John Marino was exchanged to the New Jersey Devils by the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday for Ty Smith and a third-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft.
The 25-year-old defenseman had 25 focuses (one objective, 24 aids), 81 ordinary season games for the Penguins last season and one aid in seven Stanley Cup Playoff games. He has five seasons staying on a six-year, $26.4 million agreement ($4.4 million normal yearly worth) he endorsed with Pittsburgh on Jan. 3, 2021.
“John is a serious, profoundly portable defenseman who fortifies our back end,” Devils head supervisor Tom Fitzgerald said. “He invests heavily in his game away from the puck, and his puck the board and capacity to change play will fit in pleasantly with our style and the qualities of our forward bunch. This is one more manoeuvre zeroed in on further developing our club today while likewise giving conviction and security to program adaptability as we keep building.”
Marino is the most recent in a whirlwind of offseason moves by the Devils, who were 27-46-9 last season and have been equipped for the Stanley Cup Playoffs once (2018) starting around 2012. It started with procuring goalie Vitek Vanecek in an exchange of picks in the 2022 NHL Draft with the Washington Capitals on July 8, trailed by forwarding Erik Haula in an exchange with the Boston Bruins for forward Pavel Zacha on July 13.
New Jersey then marked unlimited free specialist defenseman Brendan Smith to a two-year, $2.2 million agreement ($1.1 million AAV) on Wednesday and forward Ondrej Palat, a double cross Stanley Cup victor with the Tampa Bay Lightning, to a five-year, $30 million agreement ($6 million AAV) on Thursday.
Marino joins a young Devils core, including advances Jack Hughes, 21; Nico Hischier, 23; Jesper Bratt, 23; and Dawson Mercer, 20. Chosen by the Edmonton Oilers in the 6th round (No. 154) of the 2015 NHL Draft, Marino has 64 focuses (10 objectives, 54 aids), 189 normal season games, and two aids in 17 postseason games.
Ty Smith, a 22-year-old defenseman, can turn into a limited free specialist next season. Chosen by New Jersey in the main round (No. 17) of the 2018 NHL Draft, he has 43 focuses (seven objectives, 36 aids) and 114 games.
“We have high expectations for Ty,” Penguins head supervisor Ron Hextall said. “We surrendered John Marino for him, a great NHL player. Our part has a little gamble, yet we feel better about it. We have a ton of defensemen (nine) now, so we’ll perceive how things work out with Ty. He doesn’t require waivers, so we do have that choice. Yet, until instructional course comes and we see what we have and how folks perform, we’ll settle on those choices when they’re suitable.”
Smith had 23 focuses (two objectives, 21 aids) and 48 games for the Devils in 2020-21, completing seventh in deciding in favour of the Calder Trophy as NHL the new hotness. He had 20 focuses (five objectives, 15 aids) in 66 games last season.
“I was lucky to gain some significant knowledge about the game these initial two years,” Smith said. “I think I’ve come quite far as a player from a total perspective. Be that as it may, the numbers were a little better than my most memorable year. That happens here and there, I presume. Go through droops a smidgen in years. I’m truly anticipating one year from now, and I was lucky to glean some significant knowledge.
“I’m a person that likes to skate. Depending on that and my hockey sense, … my capacity to make plays on the primary pass. I think in Pittsburgh, that’s what they like. They like expertise and ownership. They’re a skating crew. That is something that goes with how I play, I presume.”
Likewise Saturday, the Penguins procured defenseman Jeff Petry and forward Ryan Poehling in an exchange with the Montreal Canadiens for defenseman Mike Matheson and a fourth-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft. Pittsburgh marked defenseman Jan Rutta to a three-year, $8.25 million agreement ($2.75 million AAV) on Wednesday.
