Penguins sign defenseman Jan Rutta to three-year, $8.25 million deal

The Pittsburgh Penguins delighted many in their fan base when they confirmed late Tuesday night they had come to terms on what had become somewhat of an unexpected extension with superstar center Evgeni Malkin. That transaction will keep Pittsburgh's "big three" of Malkin, Sidney Crosby and Kris Letang together for the foreseeable future. 

Somebody else, however, could soon be on his way out. 

Pittsburgh general manager Ron Hextall announced via a Wednesday media release that the team has signed defenseman Jan Rutta to a three-year contract. The deal is worth $8.25 million, runs through the 2024-25 NHL season and carries an average annual value of $2.75 million. 

As ESPN's Greg Wyshynski explained, Rutta spent the past four seasons with the Tampa Bay Lightning and was part of the squads that won Stanley Cup titles for 2019-20 and 2020-21. Most recently, the 31-year-old recorded three goals, 15 assists and a plus-25 rating over 76 regular-season games in 2021-22. He then went on to appear in 17 playoff contests and tallied one goal and four assists during the springtime postseason tournament. 

Wyshynski adds the Penguins could eventually trade a defenseman away to free up salary-cap space this summer now that they have Rutta on the books.