Kasperi Kapanen and the Penguins won't be heading to salary arbitration after all.
Kapanen and the Penguins agreed to a two-year contract that carries a cap hit of $3.2 million on Thursday, nine days before his arbitration hearing was set to begin. The contract brings neither a raise nor a reduction in salary from his previous contract, which also carried a $3.2 million average annual value.
Kapanen will be 27 when the deal expires after the 2023-24 season, and thus will be an unrestricted free agent at that time.
The signing puts the Penguins over the salary cap by $480,175 based off of the 23-man projected roster on CapFriendly, a figure that will obviously change if any more moves are made, and as the picture becomes more clear when it comes to which depth players make the final roster. The current projected roster on CapFriendly includes 13 forwards, eight defensemen and two goaltenders. Re-assigning one of the two waiver-exempt players in Drew O'Connor ($750,000 cap hit) or Ty Smith ($863,333 cap hit) would get the Penguins under the cap with this projected roster configuration.
Kapanen played in 79 games for the Penguins last season, scoring 11 goals and 21 assists. Asked on the Penguins' locker room cleanout day what he'd like to improve in his game for next season, he pointed to his consistency.
"I think just being consistent," he said. "I think I had really good games this year and I think I had really bad games. So I think that's something that I need to focus on. And somehow just getting my confidence back and my swagger that I used to have. I don't think it was there this year and I think it showed."
Kapanen then expressed his desire to return to the Penguins.
"I think (management) is going to take care of a couple bigger pieces than me first," he said. "Then hopefully we'll figure something out. I love being here. I've never felt better on any team in my life before than here. It's an absolute privilege to play with these guys and see them every day."
Kapanen was the last of the Penguins' remaining restricted free agents who could be signed for next season. Kasper Bjorkqvist was a restricted free agent who also received a qualifying offer, but signed in Finland prior to receiving the offer. The Penguins qualified Bjorkqvist only to retain his North American rights in the event he returns in the future.
Settling on a contract with Kapanen opens a second buyout window for the Penguins. Buyouts are only permitted in the NHL during specific periods of the offseason. The first buyout window has already closed. The second buyout window opens for teams with player-elected arbitration filings, and opens regardless of whether the case is settled by arbitration or a settlement beforehand. The window opens three days after the team's last arbitration case is settled and lasts for 48 hours. Since Kapanen was the Penguins' only case, the Penguins will have a buyout window open on Sunday.
