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Erik Karlsson, Pittsburgh Penguins (Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)

Penguins’ Defense Continuing to Improve Early in 2025-26

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers
By Sylvie McCarthy | Last updated Oct 30, 2025 10:25 AM ET

The Pittsburgh Penguins are having a good start to their season, and the infusion of young talent into their lineup has a lot to do with that. Their core is still performing at a high level, but adding players like Ben Kindel and Filip Hallander to the roster has been a huge help. The addition of Parker Wotherspoon on defense has also proved to be a positive move. Heading into this season, there were a lot of question marks surrounding Pittsburgh’s defense, but so far, it has surpassed expectations.

Penguins’ Defense Has Looked Strong to Start the Season

The Penguins’ defense has not been perfect to start the season, but it has definitely improved from last season. Wotherspoon has been a huge part of that. He was their first free agent signing of the summer, and so far, he has been a good fit. He is currently paired with Erik Karlsson on the first pairing, which has seemed to help Karlsson level up his game.

Wotherspoon has provided the stability on the left side that the Penguins have been missing for a while now. In their 4-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings on Oct. 16, he played well in all three zones, and for the most part, he was in the right place at the right time. He is good at making the right reads and shutting things down in his own zone. He has also been a very steady and consistent partner for Karlsson, whose first two seasons in Pittsburgh did not live up to expectations.

The truth is, Karlsson has not had a good defensive partner since he came to Pittsburgh. He is an offensive defenseman, so he needs a partner whose game is strong enough to back him up. Wotherspoon plays a simple, steady game where his partner is the exact opposite. It may just be that contrast is why the two complement each other so well.

The third defensive pairing has had some issues this season. Matt Dumba has been paired with both Harrison Brunicke and Connor Clifton, and the Penguins just recalled Owen Pickering from the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Pickering played in 25 games last season in Pittsburgh and scored one goal and had two assists. Brunicke started out the season strong, scoring his first goal against the New York Islanders on Oct. 9. Since then, his play has been slipping a bit, and at 19 years old, he may not be ready to compete at the NHL level.

In seven games with Wilkes-Barre this season, Pickering has scored one goal and had three assists. He will hopefully add stability to the left side of the Penguins’ defense. He and Brunicke did spend a lot of time paired together during the preseason and seemed to do well together. If Pittsburgh can work out the issues with the third pairing, they will have a mostly solid defense.

Penguins Are Continuing to Improve

No one expected the Penguins to do much of anything this season, let alone go 7-2-2 through their first 11 games. In their win over the Kings, they were down by two goals heading into the second period. They climbed back into that game by staying aggressive and sticking to their game plan. It is never too early to start talking about the playoffs because even though you can’t make the postseason in October, you can miss it. The month of November will bring tough competition, including the Washington Capitals and the New Jersey Devils. Whether or not Pittsburgh can stay consistent remains to be seen, but they have proven that they have what it takes to win.