Pittsburgh has added another veteran presence on the blueline in advance of a second consecutive Stanley Cup.
Ron Hainsey, the 35-year-old ‘Canes rearguard, has been acquired in exchange for a second-round pick and AHLer Danny Kristo, per TVA. Hainsey, a pending UFA, is in the last of a three-year, $8.5 million deal with a $2.83M average annual cap hit. Per Sportsnet, Carolina will retain 50 percent of his salary.
The Hainsey acquisition comes with the Pens down several key d-men. Olli Maatta and Justin Schultz are sidelined with a hand injury and concussion, while Trevor Daley suffered a lower-body injury on Tuesday night.
UPDATE:
Trevor Daley out 6 weeks after knee surgery. Penguins acquire veteran D Ron Hainsey from Carolina for No 2 pick, minor-leaguer Danny Kristo.
— Dave Molinari (@MolinariPGH) February 23, 2017
And that makes the trade all the more important.
Hainsey -- who holds the current active record for most regular-season games played (891) without appearing in the playoffs -- makes a lot of sense for the Pens.
He played under GM Jim Rutherford in Carolina, has decent offensive capabilities (14 points in 56 games) and can log some significant minutes. Hainsey played over 22 per night this year for the ‘Canes, a carryover from last year when he averaged 22:19.
Schultz and Daley, you’ll recall, were two of Rutherford’s key defensive upgrades last year that helped put Pittsburgh over the top. The season prior, Ian Cole was acquired from St. Louis and turned into an important blueline piece.
So the hope, obviously, is that Hainsey can replicate some of that success.
For the ‘Canes, this deal allows them to further stockpile picks for the ’17 draft. The club now has 10 selections overall, including six in the first three rounds. Kristo, 26, was at one time considered a prospect but now is pretty much a career AHLer. He scored 11 points in 32 games this year for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
