In another unexpected move, the Pittsburgh Penguins signed veteran center Matt Cullen to a one-year deal worth 800,000 at the NHL level. He's 38 years old and can actually still play. What are the Penguins getting in Cullen? Let's take a look.
The biggest thing Pittsburgh is getting here is their fourth line center. After the Phil Kessel trade, Jim Rutherford told the media that he was still out to find a fourth line center to add to the team and he did exactly that in adding Matt Cullen. They also get insurance by adding him since it looks like Eric Fehr won't be ready to start the season due to elbow surgery. This is the best fourth line the Penguins have had in a few years. Matt Cullen can actually produce offense for the Penguins fourth line, which is something the Penguins have lacked on that line ever since they won the cup. Max Lapierre couldn't do it, Marcel Goc couldn't do it, and neither could Joe Vitale or Craig Adams.
Pittsburgh also gets a player who can contribute to the penalty kill. The best part about it is they will have another player on the PK who is good at even strength. Last season the Penguins had players on the PK such as Brandon Sutter, Craig Adams, and Nick Spaling who were terrible even strength. This year, the Penguins will have Pascal Dupuis, Nick Bonino, Eric Fehr, and Matt Cullen as a PK unit, which is leagues better then last years. Cullen's speed should help the Penguins kill penalties each and every game.
Here is a look at my Penguins lines after the Cullen signing when everyone is healthy:
David Perron-Sidney Crosby-Phil Kessel
Sergei Plotnikov-Evgeni Malkin-Patric Hornqvist
Chris Kunitz-Eric Fehr-Pascal Dupuis
Nick Bonino-Matt Cullen-Beau Bennett
Overall this a much deeper team then in recent years and they now can roll out four scoring lines every night which was Jim Rutherford's goal from the start of the offseason.