The Penguins added a new/old face to their roster today, acquiring defenseman Pierre-Olivier Joseph from the Blues. The price? The ubiquitous “future considerations.”
Part of me is surprised as heck and another part…not so much.
In the wake of injuries to cornerstone defenseman Marcus Pettersson and, to a lesser degree, depth defenders Jack St. Ivany and Sebastian Aho, the Pens were/are thin on the blue line.
Joseph is a known quantity, good and bad. On the plus side, he’s a fluid skater who possesses some decent if underutilized offensive skills.
On the flip side, the closer the play gets to his own net, the more his defensive struggles intensify. Although never for a lack of effort, POJ gets outworked and outmuscled in traffic on a regular basis. It’s almost as if his rangy 6’2″ 185-pound physique and long stick work against him in tight quarters.
He’s a left shot, too, one I don’t recall playing his off-side. Which means another natural portsider, perhaps Matt Grzelcyk, will need to shift to starboard. Given that Grzelcyk played a decent game on his natural side while skating next to Erik Karlsson against the Kings, a bit counterintuitive.
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