The Pittsburgh Penguins are in the middle of one of the most fruitful offseasons in recent memory. Erik Karlsson, Noel Acciari, Lars Eller, Vinnie Hinostroza, and Andreas Johnsson are just some of the new names who will don the black and gold in 2023-24. The new president of hockey ops Kyle Dubas has already addressed many of the issues that ultimately caused the Penguins to miss the postseason for the first time in nearly two decades. As a result, FanDuel has them at +2000 to win the Stanley Cup, compared to +3500 in mid-June.
Dubas isn’t finished retooling the roster, as the Penguins have recently been linked to free-agent forward Tomas Tatar. According to Rob Rossi of The Athletic, they have been “keenly interested” in bringing the Slovak into the mix (from ‘Penguins’ Depth Chart: How Erik Karlsson, Jake Guentzel’s Injury Impact Lines’, Rob Rossi, The Athletic, 8/17/23). Although they may not have the cap space to offer him a concrete deal, he would no doubt further improve the roster.
Tatar Has History as an Elite Scorer
Tatar entered the league as one of the Detroit Red Wings’ top prospects during the 2012-13 season. In his second full season, he posted 19 goals and 20 assists on his way to establishing himself as one of the Red Wings’ new core. He quickly became one of the faces of the post-Nicklas Lidström era as he and the other young players kept the team in contention for the postseason. He quickly became a locker room favourite and one of former Red Wings’ bench boss Mike Babcock’s most-used offensive weapons. As a result, he posted three consecutive 20-goal seasons and one 19-goal season and formed a dramatic and formidable partnership with Gustav Nyquist.
Related: The Wings Scored on the Tomas Tatar Trade
The Red Wings suffered despite Tatar’s uniform brilliance and began a rebuild, which ultimately resulted in Tatar being dealt to the Vegas Golden Knights for a bevy of draft picks. His half-season in Vegas was largely unevenful, but he found his scoring touch again after being traded to the Montréal Canadiens. While wearing the Sainte-Flanelle, he set a career-high in points with 61 in 68 games played while on a line with Phillip Danault and Brendan Gallagher.
While with the Canadiens, he was part of the magical pandemic team that ultimately lost in the Stanley Cup Final to the Tampa Bay Lightning. He was unfortunately unable to maintain his torrid pace in the postseason and was a healthy scratch for the final 15 games of the 2021 Postseason.
Tatar’s Playoff Struggles Mean He Could Sign At Low Cost
Although his regular season stats made him one of the top forwards in the NHL over the past three seasons, his playoff performances leave much to be desired. After sitting out the majority of the 2021 Playoffs, he was signed to a two-year, $9 million deal by the New Jersey Devils during the 2021 offseason. In his first campaign in the Garden State, he posted 15 goals and 15 assists for 30 points as the Devils missed the postseason. Last season, he returned to form with another 20-goal season as the Devils returned to the playoffs for the first time since 2017-18.
The 2022-23 edition of the Devils was the best regular-season team in franchise history as they finished third overall in the league standings with 112 points. They improved by a staggering 49 points from the season prior and set a franchise record for regular season victories. Tatar teamed with the other Devils’ stars Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, and Ondrej Palat to dispatch the New York Rangers in the first round before bowing out to the Carolina Hurricanes. Despite the dramatic turnaround for the team and Tatar’s role in it, he once again remained absent throughout the 12 playoff games, scoring only one goal across that span.
Due to his lack of playoff consistency, the Devils were not keen on re-signing him for a similar price tag. This allowed the Penguins to swoop in and begin discussions about bringing the Slovak on board. Although the recent addition of Karlsson has pushed the Penguins over the salary cap, there have been rumblings about bringing Tatar in on a professional tryout contract (PTO). If he gets that opportunity, the Penguins could bring him on at a bargain and avoid a potential cap penalty or sacrificing a player to long-term injury reserve (LTIR).
Tatar’s history as a high-volume scorer makes him an asset to any team, but his recent displays of regular-season success only make him an excellent value addition for a team in need. Because of this, Dubas has the potential to add an elite player at a fraction of the cost.
