Soon as I Get Home

Penguins GM Gurtowski has once again been methodically assembling a team that will hopefully allow them to make a strong push for the Stanley Cup. While we’ve already seen a handful of big moves, there are little moves to be considered as well.

It was announced yesterday that the Penguins had acquired Andrew Ladd (and cash considerations) from the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for a 5th round pick in 2023 (Montreal’s pick, previously acquired from the Colorado Avalanche). Ladd joins the Penguins for his second tour of duty and looks to add to the 192 points he scored in 243 games for the Penguins from 2014 to 2018.

Ladd’s role with the Penguins will be different from what it was five years ago. Once a top-6 scorer who logged big minutes, Ladd now finds himself in the twilight of his career as a bottom-six energy guy that provides leadership and 37 games of playoffs experience, which is especially important when considering that this team is still largely inexperienced when it comes to playoffs.

When asked by the media about his return to the Penguins, Ladd was quoted as saying the following:

“It’s all thanks to Twitter, to be honest. When the insiders shared that Pittsburgh was looking to add another forward, my agent came to me and asked if that was something I was wanting to explore. I knew that Vegas was probably going to move me at the deadline, so I decided to be proactive and have my agent put the wheels in motion. My brief time in Vegas was great, but coming back to Pittsburgh to hopefully finish the job feels right.”

This trade also allows the Penguins to return Jacob Peterson to the AHL, giving their stacked group another shot in the arm for their own playoff push. We’ll see if there is more to come as we creep towards the deadline.