After already swapping Robert Bortuzzo for Ian Cole, the Pittsburgh Penguins have added yet another player to the fold on trade deadline day, and this one is a familiar face. Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford has also acquired former Penguins defenseman Ben Lovejoy from the Anaheim Ducks.
Lovejoy, now 31, has spent the last three seasons in Anaheim after starting his career with the Penguins as an undrafted free agent out of Dartmouth. He has 248 NHL games on his resume – 98 with the Pens and 150 with the Ducks. He’s scored just 10 career goals but has 54 assists. In 2014-15, he has one goal and 11 assists while averaging 18:33 of ice time.
Lovejoy is in the second year of a three-year deal that earns him an annual average salary of $1.1 million and will be an unrestricted free agent after the 2015-16 season.
In exchange for Lovejoy, the Ducks have acquired Penguins defenseman Simon Despres. Despres, 23, was the Penguins’ first-round selection in 2009, but hasn’t panned out as many expected he would. He has been playing on the Penguins third pair alongside Rob Scuderi for most of the season. Despres still has another year on his contract, which pays him $900,000 annually. He will be a restricted free agent after the 2015-16 season.
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