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Jeff Carter

Jeff Carter Announces Retirement

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The Penguins announced postgame that veteran center Jeff Carter is retiring after a 19-year NHL career. He’d spent the last three seasons and change in Pittsburgh, maintaining his status as a regular but slipping to bottom-six minutes as his point production and all-around game declined.

The two-time Stanley Cup champion cited family reasons as his primary reason for stepping away from the game, confirming he’ll stick around in the Pittsburgh area moving forward:

Yeah, we’re staying. We moved here in August full-time. We’ve loved it. It’s been a great fit for our family. It’s central to both our extended families. It has worked out really well.

Carter’s career began with the cross-state rival Flyers, who selected him with the 11th overall pick in 2003 as part of arguably the most star-studded first round in modern history. The now-39-year-old wouldn’t make his NHL debut for another two years, sticking around with the Soo Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League while a labor lockout canceled the 2004-05 campaign. At age 21, he immediately stepped in as a solid complementary scorer, scoring 23 goals and 42 points in 2005-06 while averaging only 12:04 per game.

He was promoted to Philadelphia’s top six the following season, where he largely remained for the Flyers and three other clubs before being demoted last season. By 2008-09, he’d cemented himself as one of the better two-way centers in the league, leading a deep Flyers offense in scoring with a career-high 46 goals and 84 points, averaging nearly 21 minutes per game.

His point production trailed off marginally over the next two seasons but nonetheless remained a top-six fixture. Injuries began to take a minor toll, as he was limited to 12 appearances in the Flyers’ run to the 2010 Stanley Cup Final. Philly inked him to an 11-year, $58MM extension early in the 2010-11 campaign, but he would never play a game for the franchise under that deal. Then-Flyers GM Paul Holmgren had a quick case of buyer’s remorse amid his early 2010s roster-retooling, dealing Carter to the Blue Jackets for young winger Jakub Voráček, a first-round pick that became captain Sean Couturier, and a third-round pick that became depth contributor Nick Cousins.

It was a slam-dunk deal for Philly, who got 604 points and 727 games out of Voráček, 795 games and 498 points (and counting) out of Couturier, and three seasons of decent depth scoring out of Cousins. Carter played less than a full season in Columbus, as he was flipped to the Kings at the 2012 trade deadline after just 15 goals and 39 games in a Blue Jackets uniform.

His offensive peak may have been in Philadelphia, but he found the most success in Los Angeles. He posted nine points in 16 games down the stretch in 2012 before tying for the league lead with eight goals in 20 postseason games as the eight-seed Kings had one of the most dominant Cinderella runs in professional sports, winning the first Stanley Cup in franchise history while going 16-4. Splitting duties with former Flyers teammate Mike Richards as some of the Kings’ primary secondary scorers behind Anže Kopitar, he returned with a vengeance in 2014, erupting for 10 goals and 25 points in 26 playoff games as L.A. captured its second championship in three years.

Carter eclipsed the 60-point mark in each of the next three seasons and was on his way to doing so again in 2017-18 until an October skate cut caused tendon damage in his lower left leg, requiring surgery and keeping him out for over four months. He was strong in limited action, posting 22 points in 27 games, but was held without a point in four playoff games as the Kings were quickly dispatched by the expansion Golden Knights in the first round.

Unfortunately, he was never the same after that. He managed 60 points combined over the following two seasons (136 games), posting a -41 rating in the process. After he was limited to eight goals and 19 points through the first 40 games of the COVID-shortened 2021 season, the retooling Kings traded the final season-and-a-half of his aforementioned extension to the Penguins for a pair of mid-round draft picks, retaining half his $5.27MM cap hit in the swap.

The move worked out well in the short-term for Pittsburgh. Carter had a resurgence in slightly increased minutes down the stretch, recording 11 points in 14 games and four goals and six playoff games as the Pens were eliminated in the first round by the Islanders. He put up 45 points the following season, his highest total in five years, but Pittsburgh was again dispatched in the first round, this time by the Rangers.

