The 2024-25 campaign was a rough one for veteran forward Anthony Mantha, as he played in only 13 games for the Calgary Flames before undergoing season-ending surgery on his knee. Now, he’s latched on with the Pittsburgh Penguins for the 2025-26 season, and he’s looking to put together a bounce-back campaign.
In free agency, the Penguins opted to take a flier on Mantha, as they are hoping he can return to form in the wake of his aforementioned injury. Mantha put pen to paper on a one-year, $2.5 million contract, as he will likely be tasked with adding a scoring punch to Pittsburgh’s bottom-six forward group.
Mantha is only one season removed from tallying 23 goals and 21 assists, so there’s reason to believe that he has some gas left in the tank for the Penguins. The former No. 20 overall pick in the 2013 NHL Draft shared that it was hard to ignore Pittsburgh’s interest in him once free agency opened, and he’s looking forward to taking the ice for his new squad.
“Pitt came through, and I think gave me a great opportunity and great deal from the start of free agency,” Mantha said, per Michelle Crechiolo of NHL.com. “It was hard to look past them, and I’m just excited to join the Penguins. For me, it’s to bring the best hockey I can … find some confidence, and make things happen.”
In his 13 games with the Flames last season, Mantha scored four goals and dished out three assists. Coming back from a serious knee injury is always going to be tough, but the Penguins will be hoping to get at least 15 goals out of Mantha, in addition to seeing him consistently take the ice for them.
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After missing the postseason for the third straight year, Pittsburgh is going to be looking to snap that streak this upcoming campaign. If Mantha can stay on the ice and rediscover his prior form, he may not be the only one who manages to put together a bounce-back season next year.
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Featured image via Sergei Belski-Imagn Images