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.)
Jesse Puljujarvi
Position: Right winger
Shoots: Right
Age: 26
Height: 6-foot-4
Weight: 201 pounds
2023-24 NHL statistics: 22 games, four points (three goals, one assist), 9:11 of average ice time per contest
2023-24 AHL statistics: 13 games, nine points (four goals, five assists)
2023-24 IIHF World Championship statistics: Eight games, five points (three goals, two assists)
Contract: In the second year of a two-year contract with a salary cap hit of $800,000. Pending unrestricted free agent in 2025.
Acquired: Unrestricted free agent signing, Feb. 4, 2024
This season: After joining the Penguins full-time in February, Jesse Puljujarvi was routinely one of the first players on the ice for each and every practice or morning skate.
And on just about every occasion, he would engage in deep knee bends to stretch out each of his surgically repaired hips.
Seemingly, Puljujarvi did that as much to warm up for that day’s drills as he did to fortify confidence in his new artificial joints.
In June of 2023, Puljujarvi underwent major surgery then was unceremoniously jettisoned as a restricted free agent by the Carolina Hurricanes who declined to extend a qualifying offer to him and allowed him to become an unrestricted free agent.
He went six months without a professional home until the Penguins brought him in on a tryout basis (which is different from a professional tryout) on Dec. 10.
After largely working out and rehabilitating with the Penguins’ medical staff and facilities — at his own expense — for most of December, Puljujarvi signed a professional tryout contract with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League on Jan. 4.
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Playing his first games since May of 2023, Puljujarvi was primarily deployed on the right wing of either of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s top two lines. Going scoreless in his first four AHL contests, Puljujarvi found his scoring touch by posting nine points in his final nine games with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
Jesse Puljujarvi's third goal in five games. https://t.co/gufwxV8pRc
— Seth Rorabaugh (@SethRorabaugh) January 25, 2024
That display prompted Penguins management to sign Puljujarvi to an NHL deal at the start of February.
Coaches experimented with Puljujarvi, moving him between the third and second lines for five games before he was a healthy scratch in five of seven contests between Feb. 20 and March 3.
Puljujarvi enjoyed something of a milestone March 5 when he scored his first goal of the season during a 5-3 home win against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
PULJUJARVI WITH HIS FIRST AS A PENGUIN! ???? pic.twitter.com/ruduEIakN7
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) March 6, 2024
Beyond that, healthy scratches were far more common for Puljujarvi than recordable offense. He sat for nine of the team’s final 20 games as it made a valiant but futile push for a playoff position. And in the 11 games he did dress, he only logged north of 10 minutes on three occasions.
In May, Puljujarvi primarily skated in a bottom-six role for Finland which finished the International Ice Hockey Federation’s World Championship tournament in eighth place.
— EN Videos (@ENVideos19) June 17, 2024
The future: The 2023-24 season was pretty rough for Puljujarvi who was largely still trying to rehabilitate his body after two major procedures.
That said, just getting on the ice and playing in competitive NHL contests without the benefit of a training camp or offseason training was a remarkable accomplishment, even if he accomplished little in those games.
But the expectations are going to be higher when training camp starts in September. The Penguins are hoping Puljujarvi can be one of their 12 best forwards to open the 2024-25 season.
Assuming Puljujarvi has a full offseason of complete training — something he was denied last summer — that shouldn’t be an overwhelming bar for Puljujarvi to clear. After all, he was the fourth overall pick of the 2016 NHL Draft.
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He will likely never live up to the expectations that come with being drafted that high, but Puljujarvi, blessed with size and scoring touch, can be a viable option for an NHL lineup, even in a bottom-six role.
He’s still worth taking a chance on.
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.