Penguins Acquire Jussi Jokinen from Carolina

By Brian Metzer

The Penguins have acquired left wing Jussi Jokinen from the Carolina Hurricanes for a conditional sixth-round or seventh-round pick in 2013.

Jokinen, who was recently waived by Carolina, has one year left on a contract that carries a $3 million salary-cap hit for next season. Carolina will pick up a portion of his contract, but that amount has yet to be disclosed.

The move was made to provide depth and to bolster a stable of third and fourth line forwards that might be losing some bodies this summer in the form of Matt Cooke and Tyler Kennedy.

Jokinen is very capable in the faceoff circle, winning 53.8 percent of the draws he has taken in his career. He has won 59.4 percent of his draws this season. That is one area where the Penguins have really been struggling this season. Jokinen, who has just 11 points this season, might not be the offensive player that he once was, but he could contribute a bit in that regard as well.

Shrewd move by Shero that helps a definite deficiency on his team.

Pure depth move for the Penguins…

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