Tristan Jarry’s time has arrived
Countdown to training camp: The goalies
To count down the days until Penguins training camp, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette beat writers Matt Vensel and Mike DeFabo will dive into a new hockey topic each weekday until the first puck rattles the Plexiglass at PPG Paints Arena. Today we discuss a popular topic from last season, the goalies.
Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford is never one to sit by idly and let problems fix themselves. But this offseason, especially after another firstround flameout in the postseason, he went to work. The top-six got a winger. The bottom defensive pairing added two new players. And the coaching staff was overhauled with all new assistants.
But when Rutherford was asked recently by the Post-Gazette what intrigues him most about the upcoming season, the former goaltender gravitated back to a familiar place.
“It will be a new challenge for our goaltending,” Rutherford said. “With Tristan [Jarry], the majority of the responsibility will be on him. He’s coming off a very good year. We’ll watch to see how he makes that adjustment.”
Partially out of salary-cap necessity, the Penguins orchestrated a changing of the guard in goal this offseason. Matt Murray, who backstopped the club to back-to-back championships just a few short seasons ago, was dealt to the Ottawa Senators in exchange for a prospect and a second-round pick. Meanwhile, Jarry earned a three-year contract extension through the 2022-23 season carrying an average annual value of $3.5 million.
In tandem, the moves clearly illustrate the Tristan Jarry era in Pittsburgh has officially begun.
Jarry, 25, is coming off a standout season — and a somewhat surprising one. He began last season in the backup role, earning playing time only on the second half of back-to-back games when even the worst No. 2 gets to play. But when Murray slumped for the second straight November, Jarry seized the opportunity. He eventually earned an All-Star Game nod, set a franchise record for a shutout streak and ended the season in net for the elimination game against the Montreal Canadiens.
Now, with a much more clearly defined and expanded role, what is a realistic expectation for Year 1?
The answer to that question depends, to some degree, on which Jarry emerges this year. Early on last year, Jarry was arguably the most significant reason the Penguins were able to weather a long list of injuries to their biggest names and best players. Through 18 starts from October through December, Jarry posted a 13-5-0 record, .938 save percentage and three shutouts. The stretch included the aforementioned record-setting run, during which Jarry didn’t allow a goal for 177 minutes, 15 seconds.
But the Murray vs. Jarry debate that sparked talk radio was a debate for a reason. Neither goalie really stole the show in the second half.
When the calendar turned to 2020, Jarry went 7-7-1 with a mediocre .901 save percentage. Jarry’s numbers were actually worse than Murray after the New Year. He finished the regular season in a bit of a skid with four consecutive losses in which he gave up 4.5 goals per game.
Jarry has pedigree as a second-round pick in 2013 and a championship resume as the Edmonton Oil Kings Memorial Cup-winning goalie. But the game-in, game-out grind of an NHL season will be a new opportunity and a new challenge.
DeSmith’s role
Two seasons ago, when Murray went through a slump and then an injury, it was Casey DeSmith who helped the Penguins get their season back on the rails. In 36 games, 30 of them starts, DeSmith posted a 15-11-5 record with a .916 save percentage and 2.93 goals-against average in 2018-19. He was rewarded with a threeyear extension with the expectation he would fill the role of the backup for years to come.
But when the Penguins chose to keep Jarry as the second goalie last season, DeSmith was placed on waivers and then sent to the AHL affiliate in Wilkes-Barre/ Scranton. In 41 games, he recorded a .905 save percentage and 2.92 goals-against average. While those numbers aren’t quite as good as they were at the NHL level, it’s worth noting that the Penguins’ AHL affiliate wasn’t exactly flush with talent after years of trading away picks for NHLready players.
This year, with Murray now gone, DeSmith will step back into his familiar role as the No. 2. It will be interesting to watch how Sullivan chooses to split the workload between his netminders.
On one hand, playing the backup frequently could have a lot of value during a shortened, condensed season. Not only could it help keep Jarry fresh late into the season, it might also give the opponent something new to consider when the overwhelming majority of the games will be playing in two-games “series.” At the same time, when there are fewer games, each one means more. So there’s an equally compelling argument for starting your ace early and often.
Who is the third goalie?
An interesting wrinkle of this unique season is that every team must carry a third goalie at all times, either on the active roster or on the new taxi squad.
Rutherford indicated that the most likely candidate behind Jarry and DeSmith is Maxime Lagace, who signed a one-year, two-way contract this offseason worth $700,000 at the NHL level. Lagace, 28, was one of the five goaltenders the Vegas Golden Knights used in their inaugural season. In 16 games in 2017-18, he went 6-7-1 with a .867 save percentage. He made one more NHL appearance in 2018-19.
Diving deeper into the organization’s depth chart, Emil Larmi is the next-best goalie. But that doesn’t necessarily mean he would be the next-man up. He’s currently playing in Finland and will remain there during Penguins training camp. The American Hockey League is scheduled to start sometime in early February. Perhaps he becomes an option eventually.
Alex D’Orio is the other name to know if you only care about the NHL club. He’s likely to start the year in Wheeling, which means he only would be an hour from Pittsburgh in case of an emergency.