Given his mild rebound, Penguins GM Ron Hextall inked Carter to a two-year, $6.25MM extension midway through the 2021-22 campaign. Unfortunately, the unavoidable aging curve took effect sooner than they’d hoped, knocking his production down to 13 goals and 29 points last season while having his ice time slashed to its lowest since his rookie season. This year marked another significant slide, posting 11 goals and just four assists in 72 contests. He is coming off his best-ever year in the faceoff dot, winning 61.5% of his draws.

Carter’s final goal came earlier tonight in a 5-4 loss to the Isles, a power-play tally assisted by Sidney Crosby and Michael Bunting. All told, his 1,321 career games played stand alone at 63rd on the all-time list. He tallied 441 goals, 409 assists, and 850 points with a career +9 rating and captured Selke Trophy votes on four occasions (2009, 2011, 2016, 2017). His estimated career earnings to date are $76.5MM, per CapFriendly.

With Carter sticking around in Pittsburgh, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him take an off-ice role in GM Kyle Dubas’ front office. PHR extends its best wishes to Carter and his family in their next chapter.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Metropolitan Notes: Gruden, Wotherspoon, Marino

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With Jeff Carter out with an upper-body injury tonight, the Pittsburgh Penguins were in a position to recall a forward to fill his spot in the active lineup. In doing so, the Penguins brought up Jonathan Gruden from their AHL affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins via an emergency recall.

Recalled oftenly this season by Pittsburgh, this transaction will mark Gruden’s sixth call-up of the season in total. In now his fourth season with the Penguins organization, Gruden has accrued the most NHL games played in a single year for his short career, scoring one goal in 11 games for Pittsburgh this year.

While still failing to make a name for himself at the NHL level, Gruden is been an solid contributor to the WBS Penguins over the last four years. Over 204 regular season games overall, Gruden has scored 45 goals and 96 points in total, while also chipping in one goal and three points in five playoff games, as well.

Other Metro notes:

  • In a similar transaction, Pittsburgh’s opponent tonight, the New Jersey Devils, have recalled defenseman Tyler Wotherspoon by way of an emergency recall. In his second emergency recall in only his last week, Wotherspoon has had an elevated opportunity to play in the NHL due to multiple injuries on New Jersey’s back end. Unfortunately, Wotherspoon has yet to play with the Devils this season, but has registered four goals and 19 points in 54 games for the organization’s AHL affiliate, the Utica Comets.
  • Paving the way for another emergency recall to Wotherspoon, earlier reports indicated that defenseman John Marino would miss the game tonight due to an upper-body injury (X Link). With Marino now out with an injury for at least this evening, New Jersey will be without three of their top-four defensemen, leading to a 5-11-0 record over the last 16 games for the organization.

Penguins Activate Noel Acciari Off IR

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The Pittsburgh Penguins have activated forward Noel Acciari off the injured reserve, and he is in their lineup tonight as they take on the Montreal Canadiens. The 32-year-old has missed the past six games after suffering a concussion back on February 6th in a game against the Winnipeg Jets. Acciari was hit up high in the neutral zone by Jets defenseman Brenden Dillon in a scary incident that led to a match penalty and game misconduct for Dillon.

Like many Penguins forwards, Acciari has struggled to produce much in the way of offense this season. He has spent most of the season as the team’s fourth-line center and is back there tonight sandwiched between Jansen Harkins and Jeff Carter. Acciari has dressed in 39 games this season and has three goals and one assist. Last season the Johnston, Rhode Island native posted 14 goals and nine assists in 77 games.

While his offensive production has been the lowest of his career, Acciari has been good defensively and, on the penalty kill. He has had nearly 90% of his zone starts in the defensive zone and has been one of the few Penguins who has been consistently physical. Acciari has also been solid in the faceoff circle which has been a key contributor to Mike Sullivan using him for so many defensive zone faceoffs.

