- May 21, 2026
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The Pittsburgh Penguins have signed center Hendrix Lapierre to a two-year contract with a $1.3 million cap hit.
Lapierre was a restricted free agent after the conclusion of his one-year, $850,000 contract. He was eligible for arbitration, but obviously him and the Penguins never bothered to pursue that route, nailing down a deal on the third day of free agency.
Lapierre’s contract does not come with any bonuses or clauses. His salary structure is slightly frontloaded, as he’ll get paid $1.475 million in 2026-27 and $1.125 million in 2027-28. That also means that his qualifying offer will be brought down to $1.2375 million when he’s an RFA in 2028, when he’ll also have arbitration rights.
Lapierre is locked in at 1.25% of the Penguins’ salary cap until he’s 26 with his new contract. His closest contract comparables are Tye Kartye and Adam Klapka, who are both signed to two-year contracts with $1.25 million AAVs.
The Penguins acquired Lapierre from the Washington Capitals last week ahead of the NHL Draft in exchange for a 2027 third-round pick and a 2028 fifth-round pick. Lapierre was a 22nd overall selection of the Capitals in 2020.
Lapierre had a promising start to his NHL career, as he put up eight goals and 14 assists for 22 points in 51 games in the 2023-24 season. However, he struggled to maintain a consistent role on Washington the following season, spending the year between the NHL and AHL. And then in 2025-26, he spent the season in the NHL, but had a forgettable year with just four goals and 12 assists for 16 points in 74 games.
The Penguins have had a relatively low-key offseason, as they’ve made a handful of smaller moves, including trading for Kaedan Korczak and Nick Robertson, and signing Andrei Kuzmenko, Trevor Van Riemsdyk and Declan Carlile. They still have $24,158,750 in salary cap space after signing Lapierre according to PuckPedia, although they also have eight RFAs left to re-sign, highlighted by Yegor Chinakhov, Arturs Silovs and Robertson.
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Lapierre was a restricted free agent after the conclusion of his one-year, $850,000 contract. He was eligible for arbitration, but obviously him and the Penguins never bothered to pursue that route, nailing down a deal on the third day of free agency.
Lapierre’s contract does not come with any bonuses or clauses. His salary structure is slightly frontloaded, as he’ll get paid $1.475 million in 2026-27 and $1.125 million in 2027-28. That also means that his qualifying offer will be brought down to $1.2375 million when he’s an RFA in 2028, when he’ll also have arbitration rights.
Lapierre is locked in at 1.25% of the Penguins’ salary cap until he’s 26 with his new contract. His closest contract comparables are Tye Kartye and Adam Klapka, who are both signed to two-year contracts with $1.25 million AAVs.
The Penguins acquired Lapierre from the Washington Capitals last week ahead of the NHL Draft in exchange for a 2027 third-round pick and a 2028 fifth-round pick. Lapierre was a 22nd overall selection of the Capitals in 2020.
Lapierre had a promising start to his NHL career, as he put up eight goals and 14 assists for 22 points in 51 games in the 2023-24 season. However, he struggled to maintain a consistent role on Washington the following season, spending the year between the NHL and AHL. And then in 2025-26, he spent the season in the NHL, but had a forgettable year with just four goals and 12 assists for 16 points in 74 games.
The Penguins have had a relatively low-key offseason, as they’ve made a handful of smaller moves, including trading for Kaedan Korczak and Nick Robertson, and signing Andrei Kuzmenko, Trevor Van Riemsdyk and Declan Carlile. They still have $24,158,750 in salary cap space after signing Lapierre according to PuckPedia, although they also have eight RFAs left to re-sign, highlighted by Yegor Chinakhov, Arturs Silovs and Robertson.
Continue reading...