Pittsburgh Penguins 2026 NHL free agency tracker

NHL free agency opened on July 1, and the Pittsburgh Penguins are not expected to be very active. Kyle Dubas, president of hockey operations for Pittsburgh, has called spending too much on free agents a potential "expensive mistake." 

"We'll try to steer clear of that. If it's not a significant move in the short run, rather than do something for the sake of doing it, I'd rather say we aspired to do it, but the options weren't there," Dubas said. "We've had to check down and continue to build it up the way that we have."

Heading into the opening of free agency, the Penguins had six NHL unrestricted free agents and eight restricted free agents. 

The unrestricted free agents, as of July 1, were free to sign with any team they chose, while the restricted free agents must receive qualifying offers. For the restricted free agents, a qualifying offer keeps their rights with the team; if they do not receive a qualifying offer, the player becomes an unrestricted free agent. 

Here's a look at who the Penguins have signed.

Penguins free agency signings 

Pittsburgh signs defenseman Declan Carlile

Pittsburgh inked Declan Carlile to a two-year deal on July 1. He spent the last five seasons with the Tampa Bay Lightning's organization. The 26-year-old is a "steady stay-at-home defenseman," according to Penguins assistant general manager Jason Spezza. 

Forward Andrei Kuzmenko picks the Penguins

Pittsburgh and 30-year-old Andrei Kuzmenko agreed on a one-year deal on July 1. The four-year NHL veteran has spent time with the Vancouver Canucks, Calgary Flames, Philadelphia Flyers and Los Angeles Kings. 

Trevor van Riemsdyk is a Penguin

Trevor van Riemsdyk is coming to Pittsburgh on a two-year deal. The 35-year-old has experience, notching 751 career games with three different teams. He signed on July 1. 

Penguins sign restricted free agent Hendrix Lapierre 

After trading with the Washington Capitals for restricted free agent Hendrix Lapierre on June 25, the Penguins signed the 24-year-old forward to a two-year contract on July 3. 

Penguins sign Chinakhov, Silovs, Gustafsson and Blomqvist 

The Penguins avoided arbitration with four players on July 5, signing forward Egor Chinakhov to a three-year deal, goaltender Arturs Silovs to a one-year contract, forward David Gustafsson to a one-year deal and goaltender Joel Blomqvist to a two-year contract.

Players the Penguins lost

• Goaltender Stuart Skinner signed with the Winnipeg Jets.
• Forward Noel Acciari signed with the Philadelphia Flyers.
• Defenseman Ryan Shea signed with the Edmonton Oilers. 
• Defenseman Parker Wotherspoon signed with the Vegas Knights. 
• Defenseman Connor Clifton signed with the Boston Bruins.
• Defenseman Jack St. Ivany signed with Winnipeg. 

Penguins pre-free agency re-signings

The biggest pending unrestricted free agent for the Penguins going into this offseason was center and assistant captain Evgeni Malkin. On May 26, the Penguins announced Malkin had signed a 1-year extension worth $5.5 million.

"Best city, best fans, I stay one more year," Malkin said in a video when he signed his new deal. 

Earlier this offseason, the Penguins re-signed forward Connor Dewar to a two-year, $2.25 million per year contract and defenseman Ilya Solovyov to a one-year, $850,000 deal. 

What trades have the Penguins made? 

The Penguins, while not expected to be very active in the free agency market, have made a couple of trades ahead of the July 1 free agency period. 

On June 30, the team sent defenseman Parker Wotherspoon to the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for defenseman Kaedam Korczak. As part of the trade, the Penguins are retaining 50% of Wotherspoon's contract. That means next season, $500,000 will remain on the Penguins' salary cap. 

Korczak, meanwhile, is signed through the 2029-30 season at an average annual value of $3.25 million. 

Then, on July 1, the Penguins acquired forward Nick Robertson from the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for a 2028 fourth-round pick. Robertson is 24 years old and a restricted free agent, and his qualifying offer is $1.825 million. Last season, Robertson scored 16 goals and 32 points in 78 games with Toronto.