Penguins Notes: Letang, Harkins, Malkin

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Seth Rorabaugh of Tribune-Review Sports is reporting that Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang left practice today for what is being described as precautionary reasons. Not much else is known about the 36-year-old’s status, but head coach Mike Sullivan told reporters that Letang is banged up a little bit.

Letang could be dealing with a nagging issue as his play has slipped as of late. He has just a single point in his last seven games despite having been elevated to the team’s top power-play unit in place of Erik Karlsson. Overall, he is having one of the finest seasons of his career with four goals and 26 assists in 49 games while playing some of his best defensive hockey. He has flourished in a different role this season even if his play has trailed off as of late.

In other Penguins notes:

  • Rorabaugh is also reporting that Penguins forward Jansen Harkins has been placed on the injured reserve with a concussion. The 26-year-old had become a regular on the Penguins fourth line alongside veterans Noel Acciari and Jeff Carter and had been taking much of the team’s defensive zone starts in recent weeks. Harkins has been okay in a depth role for the Penguins, although he hasn’t provided much in the way of offense with just four assists in 34 games this season. No word yet on a timeline for Harkin’s return but he will presumably miss the Penguins games this week.
  • Rorabaugh has also reported that Pittsburgh forward Evgeni Malkin had a maintenance day today and did not practice with his teammates. The 37-year-old skated briefly in a sweatsuit before the team’s practice while he was monitored by Penguins medical staff. Malkin hasn’t been himself this season as it appears the aging curve has started to catch up with the former Hart Trophy winner. In the last ten games, Malkin has struggled with just a single goal, and this is the second maintenance day he has received in the last few weeks leading to speculation that he could be dealing with a nagging injury of his own.

Penguins Injury Notes: Ludvig, Nieto, Smith

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Rob Rossi of The Athletic had some updates today on a few injuries the Pittsburgh Penguins are dealing with as they reach the mid-season mark. Rossi stated that defenseman John Ludvig is tracking well and skated on his own this morning. The 23-year-old rookie has been a pleasant surprise this season for Pittsburgh after he was acquired off waivers from the Florida Panthers. The former third-round pick hasn’t offered much offensively but has been one of the only Penguins defenders to engage opponents physically and had been very sound in the defensive zone.

Ludvig was placed on injured reserve back on January 3rd after head coach Mike Sullivan said he was a little banged up. It isn’t clear what type of injury he is dealing with, but it appears that he should be back in the Penguins lineup very soon. Pittsburgh has quite a few bottom-pairing defensive options and has shuffled through all of them, however, before the injury Ludvig appeared to be taking a firm grasp on one of those spots.

In other Penguins injury notes:

  • Rossi also provided a brief update on injured forward Matthew Nieto who underwent successful laparoscopic surgery to his right knee just two weeks ago. Rossi’s short comment mentioned that things are status quo with Nieto and his recovery, and he will remain in Pittsburgh when the team goes on their upcoming road trip. Nieto was expected to miss 6-8 weeks recovering from the surgery, and given that his status remains the same, it is safe to assume that he will return to the Penguins lineup just before the NHL trade deadline on March 8th. Nieto has been terrific for the Penguins on the penalty kill this season, and his even strength play improved after a poor start to the season. Jansen Harkins is currently occupying Nieto’s spot on the Penguins fourth line alongside Noel Acciari and Jeff Carter.
  • Finally, Rossi offered an update on Reilly Smith saying that he will travel with the team on their upcoming road trip but likely will not play. It is expected that the team will have an update on Smith’s status after the weekend. Smith’s injury is currently being classified as an upper-body injury that will keep him out longer-term, however, not much more information is available. Smith opened the season showing terrific chemistry with center Evgeni Malkin, but since November 4th he has just two goals and has seemed lost at times. He has dressed in 40 games this season and has eight goals and 12 assists during that time. The Penguins are currently using Drew O’Connor in Smith’s role on the second line alongside Malkin.

