Lars Eller Trade Paying Off for Penguins Lineup

The Pittsburgh Penguins may have found something with their young third line.

Nov 16, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins right wing Jesse Puljujarvi (18) celebrates with right wing Sam Poulin (22) after scoring a goal against the San Jose Sharks during the first period at PPG Paints Arena. / Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

A week has passed since the Pittsburgh Penguins traded Lars Eller to the Washington Capitals. Eller had been one of the Penguins' more consistent forwards, but his departure was necessary, according to Penguins' Hockey Ops President Kyle Dubas.

"We appreciate everything Lars did here," Dubas said on The GM Show with Josh Getzoff. "But we just think it's in the best interest of our team to continue to give our young players opportunity and see what they've got."

Atop that list of young players is Sam Poulin. Poulin re-signed with the Penguins this summer but has been widely considered to be in a "make or break" season. Since Eller left, Poulin has found a groove with Drew O'Connor and Jesse Puljujarvi on the Penguins' third line.

In three games together, that trio has outscored opponents 2-0 in 28 minutes of 5v5 ice time. While they have been outshot 22-17, the Poulin-O'Connor-Puljujarvi line has accounted for 58% of the shot attempts and 55% of the expected goals share when on the ice at 5v5, according to Natural Stat Trick.

While it's only been three games, that line has caught the eye of Penguins brass.

"They've given us a lot of offensive zone shifts," Dubas said. "They've done that through using their reach, strength, and tenacity to win pucks and get pucks to the net. With all of them, it's continuing to hammer home that this is how you're gonna be effective for us. This is your identity here for us."

The Penguins lineup has been in flux all season, but they've found a combination that could work well for them in the bottom six.

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