As July settles in and the NHL offseason drifts deeper into its quiet stretch, the Penguins are still giving fans plenty to keep track of - even if the pace has slowed since the Stanley Cup was handed out, the draft came and went, and most of free agency has already been spent.
One of the biggest league-wide notes is coming this week. The NHL is set to release its full 2026-27 regular season schedule on Thursday, with opening night matchups announced Wednesday. That season will also be the league’s first with an 84-game schedule.
There’s also plenty happening on the Penguins’ own front. Ben Kindel, who turned heads as a rookie last season, is back home in Vancouver this summer working on his game and trying to build on what he showed as an 18-year-old. The hope around him is simple: that last season was only the beginning.
Roster questions remain, and one of the biggest areas still needing clarity is at center. The Penguins have a crowded group overall, but the middle of the ice still stands out as a spot that needs to be sorted out as the summer moves along.
Kyle Dubas made it clear before the season ended that he wanted to swing bigger this offseason rather than just make small additions around the edges. That major move hasn’t happened yet, but one name continues to circle back into the Penguins conversation.
In goal, Arturs Silovs was among the restricted free agents who re-signed with the team last week. His season had its rough patches, but his playoff relief work gave him a strong finish and some momentum heading into next year. The Penguins also locked up three others: Joel Blomqvist on a two-year deal, David Gustafsson on a one-year deal, and Egor Chinakhov on a three-year deal after he broke out in a big way following his arrival.
The organization also added six new players at the 2026 NHL Draft, and one of them is already under contract. Second-round pick Tomas Galvas signed his three-year entry-level deal last week.
Elsewhere around the league, Brady Tkachuk left Ottawa, Leo Carlsson signed an offer sheet to leave Anaheim, and Zach Werenski was part of trade chatter. Those situations only sharpen the contrast with Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang, whose loyalty stands out even more in a league where big names are testing the waters.
And with a wave of young players now in the system, the Penguins’ next step may be the most obvious one: give that youth a real chance to win jobs and make the roster.
In Other News...
Penguins Prospect Depth Suddenly Looks More Interesting Than Fans Realize
The back end of the Penguins prospect list is starting to look a lot less like filler and a lot more like a real pipeline. A recent ranking of the organizations top 20 young players put names such as Tommy Galvas, Quinn Beauchesne and Finn Harding in the conversation, with the evaluations centered on where each player stands now, how much runway remains before an NHL look, and what kind of impact they might eventually bring. For a team that has spent plenty of time worrying about its next wave, that alone is a meaningful shift.
What makes the group more intriguing is that the appeal is not limited to one type of prospect. Galvas brings the profile of a right-handed offensive defenseman, Harding is already getting pro minutes in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, and Beauchesne has climbed enough to draw attention inside the organization. The rankings suggest the Penguins are finally getting some depth worth tracking beyond the obvious headliners, even if the most interesting part of the story is still how high a few of these players can rise from here. [Read more 🡒]
Penguins Just Added New WBS Depth With Bigger Implications For Pittsburgh
The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins have been busy lining up more than just a little organizational depth, adding defenseman Brent Johnson and forwards Lucas Ciona and Mark Senden on American Hockey League contracts for the 2026-27 season. It is the sort of move that rarely makes noise on its own, but these are the kinds of players that can matter when the system is being built with an eye on both the minors and the NHL pipeline.
Johnson is coming off a strong rookie year in the ECHL and is still early in his pro career, while Ciona brings a championship background from the WHL and a draft pedigree from Calgary. Senden adds a different layer as a veteran with multiple titles at different levels, giving WBS a mix of upside, experience and organizational stability as it continues to stock the roster for what could eventually ripple upward to Pittsburgh. [Read more 🡒]
Jason Robertson Just Reached A Crucial Stars Contract Checkpoint
The NHL arbitration calendar is now taking shape, and for teams still sorting out their summer business, the dates matter almost as much as the names. Fifteen players have filed for hearings set between July 20 and Aug. 1, with Ottawas Xavier Bourgault already landing a deal before his case got to that stage. The process gives clubs and players a few different exits along the way, whether that means settling beforehand or letting an arbitrator decide after the hearing.
For the Penguins, the most relevant name on that list is Nicholas Robertson, who is scheduled for a hearing on July 28. His case sits inside a broader league-wide stretch that can still reshape roster plans before training camp, especially with the possibility of late agreements and the ripple effects that follow once every arbitration case is resolved. There is also a second buyout window waiting on the other side of all this, which only adds another layer to a summer that still has some unfinished business. [Read more 🡒]