ruhwedel. Always ready and reliable but infrequently deployed, Ruhwedel has become the archetype for defensive depth throughout his five seasons with the Penguins.

Ruhwedel’s ability step into the lineup and offer a steady 18-19 minutes of safe, conservative, fundamentally sound play after long stretches of healthy scratches largely has become his trademark.

“We’ve grown to expect it now,” Rutherford said. “I have not seen many guys that can do what he does, (sitting) as long as he does. But to his credit, he’s focused. He works very hard to prepare himself on a day-to-day basis even when he’s not playing, which for a professional athlete, that’s difficult to do. But Chad’s one of those guys that’s figured out how to do it and does it very well.”

Rutherford seemed hesitant to suggest prospects such as Cam Lee or Josh Maniscalco, each entering his first professional season with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, could get a recall to the taxi squad. But he didn’t rule it out.

“That would be pushing them a little bit in their development,” Rutherford said. “But that’s part of the discussion here over the next few days as far as where we go with our depth.”

Rutherford also touched base on a handful of other subjects as it pertains to his the start of his team’s season after four games.

• The play of Tristan Jarry has not gone as planned as he enters his first season as the Penguins’ top goaltender. In two games, he is 0-2-0 with a 7.57 goals-against average and .727 save percentage. Over the past two games, he has served as the backup to Casey DeSmith.

Rutherford preached patience.

“I don’t have any concerns,” Rutherford said. “When you’re put in a new position as the No. 1 guy, the expectations are higher and then you’re under more of a microscope. And when the goals start going in, even more of a microscope. We, right out of the gate, played one of the top teams in the East (Division), in their building. And things just weren’t going his way and the team’s way. I don’t put a lot of stock into it. I don’t point the finger at him. He’s just got to keep working at it, and he’ll work his way through it.”

• Rutherford finally saw the first player he drafted as the team’s general manager suit up for the team. Forward Kasperi Kapanen, a first-round pick in 2014, made his Penguins debut Tuesday, recording an assist on the team’s first goal while logging 10:02 of ice time on 16 shifts.

A native of Finland, Kapanen’s arrival to the team was delayed a few weeks after his application for a work visa was held up several months. Given his lack of practice time with his teammates, he was deployed conservatively on the fourth line most of the contest.

“That was good to see,” Rutherford said. “He’s got some catching up to do, timing-wise, conditioning-wise. He was used in a limited role, but he made a difference in that game. Just watching him in a short period of time … we know what he can do. He’s got a lot to offer. “

• Given the lack of a true training camp and any preseason games following a lengthy layoff because of the pandemic, the Penguins’ games have hardly been crisp, detailed affairs. And they’re not alone. Most of the NHL’s contests in its first week of play have been sloppy but entertaining displays.

“That’s what we talked about from the start when we talked about what to expect,” Rutherford said. “My answer was, you don’t know what to expect. That’s what we’re seeing now from period to period.”

How long will it take for NHL games to take on a more regimented look?

“I don’t know what the time frame is as a whole,” Rutherford said. “But … teams will get more and more comfortable with each other, and it will settle in at some point.”

Follow the Penguins all season long.