Blake Lizotte did not receive a qualifying offer from the Los Angeles Kings. Scheduled to be a restricted free agent (RFA) the lack of a qualifying offer from General Manager Rob Blake meant that Lizotte became an unrestricted free agent. The Pittsburgh Penguins pounced and signed Lizotte to a two-year deal worth $3.7 million or $1.85 million AAV.
The Pittsburgh Penguins have signed Blake Lizotte to a two-year contract.
Lizotte is signed through the 2025.26 season and his contract carries an average annual value of $1.85 million.
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UFA Blake Lizotte Signs With the Pittsburgh Penguins
At 26-years-old, Blake Lizotte has six seasons of NHL experience under his belt. In 320 career regular season games, he has 37 goals and 69 assists for 106 career points. Moreover, he did have a career-high 34 points in 2022-23, but was unable to build on or even duplicate that success this past NHL campaign. In 2023-24, Lizotte managed seven goals and eight assists in 62 games. However, with the missing games as an indicator, Lizotte did spend a couple stretches out with injury throughout the season. So, it is quite likely, when he was healthy enough to be in the lineup, he spent time playing through injury as well. You would like to think then, he should be able to build upon his 2022-23 this coming year, if everything were considered equally.
What Will Lizotte Bring to the Club
Lizotte is small, but brings grit to his game. Also, he has some touch around the net. In other words, he can be versatile for a team that nurtures his abilities. There is still some work to do to round out his development as an NHLer, but this contract gives the club and player alike the motivation to embark on that journey together. Look for Lizotte to work hard and make it hard to his coaches not to give him a regular shift, regardless of the specific line he’s on or role on the depth chart.
Mandatory Photo Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports
