The Pittsburgh Penguins’ organizational history has a plethora of great players, and we’ve decided to go through the best Penguins’ players to wear each jersey number. Today, we continue the list by naming the best #51 in Penguins’ history.
Well, folks, we’re getting to that part of the list – the part where there aren’t too many options to choose from. There are two players in franchise history who wore #51, and one of them – Dave Roche – was basically a checking forward from 1996-97 who recorded a total of 15 goals and 30 points over two seasons with the Penguins.
The other guy – defenseman Derrick Pouliot – is the guy that wins the day.
Pouliot was the first round draft pick – eighth overall – of the Penguins in 2012. When drafted, there was a lot of hope that Pouliot would be a good offensive defenseman. Expectations were high, especially with his skating ability and his penchant for moving the puck well.
Now age 30, he has never quite put it all together offensively. He spent parts of three seasons with the Penguins from 2014-17, with his best season in Pittsburgh being his first. He recorded two goals and seven points in 34 games.
And he did show a lot of promise in his earlier days with the Penguins. In fact, he scored on his very first shot in his very first NHL game:
After those three seasons with the Penguins, he was traded to the Vancouver Canucks on October 3, 2017, and he had his two best seasons there. He has since played with the St. Louis Blues, Vegas Golden Knights, Seattle Kraken, San Jose Sharks, and Dallas Stars, and he signed a one-year contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning for 2024-25.
Pouliot won the Stanley Cup with Pittsburgh in 2016 and appeared in two playoff games.
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