PITTSBURGH — The Penguins are giving Kasperi Kapanen one more chance — actually, two.
The club and the mercurial winger agreed to terms Thursday on a two-year contract. The deal runs through 2023-24 and carries a $3.2 million average annual value.
Kapanen just completed a three-year deal with the same exact $3.2 million AAV. The Penguins needed to submit a qualifying offer of just $840,000 to retain the restricted free agent's rights, due to the front-loaded nature of his prior deal.
However, that was far less than his market value and largely just a placeholder. While both sides were optimistic a deal would come together, Kapanen filed for salary arbitration last week to protect his value. This agreement avoids that unpleasant process.
PuckPedia projects the Penguins are now $1.3 million over the cap, but they can become compliant by sending a few players on the roster's fringe to the minors.
The Penguins had high hopes for Kapanen when former general manager Jim Rutherford gave up a package that included a first-round pick in August 2020 to acquire the Finnish forward. The team figured Kapanen's speed and big shot would be showcased in Mike Sullivan's speed-oriented attack.
During his first year in Pittsburgh, Kapanen started slowly after a visa issue delayed his debut. But then, he took off, discovering real chemistry alongside Evgeni Malkin. He finished the shortened 2020-21 season netting 11 goals and 19 points in 40 games. That would have been a career-high in goals if you extrapolate it over an 82-game stretch.
As Kapanen prepared for Year 2 in Pittsburgh, Sullivan sang his praises in the preseason. The coach believed Kapanen could become an "elite" player in the league if he continued his evolution.
The opposite unfolded.
Kapanen's contract year became a challenging one. He was half as productive in a sample size twice as large, registering 11 goals and 21 assists in 79 games. As a result, Kapanen often slid from a top-six role into the bottom six. Twice, he was demoted to the press box as a healthy scratch.
"You're trying to help players through some of the ups and downs," Sullivan said after one of those demotions. "Sometimes, players need words of encouragement. Sometimes, tough love is helpful."
Finally, in the postseason series against the New York Rangers, Kapanen played some of his best hockey of the year. When Rickard Rakell's concussion opened a void on Malkin's wing, Kapanen stepped in to show some of the same attributes that made him look like a fit there in the first place.
Much more consistently, he got to the scoring areas, used his speed to his advantage and unleashed a shot that's one of the best on the team.
Kapanen didn't score a goal, but he assisted on three and produced many quality chances to make his line a threat. The underlying numbers support the eye test. The Penguins generated 57% of the expected goals and 65% of the high-danger chances, according to Natural Stat Trick, when Kapanen was on the ice.
Compare that to the regular season, when the Penguins produced just 52% of the expected goals and 53% of the high-danger chances when Kapanen was on the ice.
"I'm happy I showed up at some point this season," Kapanen said at the time. "Better late than never, I guess."
So where does his game go from here?
There's no denying Kapanen has the physical gifts to be a reliable top-six contributor, with a history of playing well alongside Malkin. However, set to turn 26 on July 23, Kapanen also has just one 20-goal season. That was back in 2018-19.
Time will tell if Kapanen can make the most of his latest opportunity.