Penguins Notes: Rakell, Ruhwedel, Acciari

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The voice of the Pittsburgh Penguins Josh Getzoff tweeted today that Penguins winger Rickard Rakell is back at the team’s practice today in a regular practice jersey. Rakell is eligible to come off the LTIR tomorrow and has been skating for about a week. Rakell has been out of the lineup with an upper-body injury since November 19th.

Rakell has struggled this season with just four assists in 17 games. It’s difficult to believe that he hasn’t scored yet given that he’s played with Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby for the bulk of his shifts. Rakell hasn’t played poorly, he continues to drive play when he is on the ice, but he’s been unable to finish when he’s had chances, and he has continued to get chances this year with 38 shots on goal.

His return will be something to keep an eye on as he has played primarily with Malkin and Reilly Smith but has historically played better with Crosby and Jake Guentzel who are flanked now by fourth-liner Drew O’Connor.

If Rakell can get going, it would be a big boost for the Penguins who have struggled to score goals in recent weeks.

In other Penguins notes:

  • Getzoff also tweeted that Penguins defenseman Chad Ruhwedel is back in regular practice jersey as well. Ruhwedel is week-to-week right now with a lower-body injury that has kept him out of the lineup since November 19th. No word on a return date yet for the 33-year-old, but when he does re-join the lineup, it will create a further logjam for the Penguins’ bottom defensive pairing. Ruhwedel has a single assist in 15 games this season and has struggled at times defensively which is uncharacteristic given that he typically plays a safe and simple brand of defense.
  • Getzoff also offered an update on forward Noel Acciari stating that the 32-year-old was back at Penguins practice today in a white no-contact jersey. Acciari was put on the injured reserve about a week ago and is eligible to play if he can. His first season for Pittsburgh has been a rollercoaster thus far as early on he was part of a fourth line alongside Jeff Carter and Matt Nieto that just couldn’t get anything going offensively. None of the three players registered a point in the Penguins’ first ten games, however, once the line was broken up Nieto and Acciari seemed to play better. Acciari still doesn’t contribute much offensively but has settled in nicely on the Penguins penalty kill.

East Notes: Hughes, Meier, Harvey-Pinard, Carter

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Devils superstar center Jack Hughes has officially returned to the lineup tonight against the Rangers after missing five games with an injury to his right shoulder. It’s about right on schedule for the 22-year-old, who sustained the injury on November 3 against the Blues and was subsequently listed as week-to-week. Already with a goal and assist in tonight’s contest at the time of writing, Hughes now resumes his quest for the Art Ross and Hart Trophies – both honors he was in strong contention for when he exited the lineup earlier this month. Despite the absence, Hughes’ 20 points in ten games entering tonight still tie for 15th in the league, and he’s only seven back of the league lead, a deficit he made significant headway in closing tonight despite skating on a rather odd line with Erik Haula and Curtis Lazar. Hughes is in the second season of an eight-year, $64MM extension signed with the Devils in November 2021 that already looks like quite the bargain.

Elsewhere in the Eastern Conference tonight:

  • Staying in New Jersey, the injury designation surrounding winger Timo Meier isn’t as positive as Hughes’. He remains sidelined with a lower-body injury and is not in tonight’s contest, missing his second straight game with the injury after serving as a scratch Thursday night against the Penguins. Head coach Lindy Ruff had no update on Meier’s status when asked by reporters pre-game, and he remains sidelined on a day-to-day basis. He was off to a decent start on the scoresheet with 11 points in 14 contests but carries a team-low -12 rating.
  • Canadiens winger Rafaël Harvey-Pinard is also absent from action tonight, sitting out his second straight game with a lower-body injury against the Bruins. Harvey-Pinard sustained a lower-body injury earlier in the month in a November 2 contest against the Coyotes but missed only three games before returning to action just over a week later. After a three-game stint back in the lineup, however, Harvey-Pinard was not able to participate in the team’s loss to the Golden Knights on Thursday. The 24-year-old has cooled down from his strong point output last season, notching only four assists through 13 contests.
  • Penguins veteran center Jeff Carter is sidelined for tonight’s contest against the Hurricanes and has now missed two games with a lower-body injury. He’s actually not played since logging 7:28 on November 9 against the Kings and was a healthy scratch for their following game against Buffalo, but sustained an injury outside of game action in the interim. The 38-year-old has failed to record a point in ten appearances this season.

