With the Pittsburgh Penguins’ 2023-24 season coming to an end without any postseason action, TribLive will offer Penguins A to Z, a player-by-player look at all 52 individuals signed to an NHL contract — including those whose deals do not begin until next season — with the organization, from fourth-line center Noel Acciari to reserve winger Radim Zohorna.

This series is scheduled to be published every weekday leading into the second day of the NHL Draft on June 29.

(Note: All contract information courtesy of Cap Friendly.)

Drew O’Connor

Position: Left winger

Shoots: Left

Age: 25

Height: 6-foot-3

Weight: 200 pounds

2023-24 NHL statistics: 79 games, 33 points (16 goals, 17 assists), 15:44 of average ice time per game

Contract: In the first year of a two-year contract with a salary cap hit of $925,000. Pending unrestricted free agent in 2025

Acquired: Unrestricted free agent signing, March 10, 2020

This season: During the preseason, when the Penguins were facing the possibility of opening the regular season without the services of injured all-star forward Jake Guentzel, the coaching staff went into research-and-development mode and gave everyone from journeyman Vinnie Hinostroza to All-Star right winger Rickard Rakell a try on the left wing of the top line.

One experiment in particular bore perhaps the most intriguing results of all during a 7-4 road win against the Buffalo Sabres on Oct. 6. In that contest, Drew O’Connor skated next to Sidney Crosby at center as well as Bryan Rust on the right wing and scored two goals.

Four nights later, Guentzel was healthy and opened the season in his typical station as the top line’s left winger, leaving O’Connor to skate on the third line.

In that station, O’Connor was adequate defensively working primarily with Lars Eller at center and Radim Zohorna on the right wing but was limited offensively, generating only four points (one goal, three assists) in his first 19 games of the season.

By late November, injuries to the likes of Rakell and Rust promoted coaches to promote O’Connor to sporadic work on the first and second line, including on the right wing.

That promotion to the realm of the top-six forwards became permanent after Feb. 14 when Guentzel suffered an abdominal injury that led to his tenure with the Penguins coming to an end once he was traded to the Carolina Hurricanes on March 7.

Upcoming Local Events

More local events

Primarily skating on either wing of the second line for seven games between Feb. 15-29, O’Connor displayed some chemistry in skating with center Evgeni Malkin as he generated five points (three goals, two assists).

That success led to another promotion to Guentzel’s old spot on the port side of the left wing. After missing three games between March 7-10 due to a concussion, O’Connor settled in as Crosby’s linemate beginning on March 16 and had a leading role in the team’s late-season push for a playoff spot.

In the final 17 games of the regular season, O’Connor posted 10 points (seven goals, three assists). Only Crosby (10), Rust, (9) and Malkin (8) scored more goals over that span.

The future: A lot of things need to unfold this upcoming offseason before figuring out where O’Connor should be slotted into the lineup entering 2024-25.

Ideally, if he’s situated on the third line, that means the Penguins have four really strong options on the wings of the top two lines and have the luxury of playing O’Connor further down the lineup.

If not, giving him meaningful top-six minutes is a safe option that has been validated by his strong play down the stretch.

Blessed with size, O’Connor, who turns 26 on Sunday, has figured out how to use his frame to his advantage in terms of creating scoring opportunities. Add in his ability to step in at center along with killing penalties and he offers a fair bit of versatility to his game.

The Penguins experimented with O’Connor in 2023-24 and it worked out really well.

Follow the Penguins all season long.

Seth Rorabaugh is a TribLive reporter covering the Pittsburgh Penguins. A North Huntingdon native, he joined the Trib in 2019 and has covered the Penguins since 2007. He can be reached at srorabaugh@triblive.com.

Featured Local Businesses

More local businesses