Strength in numbers is a good thing when entering an NHL season. The Pittsburgh Penguins will have that with their blue line for the second straight season. The latest piece to that puzzle was re-signing 23-year-old offensive defenseman, Ty Smith.
Smith is entering his second season with the Penguins organization after being acquired via a trade with the New Jersey Devils last summer. The log jam on defense, paired with his waiver exemption status, forced Smith into the AHL to begin the season despite outperforming fellow defensive prospect Pierre-Olivier Joseph during camp.
That log jam, as well as a facial fracture later in the season, prohibited Smith from playing most of the season in the NHL. He finished the year with nine games under his belt with the Penguins.
Officially under contract for the 2023-24 season, Smith is no longer exempt from the waiver process and will have a better opportunity to win a roster spot out of training camp. However, most of the defenders who earned spots over Smith last season remain on the roster, with Ryan Graves filling the hole of Brian Dumoulin, the lone departure on the left side.
The potentially pending Erik Karlsson trade could open the door for Smith to earn a roster spot, as any return in that deal would likely involve at least one and possibly multiple defensemen heading back the other way.
As it stands, the two players that stand in Smith's way are Joseph and Mark Friedman. Smith's speed and passing ability give him an edge over Friedman, who doesn't possess as high of a ceiling.
But with Joseph coming off a solid debut season will have the first crack at the third pair spot when camp opens up in September. Smith and Joseph are solid candidates to play alongside stay-at-home defenseman Jan Rutta.
The question then becomes whether or not Smith can outperform Joseph again in camp and if Mike Sullivan is willing to add another offensive-leaning defenseman to his blue line.
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