Backup DeSmith signs 3-year deal
ANAHEIM, Calif. — When the Penguins struggled at the beginning of the season, Casey DeSmith was one of the few bright spots, his steady play keeping them competitive.
The 27-year-old goaltender, who as recently as 2015-16 was in the ECHL, has parlayed his breakout season into some financial security for him and his fiancée, former Pitt gymnast and Port Vue native Ellie Pikula.
The Penguins announced Friday that they signed DeSmith to a three-year contract extension that runs through 2021-22 and carries an average annual value of $1.25 million.
It’s a tangible reward for someone who has earned his money the hard way. It’s also a measure of certainty for the Penguins, who know they’ll have a solid backup goaltender for the next threeplus years.
“I’m really excited,” DeSmith said Friday after the Penguins morning skate at Honda Center. “I’m so happy we were able to get something done. Having some stability, it’s been a long time coming for me. I’ve been all over the place in my career.
“Being able to sign an extension with the Penguins, it’s where I want to be. I love the guys. I love the staff. I love Pittsburgh. It’s definitely where I wanted to end up. I’m really happy we were able to get something done.”
DeSmith has been quite good in 201819, with 12 wins and two shutouts in 22 games. His 2.47 goals-against average and .924 save percentage rank 13th and ninth in the NHL, respectively.
After playing his first two seasons in the organization on an AHL deal, DeSmith signed his first NHL contract July 1, 2017. His NHL debut came Oct. 29, 2017, in Winnipeg, and DeSmith made his first NHL start Jan. 18, 2018, backstopping the Penguins to a 3-1 win at Los Angeles.
In his career, DeSmith is 18-11-5 with a 2.45 goals-against average, a .923 save percentage and three shutouts.
“I’m happy for him,” Sidney Crosby said. “He works hard. Obviously, he’s played at different levels to get to this point. It’s a great opportunity for him. He’s played really, really well for sure.”
DeSmith said he still has to “pinch himself” every day when he comes to work and dresses in the same room as Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and others, a few times calling it a “privilege.”
At an advanced age for someone signing his first NHL extension, DeSmith also has a unique perspective. Plenty of players his age who were in the ECHL at some point are selling insurance or working in an office somewhere.
DeSmith said he hopes his story of persistence might inspire a few others to stick it out and continue chasing their dream.
“I have a couple buddies going through that right now,” DeSmith said. “It helps for them to kind of talk to me about it. I went through the same thing they’re going through.
“Hopefully it could inspire a couple people to stick it out a little longer; they may make it. Like I said, it’s just really a privilege.”
This is the second smart contract general manager Jim Rutherford has finalized recently. He kept Jake Guentzel off the open market by signing him to a fiveyear, $30 million extension in December, a number that’s probably a bit of a hometown discount.
DeSmith, too, could have refused to sign a deal and thought about going to market July 1 — he would’ve been an unrestricted free agent this summer — but apparently had no interest.
Next up for Rutherford with his goaltenders will be working something out with Matt Murray, who carries a yearly cap hit of $3.75 million. That deal expires after next season.
Signing DeSmith does complicates things for Tristan Jarry, currently in the AHL. Without a clear path to NHL playing time and on a one-way deal that kicks in next season, it’s unlikely the Penguins will keep all three.
That means it’s possible Rutherford could see what Jarry, a former secondround pick, might fetch on the open market.
For now, though, the Penguins are plenty happy with their trio of talented young goaltenders.
“We’re thrilled for [DeSmith],” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. “He’s worked extremely hard. He’s come up the hard way. He’s earned every opportunity that he’s been given. And he’s had a real solid body of work here in this season in particular.
“So to get him under contract, we feel like we have two real good goalies and a goalie in Tristan Jarry, who’s a third [we] can rely on to help us win games.”