Penguins Have Reached A New Contract With Winger

The Pittsburgh Penguins are getting work done signing players before free agency opens even if that doesn't include Evgeni Malkin. The team just agreed upon terms with Rickard Rakell to keep him around for five more years as reported by Frank Seravalli.

Hearing Rickard Rakell and #pens have agreed to terms on an extension in the neighborhood of 5 years x $5 million.

That takes another talented winger off the market.
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) July 12, 2022

The Penguins acquired Rakell at the trade deadline from the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for Dominik Simon, Zach Aston-Reese, goalie prospect Calle Clang, and a 2022 second round pick. The Penguins opted to keep Rakell around for longer after scoring four goals and 13 points in 19 games for them to finish up the regular season.

He only played two games in the playoffs and didn't record a point. Rakell is a top-six scoring winger who is also able to pass the puck. He hit the 20-goal mark in a season for the first time in four seasons and he's a two-time 30-goal scorer. The Penguins needed to get a bit younger and the length of the deal isn't bad at all. It will take him until he's 33 years old for a fair price if he can get his career back on track offensively with the Penguins.

As Seravalli said, this takes another winger off the board for the rest of the teams looking for a second-tier option. More details on the exact numbers to come.