Some moves are bad, but soon forgotten. Some reverberate. Some continue to hamstring a hockey team long after they are executed.
Exhibit A was and always will be Jim Rutherford's curious decision — putting it mildly — to sign aging defensemen Jack Johnson to a five-year, $16.25 million contract in the summer of 2018.
With apologies to the great Zigmund Palffy, Johnson was the worst free agent signing in franchise history. His contract kept the Penguins from making other constructive moves. It even continued to eat away at their cap long after he was gone, once the famously stubborn Rutherford finally swallowed his pride and called for a buyout.