Metro Notes: Devils, Carter, Rangers, Pelech, Shepard

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Being outscored by a margin of six goals in their last four games, the New Jersey Devils have been without some of their top-quality players for the last several games. A reporter for the team, Amanda Stein, even went as far as to report that team captain, Nico Hischier, will not be joining the team on their upcoming road trip to take on the Winnipeg Jets and Pittsburgh Penguins. However, Stein did clarify that although he will not be in the lineup against the Jets, Jack Hughes could return against the Penguins.

Officially out with an upper-body injury, most consumers of the game could tell Hischier may have had a lingering injury issue headed into the season. Having only played in seven games up to this point in the year, Hischier has only mustered two goals, not generating nearly as much offense as New Jersey may have hoped to start an important year for the franchise.

Hughes, on the other hand, has been desperately missed by the Devils. Truly coming into his own as a former overall selection, Hughes got off to one of the hottest starts in the league, scoring five goals and 15 assists in the team’s first 10 games of the season. After taking a hard crash into the boards during the team’s regulation loss against the St.Louis Blues only 10 days ago, the Devils have performed at a 1-3-0 clip in his absence.

Other notes:

  • Head coach of the Penguins, Mike Sullivan, announced to the media that forward Jeff Carter is dealing with an upper-body injury, and that is the reason behind him missing practice this afternoon (X Link). Over the last two weeks, Carter has been a healthy scratch in several games before the end of October, as Pittsburgh has been looking to strengthen its bottom six forward groupings. On the final year of a two-year, $6.25MM extension signed with Pittsburgh back in 2022, Carter has failed to score a point in his first 10 games this season.
  • Arthur Staple of The Athletic issued several updates on the status of injured members of the New York Rangers today, indicating that Ryan Lindgren should be available for practice on Wednesday, while injured forward Filip Chytil will not be with the team. Lindgren has been dealing with a mild upper-body injury incurred during the team’s shootout win Sunday night against the Columbus Blue Jackets, while Chytil has been out since the beginning of November, also with an upper-body injury.
  • One of the most important defensemen for the New York Islanders, Adam Pelech, missed the team’s last game against the Washington Capitals just two days ago. In an update from Andrew Gross of Newsday, Pelech is officially listed as a game-time decision for their matchup against the Edmonton Oilers tonight but should be expected to play. Even though the Islanders have not gotten off to a terrific start to the season, Pelech still holds a 91.1% oiSV% in 10 games played on the year.
  • In what will go down as another ’paper’ transaction on the season, the Capitals sent down goaltender Hunter Shepard and recalled him today in a separate transaction (X Link). Largely due to an injury to Charlie Lindgren, Shepard has played in two games for Washington this year, winning both, and posting a .915 SV% with a 2.50 GAA.

Evening Notes: Canucks, Sharks, Carter

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TSN Insider Darren Dreger is reporting that the Vancouver Canucks are looking for a right-shot defenseman. The surprising Canucks have started the season 9-2-1 and are currently among the league’s elite a month into the regular season. Vancouver was projected to be a bubble team this year but have outperformed expectations to this point. The Canucks have considerable depth in their forward group, particularly on the wing and are hoping to be able to use an excess winger to acquire a defenseman.

