With the Penguins in the midst of their offseason, the Tribune-Review is looking at all 48 players currently under NHL contract to the organization in alphabetical order, from mid-level prospect Niclas Almari to top-six winger Jason Zucker.
P.O Joseph
Position: Defenseman
Shoots: Left
Age: 21
Height: 6-foot-2
Weight: 185 pounds
2020-21 NHL statistics: 16 games, five points (one goal, four assists)
2020-21 AHL statistics: 23 games, 13 points (one goal, 12 assists)
Contract: Second year of a three-year entry-level contract with a salary cap hit of $863,333. Pending restricted free agent in 2022.
(Note: According to CapFriendly, Joseph is still exempt from waivers in the event he is sent to the American Hockey League.)
Acquired: Trade, June 29, 2019
2020-21 season: Being a high-end prospect in the Penguins’ system is kind of like being an albino unicorn whose birthday is on Feb. 29.
That’s to say it’s something of a unique designation.
For roughly a decade and a half, the Penguins have been in “win now” mode under former general managers Jim Rutherford and Ray Shero. And usually, that means dealing away future assets to add pieces to the NHL roster.
So P.O Joseph, a first-round pick (No. 23 overall) of the Arizona Coyotes in 2017, is one of the Penguins’ top prospects, albeit in the company of limited candidates.
The Penguins got a glimpse of what he can offer this past season.
Opening the season on the taxi squad, Joseph was summoned to the NHL roster Jan. 22 when several of the Penguins’ incumbent defensemen — Mike Matheson, Marcus Pettersson and Juuso Riikola — were sidelined due to injuries. That same night, in his NHL debut, Joseph recorded the primary assist on a game-tying goal by forward Teddy Blueger in a 4-3 shootout home win against the New York Rangers.
Joseph remained on the roster for roughly five weeks and took on greater responsibility as more Penguins defensemen — Brian Dumoulin and Kris Letang — missed time due to their own maladies. For a handful of games, Joseph was on the top pairing with Letang, a fairly demanding assignment given Letang’s penchant for being aggressive on the rush.
On Feb. 7, Joseph scored his first career goal during a 4-3 road loss to the New York Islanders.
By late February, Joseph’s play began to wane a bit, and his ice time reflected that as he averaged a mere 12:43 in the final three NHL games he appeared in this past season.
By March 6, Joseph was assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the AHL and finished the regular season in Northeast Pennsylvania.
With Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Joseph was that team’s top defenseman, if not top player. Serving on the top defensive pair, he also quarterbacked the AHL Penguins’ power play.
Once the Stanley Cup postseason opened, Joseph was recalled to the NHL roster to serve on the Black Aces group.
The future: While Joseph is one of the Penguins’ top prospects, he also happens to play a role — as a left-handed defenseman — where the Penguins have a surplus of depth.
Between Dumoulin, Matheson, Pettersson and Riikola, the Penguins have a lot of southpaw blueliners under contract for the 2021-22 season and beyond.
Next month’s expansion draft could break up that logjam that if the Seattle Kraken decide to select someone like Matheson or Pettersson — and more importantly, their lengthy contracts with salary cap hits in excess of $4 million — but that’s hardly a guarantee (or probability).
Ideally, the Penguins will find a way to carve out a roster spot for Joseph. If not, they still have the option of sending him to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton given that he is still exempt from waivers.
Joseph, who added roughly 20 pounds of muscle last offseason, has all the baseline attributes to be an NHL defenseman today. He can skate, move the puck and sees the ice very well.
His time has come, even if the logistics dictate otherwise.
Seth Rorabaugh is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Seth by email at srorabaugh@triblive.com or via Twitter .
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