Penguins A to Z: Jake Guentzel needs to offer more in the postseason

With the Penguins in the midst of their offseason, the Tribune-Review is looking at all 48 players currently under NHL contracts to the organization in alphabetical order, from mid-level prospect Niclas Almari to top-six winger Jason Zucker.

Jake Guentzel

Position: Left winger

Shoots: Left

Age: 26

Height: 5-foot-11

Weight: 180 pounds

2020-21 NHL statistics: 56 games, 57 points (23 goals, 34 assists)

Contract: Second year of a five-year contract with a salary cap hit of $6 million. Pending unrestricted free agent in 2024

(Note: The final two years of Guentzel’s contract contains a modified no-trade clause that allows him to submit a 12-team no-trade list.)

Acquired: Third-round draft pick (No. 77 overall), June 30, 2013

2020-21 season: If there were any questions as to how Jake Guentzel would look a full year removed from a devastating right shoulder injury that disrupted his marvelous 2019-20 season in December of 2019, he answered them pretty quickly.

That’s to say he showed he was more than capable of still being Sidney Crosby’s left wing – a fairly demanding station — and producing at a rate commensurate of the form that made him an All-Star in 2019-20.

Additionally, with the departure of Patric Hornqvist via trade in September of 2020, Guentzel became the team’s full-time net presence on the top power-play unit, a role he had inhabited even before Hornqvist was jettisoned.

One of two players on the Penguins’ roster to appear in all 56 games during the regular season — linemate Bryan Rust was the other — Guentzel finished the regular season second on the team in goals and points. Furthermore, his goals were important as he led the Penguins with seven game-winning scores.

In the postseason, the Penguins’ shortcomings were represented by Guentzel in a myriad of ways. Namely, he just didn’t score enough.

In six games, Guentzel, who owns or shares a handful of franchise postseason scoring marks, was limited to a single goal — on a team-leading 25 shots — as the Penguins’ typically dynamic offensive attack was stymied by a stout defensive effort from the New York Islanders who inflicted a physical toll on Guentzel during the first round.

After the season, Guentzel was critical of his own play suggesting he “let a lot of people down.”

The future: There is little to indicate Guentzel is a leading candidate to be moved off the roster this offseason. He’s a consistent producer (at least in regular season play), a favorite of Crosby and a foundation piece of the roster as presently constructed.

Additionally, it’s safe to assume he will be included in the list of players the Penguins will protect in advance of next month’s expansion draft for the Seattle Kraken franchise.

That said, there are few players the Penguins could deal away and get back as much of a return as Guentzel would garner. And given how Guentzel’s postseason struggles — he has three goals in his past 14 playoff games over the past three postseasons — have largely mirrored the Penguins futility — they have failed to win a postseason series for three consecutive years — potentially jettisoning Guentzel, or any other player, would not be entirely unjustified.

Guentzel will likely be back in the Penguins’ lineup when the 2020-21 season opens in mid-October and he will likely be flanking Crosby on the top line. And barring injury, he’ll be a threat to reach the 40-goal mark once again.

But once the postseason opens — assuming the Penguins qualify — they need more from Guentzel than what he has provided the past three years.

Follow the Penguins all season long.