Unfortunately for the Canucks, most of the teams they are talking trade with have little to no interest in acquiring a player and are looking for futures. This further complicates a potential move for Vancouver as they have precious little cap space to facilitate such a transaction. According to CapFriendly, the Canucks have $162,500 in cap space, meaning that they wouldn’t even be able to add a player on a league minimum contract.

In other notes:

  • TSN Insider Chris Johnston is reporting that he doesn’t believe the San Jose Sharks will make a big trade or a coaching change in the coming weeks as they weather one of the worst starts to a season in NHL history. The Sharks were expected to finish the season near the bottom of the NHL standings, but no one predicted they would start the season this poorly. Johnston adds that Sharks general manager Mike Grier met with the team yesterday and stated that any improvements would need to come from within the group, although Grier didn’t rule out making changes if the Sharks don’t show any improvement in the coming weeks.
  • NHL.com is reporting that Pittsburgh Penguins forward Jeff Carter will be a healthy scratch for the second game in a row tonight when the Penguins take on the Anaheim Ducks. It is just the second time in his 19-year NHL career that the veteran will be scratched after he has struggled to start the season. Carter has no points in nine games and was part of a struggling fourth line that failed to provide a single point in the first nine games of the season. Head coach Mike Sullivan scratched Carter for the last game and opted to dress Vinnie Hinostroza against the San Jose Sharks in a game the Penguins won 10-2. Hinostroza had a goal and an assist, and fellow fourth-liners Matt Nieto and Noel Acciari produced their first points of the season as well.

Latest On Pittsburgh Penguins Roster

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The Pittsburgh Penguins finally found a goal scorer in their bottom six forwards as Radim Zohorna lit the lamp in the final minutes of the Penguins’ 4-2 loss to the St. Louis Blues last night. Zohorna was playing in his first game of the season after being sent down to the AHL after a strong training camp and formed a unit with fellow winger Drew O’Connor and center Lars Eller.

After the game, Penguins Coach Mike Sullivan was visibly frustrated with his team’s play, and while he didn’t talk about roster decisions going forward, General Manager Kyle Dubas has been. Dubas spoke with NHL On TNT just a few nights ago and said he wanted the bottom six forwards to be tougher to play against and added that he didn’t feel the group was there yet. Dubas’ comments sparked speculation that the Penguins could be looking to make a move in the bottom six and they did by waiving Jansen Harkins and re-calling Zohorna before last night’s game. The Penguins also health-scratched defenseman P.O. Joseph in favor of Ryan Shea who made his NHL debut on the Penguins’ third pairing.

Kyle Dubas stocked up on fringe NHL talent in the offseason and has stashed many of those options in the AHL specifically for a moment like this. The Penguins AHL affiliate has so many veterans in fact that Alex Nylander and Andreas Johnsson had to be veteran scratches for last night’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins game. On top of Nylander, Johnsson, and Harkins, the Penguins also have Vinnie Hinostroza, Rem Pitlick, and Colin White as former NHLers who could be called up to shuffle the furniture in the Penguins bottom six.

Josh Yohe of The Athletic wrote in his 10 Postgame Observations piece that Sullivan typically doesn’t make major changes after a loss, but given the team’s recent record and his comments, he implies that it could happen. The Penguins third line of O’Connor, Eller and Zohorna was very good last night, however, the fourth line of Matthew Nieto, Jeff Carter and Noel Acciari has offered very little to the team and appears to be constantly chasing the play. That group is at the bottom of the Penguins lineup in almost every analytical statistic and has a combined zero points in five games together. Sullivan has been apprehensive about scratching Carter in the past and became defensive with the media last season on multiple occasions when the topic was asked about.

It might be just five games into the season but given that the Penguins are 2-3 against five teams that didn’t make the playoffs last season, there could be big changes brewing in Pittsburgh as Dubas and company try to find an identity for the bottom six forwards. A competent bottom-six has been something the Penguins have lacked since they lost Brandon Tanev (and Jared McCann via trade) in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft and it was one of the big reasons they missed the playoffs in 2023.

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