When the Pittsburgh Penguins inked Justin Brazeau to a two-year, $3 million contract in free agency a few months ago, few could have guessed that he was about to emerge as one of the best offensive players in the league.
After all, Brazeau was still relatively unproven. He had only two years of NHL experience under his belt and had yet to make much of an impression, mustering just 29 points over his first 95 career games.
He’d also struggled massively after getting traded from the Boston Bruins to the Minnesota Wild last season, managing only two points in 19 games with the Wild. His career appeared to be trending in the wrong direction, and Minnesota didn’t bother to re-sign him.
The Penguins took a flyer on him, hoping a change of scenery and more experienced teammates might help him turn things around.
Surprisingly, that seemingly minor move has turned out to be perhaps the best signing of the offseason. The 27-year-old forward looks like a completely different player with Pittsburgh, scoring six goals and adding six assists in his first 11 games for his new team, including the first three-point game of his career last week against the Vancouver Canucks.
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It’s been a tremendous start for Brazeau, who has the most goals (six) and points (12) of any offseason acquisition entering play on Wednesday. He’s notched at least one point in eight of his 11 games so far, helping the Penguins jump out to a 7-2-2 start.
Brazeau has been much more aggressive attacking the net, averaging nearly twice as many shots on goal per game as last year. He’s also getting more playing time than ever before, which has helped him stay in rhythm and get off to the best start of his career.
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With eight points over his last six games, Brazeau has shown no signs of slowing down and looks like a huge bargain for Pittsburgh, making him one of the best additions in the league.
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Featured image via David Kirouac/Imagn Images