Yahoo\u2019s<\/a> season splits for Graves are so sad to see how far he fell in 2024-25.<\/p>\nAn occasional healthy scratch, Graves\u2019 offense disappeared to non-existent. He\u2019s never been an offensive defenseman (zero career power play points) but in his best of seasons in 2019-20 with Colorado and 2022-23 with New Jersey, Graves was up to nearly two shots on goal per game. This past year with Pittsburgh it was 0.64. His assist totals have dropped for four years running from 22 in 2021-22 to just three last season. His blocked shots \u2014 also near 2 per game in a good year (and even in his first season in Pittsburgh) was down to barely over one.<\/p>\n
And the biggest key, the ice time was down to 15 minutes per game. It\u2019s stating the obvious to point out what kind of picture this paints: Graves was not trusted by the coaching staff and played virtually as little as possible.<\/p>\n
While no one is expecting a defensive performance like Gustav Forsling or Charlie MacAvoy from the black and gold\u2019s No. 27 next season, what if Graves can get back to at least being decent?<\/p>\n
It would be most welcome \u2014 the Pens left side defense is not even NHL quality at this point, and it wasn\u2019t last season either after trading Marcus Pettersson away in January. Graves joins Ryan Shea, Parker Wotherspoon, Alex Alexeyev and Owen Pickering in a very lacking list of left shot defenders. Given how many bodies the Pens have as right-handers currently by picking up Connor Clifton and Matt Dumba in trades and possibly watching Harrison Brunicke force his way into the lineup, it\u2019s a wonder if some right-handed player will be forced into playing on the left side, given the lack of quality LHD on the roster these days.<\/p>\n
There will be a new coaching staff and system in play \u2014 Graves mentioned how former coach Mike Sullivan\u2019s system was drastically different from what he was used to and obviously challenging for him to execute. That could go a long way.<\/p>\n
Confidence is another. Graves has gone from a really good season in 2022-23 playing on the Devils\u2019 shut down defensive pair to barely being NHL quality in two years. The issue isn\u2019t age or injury limitations, it is arguably as much mental as it has been physical. Last off-season wasn\u2019t the refresh that many hoped, but could it be now?<\/p>\n
The bar is low – if Graves can come in and play 19 minutes per night in a passable way (similar to what he did in NJ and COL), that would be a big win and improvement on what the Pens have received from Graves in the last two seasons. That might be easier said than done since Graves has not performed well in the classic \u201csteady defensive defender supporting an offensive minded defenseman\u201d archetype that players like Pettersson and Brian Dumoulin thrived in.<\/p>\n
Note again that Graves\u2019s best success came in a year he was paired with the defensively stout Marino and not a high-risk, skilled offensively talented partner. The fit might have been all wrong from the start and a classic case of a bad free agent match for the Pens to incorrectly have figured how Graves would have fit into their team.<\/p>\n
Maybe this is all for naught and Graves\u2019s decline has gone into an irreversible spiral to the point where he can no longer be effective at the NHL level. The past two seasons suggest that could be possible too, where the game has passed him by and his quality seasons may be the outlier and not the norm for what he can consistently bring to the table. But the Pens now have a new coach, system, and plenty of opportunity for Graves to salvage his career. Many gave Graves a pass for a bad first season and held out hope that a summer and time to adjust would lead to a better second time around. That makes sense being as many defenseman in particular can take time to fully integrate with a new team. While that sounds good in theory, the results for Graves in year two in Pittsburgh were even worse than his poor first year.<\/p>\n
With that in mind, no one is expecting much from Graves in 2025-26. All results have pointed firmly towards him being a liability and mistake that will go down in franchise history as one of the most under-achieving free agent signings around. There\u2019s not a lot beyond blind hope to give reasons for imagining a huge turnaround but if Graves could at least find some success playing a little more than bare minimum and eat up some minutes while avoiding mistakes it could be a big help for a team that will desperately need capable performances on the blueline.<\/p>\n
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