The re-signing of goalie Alex Nedeljkovic makes zero sense for the Penguins. Unless they trade starter Tristan Jarry.
Nedeljkovic is reasonably priced at $5 million over two years. (I thought he could get more elsewhere.) He’s a solid journeyman-level goalie.
But retaining Nedeljkovic, 28, forms a crowd at the goaltending position. It blocks Joel Blomqvist’s ascension to the NHL.
Blomqvist, 22, is one of the few bona fide prospects in the Penguins’ system. Blomqvist had a 2.16 goals-against average and .921 save percentage for the franchise’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton farm team last season. He’s legit.
Blomqvist may or may not be ready for the NHL. But promoting him would be worth the risk. Maybe he can succeed immediately like Matt Murray. That happens sometimes. Blomqvist is on an entry-level contract with a cap hit of $886,667.
If Blomqvist and Nedeljkovic were the Penguins’ goaltending tandem, that would be competent and cheap. It creates room to spend elsewhere.
So, the Penguins have to trade Jarry. That’s the only way keeping Nedeljkovic computes. Like Donnie Iris.
Re-upping Nedeljkovic is likely a sign that president of hockey ops/GM Kyle Dubas feels he can swap Jarry.
It won’t be easy. Goaltending has become a largely generic position in the NHL. Jarry carries a cap hit of $5.375 million through 2028. That’s too much, too long. There won’t be great demand.
The Penguins extended Jarry last July because he was the devil they knew. Which is exactly why they shouldn’t have.
Jarry was same old, same old this past season: He appeared unconcerned, not least when Nedeljkovic took the No. 1 spot away from him during the stretch run. The Penguins didn’t like his reaction (or lack thereof) to that.
Jarry, 29, doesn’t rise to big moments. He’s prone to crippling mistakes, like his turnover in the second overtime that lost a playoff game to the New York Islanders in 2021. He’s been with the Penguins eight years and never won a playoff series. He oozes inconsistency.
His stats last season weren’t great: 19-25-5 record, 2.91 goals-against, .903 save percentage. His career numbers are OK. Pretty good.
But whatever it is Jarry never had, he still hasn’t got.
It’s not a matter of what Dubas can get for Jarry. It’s about dumping his cap hit without absorbing too much cap in return. Jarry and Nedeljkovic at a combined cap hit of $8.775 is not enough quality at a cap-damaging price.
Los Angeles might have been interested, but Dubas likely didn’t want to take on center Pierre-Luc Dubois’ contract (eight years, $68 million) or attitude (lousy). So, Dubois went to Washington for goalie Darcy Kuemper.
The Penguins need to change. They’ve been stale for years.
Ditching Jarry won’t cure that. But it won’t hurt. Giving Blomqvist a shot makes sense.
The locker room trusts Nedeljkovic.
He started the last 13 games of the season as the Penguins went 8-2-3 to nearly make the playoffs.
Nedeljkovic wasn’t always brilliant throughout that stretch, but he visibly battled. Jarry often visibly doesn’t.
Sullivan kept going back to Nedeljkovic during said run, starting him back-to-back nights at the New York Rangers and New Jersey on April 1-2. That told a tale. Has Sullivan lost faith in Jarry?
Nedeljkovic finished the year 18-7-7 with a 2.97 goals-against average and .906 save percentage. Mostly comparable to Jarry’s stats, but at a lower price and with a better record.
Trading Jarry would absolutely be the right move, and that’s regardless of what he brings in return.
It’s time for the Penguins, at long last, to turn some pages. Like Bob Seger.
