NHL world shocked over Penguins $32 million Ville Koivune deal: Crazy gamble

The Penguins signed who? For how many years? On Wednesday, the Penguins re-signed restricted free agent forward Ville Koivunen to an $32 million, eight-year contract that runs through the 2033-’34 season.While long-term contracts are common in other professional sports, maximum-length, eight-year contracts in the NHL are typically restricted to players such as Igor Shesterkin, Nathan MacKinnon and Leon Draisaitl who have proven their worth.Now, Koivunen joins the list with just 14 points in 47 games across parts of two seasons in the NHL.The 23-year-old was acquired by the Penguins in the Jake Guentzel trade in 2024, after the Hurricanes drafted him in the second round of the 2021 NHL Draft.

What the Penguins and general manager Kyle Dubas are betting on is that Koivunen starts to live up to his offensive potential.“The Penguins feel the Ville Koivunen signing is a pretty low risk/high reward deal,” DK Pittsburgh sports’ Taylor Haase said on X.

“With the cap going up significantly they don’t think $4 million is a lot of money, and with the eight-year term they’re betting on his upside”Prior to being drafted the 6-foot, 184-pound forward produced 113 points in 164 career games in Liiga, the top professional league in Sweden, and has added 98 points in 109 career games in the AHL since.For Pittsburgh fans used to the likes of Sydney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, though, potential isn’t enough “8 years!?!?” one fan said on X.“This is a crazy gamble for a guy who has been giving multiple opportunities on the big boy team and has been non productive and been sent down.”Others weren’t as respectful asking ” WHAT THE F–K ARE WE DOING!?” or pointing out that Koivunen “got more years than points last season” under the Penguins post.

Part of the fans’ frustration could stem from their expectation of a big summer after making a return to the playoffs last year.The Penguins were in trade rumors for some of the NHL’s top stars such as ...