Penguins Acquire Defenseman Samuel Girard and a 2028 Second-Round Draft Pick from the Colorado Avalanche in Exchange for Brett Kulak

The Pittsburgh Penguins have acquired defenseman Samuel Girard and a 2028 second-round choose from the Colorado Avalanche in change for Brett Kulak.

Girard, 27, is signed by the 2026-27 season and carries a mean annual worth of $5 million.

The 2022 Stanley Cup Champion is presently in his ninth NHL season, splitting his profession between Colorado and the Nashville Predators. Girard has tallied three targets, 9 assists, 12 factors and a plus-12 in 40 video games this season.

The 5-foot-10, 170-pound defenseman has recorded 37 targets, 198 assists and 235 factors in 588 profession NHL video games. He has additionally added three targets, 25 assists and 28 factors in 67 profession playoff video games. His finest season got here in 2022-23 when he set profession highs throughout the board in targets (6), assists (31) and factors (37) in 76 video games with the Avalanche.

Prior to turning skilled, Girard performed three seasons in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League with the Shawinigan Cataractes from 2014-17. During his junior profession, he recorded 24 targets, 168 assists and 192 factors in 190 video games. Girard earned QMJHL league-wide honors in every of his three seasons, together with Defensive Rookie of the Year (2015), Defenseman of the Year (2016), Most Sportsmanlike Player (2016) and First All-Star Team Honors (2016 & ’17).

The Roberval, Quebec native was drafted in the second spherical (forty seventh total) of the 2016 NHL Draft by the Nashville Predators.

Pittsburgh now has 34 draft picks over the subsequent 4 NHL drafts, which incorporates 20 choices in the first three rounds. No crew has extra choices over the first three rounds in the subsequent 4 drafts than the Penguins.