Penguins general manager Ron Hextall said yesterday that he is “hoping to have something done real soon” on a new contract for defenseman Kris Letang, but he was less optimistic about center Evgeni Malkin.
Hextall said he’d be “surprised” if the team does not sign Letang, but with Malkin, they are “still working at it.” Letang and Malkin remain his two biggest priorities and he would prefer getting those two issues resolved before the NHL Draft concludes tomorrow night before working on other pending free agents. The NHL free agency period starts next Wednesday.
Round one of the draft begins tonight at 7 o’clock. Rounds two through seven get underway tomorrow at 11 AM. Barring a trade, the Penguins will have a first round selection this year – number 21 overall – but will not pick again until the fourth round, with pick number 118. They will also have selections in the fifth, sixth, and seventh rounds. Montreal has the first choice in the draft for the first time since 1980.
Hextall met the media at the NHL General Managers Meetings in Montreal, which is also the site of the draft.
The NHL released the full schedule for 2022-23 yesterday. The Penguins’ season will begin October 13th at home against Arizona. Their regular season will end April 13th at Columbus. They’ll play their customary Thanksgiving Eve game at home against Calgary and two days later they’ll be at Philadelphia for the NHL’s “Thanksgiving Showdown”.
The schedule also includes the NHL “Winter Classic”, an outdoor game at Fenway Park in Boston on January 2nd.
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