Though it’s not quite on the level of a Brady Tkachuk, William Eklund, or Jordan Kyrou, the Pittsburgh Penguins did make an addition to their forward corps yesterday.

General manager Kyle Dubas dealt some of his team’s extra draft capital to acquire forward Hendrix Lapierre from the division-rival Capitals yesterday, sending a 2027 third-round pick and 2028 fifth-round pick Washington’s way. That fifth rounder initially belonged to San Jose; the Penguins acquired it last year from the Sharks in exchange for veteran defenseman Vincent Desharnais.

This marks the third trade made between the Penguins and Capitals in the last two years, which you don’t always see for teams in the same division.

Lapierre is a former first-round selection, taken 22nd overall by the Capitals back in 2020, one pick after current Penguin Egor Chinakhov, and two picks before Connor Zary, who I wrote about on Wednesday.

Lapierre is a player who hasn’t quite developed the way Washington would have hoped. The 2020 NHL Draft class was warped by Covid-19 and held in October, but it still has some pretty recognizable names. Among his fellow first-rounders, however, Lapierre is 25th in games played and 26th in points. Among the 2020 class overall, he’s 33rd in games played and 34th in points.

He played six games for the Capitals in the 2021-22 season, but didn’t get a decent run in the NHL until 2023-24. That year, he scored eight goals and 14 assists (22 points) in 51 games while averaging a career-high 11:26 a night.

Since then, both his production and his ice time has dwindled. The following year, he split the season between Washington and their American Hockey League affiliate in Hershey. With the Bears, he was a point-per-game player. With the Capitals, though, he recorded just eight assists in 27 games.

To Lapierre’s credit, he did manage to stick around in the NHL last season in a fourth-line capacity. In 74 games, he scored four goals and added 12 assists (16 points). He did that while playing the second-lowest ice time in Washington, at just 8:50 a night.

Now at 24 years old, he’s another younger forward who Dubas is hoping can find some success in a new organization.

Lapierre doesn’t have the pure offensive talent that someone like Chinakhov, who the Penguins deployed the similar “change of scenery” trade with back in December, Lapierre is a role player who the Penguins could use.

In Pittsburgh, Lapierre has a shot to take over a spot on the fourth line. Noel Acciari, who centered that impactful trio for the Penguins last season, is a pending free agent and likely will be allowed to hit the open market. Lapierre is naturally a center, but given his deficiency in the face-off dot, perhaps a permanent shift to wing is what’s bets for Lapierre.

Last season, Lapierre only won 39.9% of his face-offs. While that was a career high for the Quebec native, it was still by far the worst of any regular center on the team. He wasn’t trustworthy as a draw winner; perhaps that was part of the reason why only 8.2% of his shifts started in the defensive zone.

Moving him over to a winger spot probably helps you unlock the best in Lapierre, keeping him out of the dot and relying on his ability to chip in as a defensive winger with the occasional goal or assist.

It’s important to note that Lapierre is currently without a contract, coming off a one-year, $850K deal he signed with Washington last summer. He is a restricted free agent with arbitration rights, but it shouldn’t be difficult for the two sides to come together on a new agreement.

One thing this acquisition does, though, is call into question the futures of some of the depth pieces the Penguins currently have in the system. Somebody like Tristan Broz, who is a 23-year-old center and played a game for Pittsburgh last year, could have jumped up to a fourth-line spot next year.

Avery Hayes, for example, is another bottom-six forward who could leap into a full-time NHL spot. The 23-year-old, who scored five times in 16 games, showcased some checking skill and will battle for a role next year.

In terms of other trade acquisitions, someone like Oliver Okuliar, who the Penguins picked up in exchange for disgruntled defensive prospect Emil Pieniniemi. Okuliar, 26, was playing in the Swedish league last season and signed a one-year deal in Pittsburgh following the trade.

More competition for open spots on the roster is always a good thing, but Lapierre might have an edge considering he cost a few picks to bring in.

Had the Capitals tried to recoup the asset they used to first take Lapierre, the Penguins would have likely steered clear. But for two mid-round picks, it’s worth a shot.

At worst, he’s someone who has shown he can play in the NHL (which most third and fifth round picks never do), and at best, Lapierre develops more of that offensive skill that the Penguins could use in their bottom six.