NHL: Penguins lock up Ville Koivunen on eight-year deal

Pittsburgh bets big on a 23-year-old

The Penguins are not waiting to find out how good Ville Koivunen can be. Pittsburgh re-signed the restricted free agent forward on Thursday, handing him an eight-year, $32 million contract that carries a $4 million annual cap hit and keeps him in black and gold through 2034.

Koivunen turned 23 this year and has barely scratched the surface at the NHL level. He put up two goals and five assists in 39 games with the Penguins in 2025-26, then tore through the American Hockey League with 41 points in 34 games for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. The production in the minors is what pushed the front office to commit.

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From Carolina pick to Pittsburgh project

The Finland native made his NHL debut in March 2025 and has 14 points in 47 games so far. Carolina drafted him in the second round in 2021, then shipped him to Pittsburgh on March 7, 2024, in the trade that sent Jake Guentzel the other way.

That deal drew plenty of noise at the time. Locking Koivunen up for eight years is Pittsburgh’s way of saying the return might age better than anyone expected.

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