Penguins A to Z: Jared McCann finally finds steady role
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.
Jared McCann
Position: Left winger
Shoots: Left
Age: 25
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 185 pounds
2020-21 NHL statistics: 43 games, 32 points (14 goals, 18 assists)
Contract: First year of a two-year contract with a salary cap hit of $2.94 million. Pending restricted free agent in 2022.
(Note: Per Cap Friendly, McCann will be eligible for arbitration upon the expiration of his contract.)
Acquired: Trade, Feb. 1, 2019
2020-21 season: The start of McCann’s third campaign with the Penguins kind of went the way his first two went.
That’s to say he was forced to fill whatever void was present in the lineup most of the time at the expense of a regular role.
After opening the season on the left wing of the third line with Mark Jankowski at center and Brandon Tanev at right wing, McCann began to take on elevated duties when injuries took their toll on the Penguins’ forward ranks. In particular, after the right knee ailment Evgeni Malkin suffered in mid-March, McCann took over as the team’s No. 2 center and began to man the left circle of the top power-play unit.
McCann, who missed 13 games himself due to various injuries throughout February and March, blossomed with the top power-play group. Despite being deployed with that squad for no more than half the season, McCann led the Penguins with seven power-play scores thanks to his javelin of a wrister.
After the Penguins acquired forward Jeff Carter via trade on April 12, McCann found himself back on the left wing with Carter at center and they quickly established chemistry on the team’s second line.
When Malkin returned to the lineup for the final four games of the regular season, McCann and Carter were moved to the third line as a duo and teamed with Frederick Gaudreau on the right wing.
In the postseason, McCann was limited to a single assist (on a goal by Carter) in six games during the Penguins’ first-round loss to the New York Islanders.
The future: The biggest question with McCann moving forward is if the Penguins will protect him in this month’s expansion draft. Were he exposed, McCann would certainly be an enticing target for the Seattle Kraken to select given his age, his skill set and the potential for contract control as a pending restricted free agent in 2022.
Assuming McCann remains with the Penguins after this offseason, he will presumably remain on a line with Carter going into next season. Coach Mike Sullivan tends to find “pairs” first when creating his lines, and the cohesion between McCann and Carter was vivid to the naked eye. Also, considering Malkin could miss some portion of the 2021-22 campaign due to offseason knee surgery, Carter and McCann will likely be the foundation of the second line to start the season.
McCann has always had plenty to offer the Penguins. A first-round draft pick (No. 24 overall) of the Vancouver Canucks in 2014, McCann possesses plenty of skill. He’s a hiccup-quick skater, has a heavy shot, can play center and even has a little bit of a physical edge to his game.
Now, he appears to have finally found a steady role.
Seth Rorabaugh is a TribLive reporter covering the Pittsburgh Penguins. A North Huntingdon native, he joined the Trib in 2019 and has covered the Penguins since 2007. He can be reached at srorabaugh@triblive.com.
Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.