The Pittsburgh Penguins have handed out an unusually lucrative and lengthy contract extension to a young forward who has had limited NHL production so far in his career.
The team announced on Thursday, Aug. 6 that it had reached an eight-year contract with Ville Koivunen worth an average of $4 million per season. Koivunen was a restricted free agent.
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The 23-year-old was drafted 51st overall by the Carolina Hurricanes in 2021 and was acquired by the Penguins in the deal that sent Jake Guentzel to Raleigh in 2024. He had seven assists in eight games after the trade.
Last season, Koivunen scored two goals and tallied five assists for the Penguins at the NHL level and had 13 goals and 28 assists in 34 games for their Wilkes-Barre/Scranton American Hockey League affiliate. He helped the AHL Penguins reach the conference finals with four goals and five assists in 15 playoff games.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Forward Brady Tkachuk was traded to the Florida Panthers, where he will join brother Matthews.
(James Guillory, Imagn Images)
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Forward Brady Tkachuk was traded to the Florida Panthers, where he will join brother Matthews.
(James Guillory, Imagn Images)
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Forward Pavel Dorofeyev was traded to the New York Rangers.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Defenseman Darnell Nurse was traded to the San Jose Sharks.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Defenseman Simon Nemec was traded to the Calgary Flames.
(Ed Mulholland, Imagn Images)
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Forward Vincent Trocheck was traded to the Utah Mammoth.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Forward JJ Peterka was traded to the Boston Bruins.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Forward Mason McTavish was traded to the St. Louis Blues.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Mavrik Bourque was traded to the Nashville Predators.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Defenseman Bowen Byram was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Forward Alex Tuch joined the Washington Capitals in a sign-and-trade.
(Winslow Townson, Imagn Images)
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Forward Jordan Kyrou was traded to the Washington Capitals.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Goalie Jacob Markstrom was traded to the Florida Panthers.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Forward Blake Coleman was traded to the Minnesota Wild.
(Jerome Miron, Imagn Images)
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Forward Keegan Kolesar was traded to the Detroit Red Wings.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Forward Nick Paul was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Forward William Eklund was traded to the Ottawa Senators.
(Kirby Lee, Imagn Images)
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Defenseman Darren Raddysh joined the Toronto Maple Leafs in a sign-and-trade deal.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Forward Nick Paul was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Defenseman Marcus Pettersson was traded to the New York Rangers.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Goaltender Joonas Korpisalo was traded to the New York Rangers.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
(Dennis Schneidler, Imagn Images)
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Goaltender Frederik Andersen signed with the Edmonton Oilers.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Forward Viktor Arvidsson signed with the Detroit Red Wings.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Forward Mason Marchment signed with the San Jose Sharks.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Defenseman John Carlson was signed by the Tampa Bay Lightning.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Forward Jack Roslovic signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Forward Jaden Schwartz signed with the Colorado Avalanche.
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NHL players who changed teams in the offseason
Defenseman Ian Cole signed with the Chicago Blackhawks.
(Stephen R. Sylvanie, Imagn Images)
It appears that late-season surge was enough to give general manager Kyle Dubas the confidence that Koivunen could be a significant contributor at an affordable rate for the foreseeable future. Koivunen, however, did not appear in any of the Penguins’ first-round Stanley Cup playoff games against the rival Philadelphia Flyers or score in any of his last nine NHL appearances.
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Widening the lens, Koivunen’s total minor league resume does show some promise with 35 goals and 63 assists for a total of 98 points in 109 games between Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and the Chicago Wolves of the AHL.
Still, the urgency to make such a commitment is a bit of a head scratcher for a team that has no other players signed past 2029-30 as franchise legends Sidney Crosby, Kris Letang and Evgeni Malkin wind down their careers.
While Dubas has repeatedly signaled a focus beyond their immediate window to win one more championship, he will face questions about whether Koivunen has earned this bet to be a big part of both the team’s present and distant future.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Pittsburgh Penguins make big bet on Ville Koivunen despite lack of NHL production
