Pens GM hopes to sign high-impact free agents in 'a couple of years'

General manager Jim Rutherford believes he can keep the Pittsburgh Penguins' Stanley Cup window open in the latter stages of the Sidney Crosby era by making a splash in free agency.

The Pens only project to hold $5.4 million in cap space next offseason, according to CapFriendly. However, they could have nearly $35 million in flexibility after the 2022 campaign when Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, Bryan Rust, and others come off the books. That might be when Rutherford plans to strike.

"The key to this as we go forward a couple of years down the road will be plugging in an impact player into the lineup. Maybe a couple of impact players. Not just a good player, but an impact guy," Rutherford told The Athletic's Josh Yohe. "It's hard to get the truly impactful guys, players like Crosby, Malkin, and Letang. But the time will come when we'll have to add one of those types of players.

"It's something we'll probably have to do through free agency. We'll have to find the right year to do it, but the time will come when we'll need to find a truly impactful player who is probably in his mid-20s. As the years go on and some of the veterans eventually move out of our lineup, we'll have to get two, three guys in their mid-20s. Impactful players. We can do it."

It's typically difficult to add high-impact players in their mid-20s through unrestricted free agency. Most players are in their late-20s or early-30s when they hit the open market. Nevertheless, the 2022 UFA class includes a long list of players who should still be in their primes. Here are the most noteworthy:

*Age as of July 1, 2022

Of course, many of these players could re-sign with their current clubs before reaching free agency. However, the idea that a superstar free agent would be intrigued by possibly playing with Crosby and Malkin in the duo's final years isn't lost on Rutherford.

"Nope," the Hall of Fame executive said with a laugh.